MORGANTOWN, W.Va. — A retired WVU professor will never forget the events of September 11, 2001.
Retired WVU John Chambers College of Business and Economics professor Tom Witt was in New York City at the World Trade Center on that fateful day when more than 3,000 Americans died in terrorist attacks.
Witt and his wife were staying at the World Trade Center Hotel.
The hotel is located between the two World Trade Center Towers, and Witt was attending a conference and having breakfast on the morning of the attack. When the first plane hit the North Tower, an explosion occurred that rattled the walls and shook the chandeliers. When Witt and a group went outside, they saw smoke streaming from the North Tower and weren’t sure what had happened.
Witt’s wife, Grethe Myles, who died earlier this year, was on the 10th floor of the hotel when the plane hit and safely evacuated the building.
“We were at breakfast down in the ballroom of the World Trade Center Hotel, which is right between the twin towers, when the first plane hit,” Witt, said Thursday on WAJR’s “Talk of the Town.” “We evacuated to the lobby, and then once it appeared to be safe, we proceeded outside.”
Witt, who will speak at WVU’s remembrance ceremony Friday, and a group from the conference were walking the streets of Manhattan, taking in the chaos and trying to determine what was happening. Right before the second plane hit the South Tower, Witt found a phone to call his office and witnessed the second plane crash into the South Tower.
“I found a telephone and called my office and looked up and saw the second plane hit, and I thought, ‘Oh my God,'” Witt said. “We weren’t sure what had happened to the first tower, but we knew what happened to the second tower.”
On the streets, bodega owners were passing out water, food, and snacks to people still trying to determine exactly what had happened. Through the help of those store owners, they learned the Pentagon had been struck and came to the realization that some sort of an attack on the nation was underway.
“They were pulling TV sets out so we could watch what was going on, and on one TV set we saw a plane hit the Pentagon,” Witt said. “It was a clear blue sky, and when we looked up, all we saw were fighter jets and we weren’t sure if the United States was invaded or not.”
Witt ended up on the West Side of Manhattan and his wife on the East Side. Witt was taken to a townhome in the Greenwich Village area and his wife found a ride with a friend to reunite after a day of chaos and uncertainty.
“We were reunited around 4 p.m. that day, and I have to tell you she was a sight for sore eyes,” Witt said. “We both broke down. We were so glad to be reunited with one another.”
Witt said the group that was at the conference that day still maintains contact today. Witt said on the 25th anniversary of the attacks, the survivors from the conference will participate in a reunion Zoom call.
“We try to keep that story alive,” Witt said. “In fact, the proceeds from that entity go to scholarships to support the individuals who were affected by 9/11 who were associated with the hotel.”