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INTERVIEW WITH RICHARD FERN, EURO BROKERS, 3-25-04, 199 Water Street

• RF was not at the WTC in!993, but considered subsequent fire drills
absolutely helpful.e.g, he knew where stairs were so could get to them and
evacuate quickly; does not recall being given any specific instructions, e.g.,
always go up or down, just to go to the center of the floor and await
instructions that would be given at the time; pointed out that most people Euro
Brokers lost were ones who had not been there in 1993; most people who
were there in 1993 had it in their heads always and generally headed out after
the 1st plane hit;
• RF's office faced north near the west side of the building; trading floor was on
the east side;
• After 1st plane hit, could see papers flying, but not 1 WTC itself; [see his
transript]
• Started calling over 2-way radio w/ 2 channels, for telephone and data group;
• Connected with facility manager, Steve Chuknick, to try to get information;
Steve's office was in the corner; he was listening to CNN;
• Found out from TV that a small plane had hit building 1;
• Then came a PA announcement [RF is not sure whether there was one or two
announcement, but believes there was a later one, see below]; remembers
announcement saying that a small plane had accidentally hit 1 WTC and that
building [e.g.. building 2] is secure: ok to go back to your offices: maybe they
were getting info from news too;
• Had not really thought about leaving yet, trying to get info etc, but probably
decided to stay at this point because of the announcement;
• In general people on the floor, RF remembers vividly, were nervous and
anxious, but they didn't leave; were influenced by first announcement;
• Went to the window of his office and he and Steve looked into the plaza from
a NW window; [Steve] had heard it was a plane too that hit too; down into the
plaza; (co-worker had also heard plane hit); could see the hole in the east side
of 1 WTC with flames; watched several people deliberately jump; could
practically make eye contact with them; first they were hanging, then they
decided to jump; there flames surrounding them, pushing them out; they had
no choice; looked like they were at eye level floors, but probably from low
impact which were slightly above; (RF was on 84h floor of 2 and impact
floors in 1 were approx 93-98); stopped looking;
• Went back to the middle of the east side of the building, where he saw BC and
told him people are jumping out windows; he and BC then went to a north
window to look; there were more people jumping because flames were getting
bad; BC saw one and just turned away; RF told BC he was leaving; BC went
south and RF went back into hall en route to his office;
• In the hall, Liz Holmes, Steve's secretary; passed him and left; (he thought)
• [Called home at some point and told his wife that something's going on in 1
WTC; she wasn't aware yet;]
• [At some point, saw 1 broker, Tony, head out and leave;]
Went back to his office and was IM'ing with someone who said you should
get out;
Started to think he should leave;
Went out, told Steve I'm going down since he was not part of search;
At this point, there was a second 2nd PA announcement that said, generally,
you can leave if you want;
Called for local elevator and figured if it came, he would get in; if not, he
Hnwn the stairs;
The elevator came, he got in, turned around, may have pressed the button, but
right as this happened the second plane hit; felt like the building was going to
go over; RF got tossed around and ended up on all fours;
The lights went out everywhere;
RF jumped out of the elevator (there was no one else in the elevator); did not
know that it was a plane that hit his building; not really thinking;
Floor was smoky and dark, electricity was out except emergency exits, tiles
had fallen, lights hanging; but he knew where the emergency exits were; from
where he was at the elevator, stairway A was the closest stairway (about 15 ft
one way, and 10 ft after you turned); though it would not have been the closest
from where he normally was on the trading floor; he ran right directly to
stairway A, made sure the door was not too hot and entered;
Inside the stairway, it was black, dark, smoke starting to come up; does not
remember water in the stairwell; UN^yV
RF held onto rail, guided by glow stripe on stairs and banisters; he heard no
further announcements and no fire alarm:
RF was the only person in staircase; he went down a few flights, probably
down to about 78th floor when got came against wall, or short hall with
nowhere and was virtually stopped; because there were no lights, he could not
see how to proceed and ended up opening a door which led onto the floor;
[this was probably the floor on which the staircase diverts back in towards
core]; must get floor diagrams to figure this out; the floor looked pretty
normal, no smoke, lights on; RF heard someone yell from other side, don't
take that staircase, take this staircase; he turned a corner and either re-entered
stairway A or entered another stairway with about five people; one of those
was Janice Brooks, another Euro Brokers employee who made it out of the
building and two men who were helping a woman who was bleeding; this was
at about 9:05, right after the plane hit;[if stairway A first juts northward on the
84th floor, RF may have entered it there, gone straight down and then got
confused where it goes back in; may have entered floor there and then re-
entered stairway A from another entrance; it unlikely that he a floor in the
impact zone would be in condition this good;] however, the "new" stairway
was in good condition (at first), well lit and RF did not have to go down any
more halls to proceed down (it is possible this could have been stairway B, but
more likely RF re-entered A at the point where it proceeds down; can
determine from better floor plans);
RF then went down about 1 or 2 more floors when he met up with a woman
and man who said they could not pass because of drywall blocking way; RF
picked up wall, which was wedged under the handrail and went under; does
not know if they followed;
At the next floor, there was another knocked down wall, this one was higher;
RF was able to jump on top and slide to the left to get over;
At some point, he ran into a co-worker; [RF remembers this being right after
the wall but the co-worker remembers it being before because he thinks he
helped him move it;]
RF switched his radio onto channel 2 which was facilities, telecom (he was
normally on channel 1, for data); [about 8 EB employees had these walkie-
talkies]; heard a security person, Jerry Banks, outside building calling Dave
Vera (another EB co-worker) who was in building; [still on or above 84th
floor, had been in EC's group originally]; RF did not want to interfere so
didn't say anything, just listened;
At some point between the 70's and 30's, a guy with a neck injury ran past
them;
Otherwise encountered maybe a handful of people walking; mostly ones who
were elderly or overweight; RF usually passed them;
Proceeded down with co-worker; around 30's legs were just shaking, hoping
he would make it down;
After this point, didn't really see anyone; kept listening to radio; maybe one
time heard Dave on floor talking to Jerry; Jerry saying help was on the way
(thinks Jerry may have gotten rescue workers on the ground to go up); tried to
use his phone but it didn't work;
Right above the lobby, on the 2nd or 3rd floor, encountered FF's, maybe about
5, they were just going up; it may have been at the mezzanine level, where
they entered;
RF went down one more staircase and got to the lobby, to the center of the
elevator banks, where the freight cars are (passenger elevators are on the
outside); saw mostly police, PAPD, security guards, 1 guy with a head injury
propped up against wall;
Directed by PA security to concourse; no one asked any questions about
where he came from, what floor etc: this was probably around 9:25;
Emergency personnel stationed in concourse every 30 ft or so, waving them
where to go; female cop by PATH train says don't use cell phone; don't use
up the lines; [normally you could get cell phone signals in the concourse];
Came out Church St and walked up escalator; a lot of cops there, street was
cordoned off; pretty empty;
Told to cross Church Street, which he did, then walked east on Fulton, turned
left on Broadway, and sat down on a curb on Beekman, where there were a lot
of EB people, by J&R; they started walking down Beekman and RF followed,
went into deli on and then proceeded to regular hairdresser where he got
cleaned up and people could use the phones; called mother in Bklyn and asked
her to call his wife; heard Dave on the radio saying things were bad, needed
help;
Just as he was going to leave the hairdresser, first tower collapsed; thought it
was a 3rd plane, (which means he must have known that there was a second
plane at this point); heard noise, then went back in; noise very quick;
Eventually came out of the building and walked in the direction of Brooklyn;
everyone running, ran over to PACE university and sat on car; cloud coming
at them and ran into PACE; security guard got him in and shut the door
behind him, then cloud passed; eventually security people told them to go
other side of the building; heard Jerry on radio but no one was answering, so
assumed that it was building that fell; told Jerry to go home;
In the building for about 20 mins, used the back of his shirt as a mask; then
walked toward bridge, directed by cop who gave him a surgical mask which
they got from Beekman hospital; WTC 1 came down while he was on the
bridge;
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WTC attack "My Story" by Richard Fern...9-11-2001


I was in the Euro Brokers computer room of 2 WTC on the 84th floor where I am employed as an IT
Manager when I noticed the lights flicker. I did not hear anything because of the loud AC units that cool
the room. I went out to the Trading Floor and saw all the Brokers clamoring by the North side windows
screaming that a bomb had just exploded across from us in 1 WTC. When I looked out the windows I
saw the flames and papers coming from the upper floors across from us. I then went by my office where
I was again watching the papers and flames. At this moment CNN was reporting that a plane had flown
into the 1 WTC. The Port Authority Emergency PA system was then announcing, "that a plane had
accidentally crashed into 1 WTC and 2 WTC was secure". I went back to the window and was looking
down for debris from the wreckage but later learned I was looking at the opposite end of where the plane
went in. About this time people started jumping from 1 WTC to escape the flames. I returned to the
Trading floor to I saw one of the partners, Brian Clark. I told him I had seen people jumping from the
other building. Brian then went to the window when more people where jumping. Both of us turned
away in disbelief at what we where witnessing. I told Brian I was leaving and went back to my desk.

The Port Authority Emergency PA system was now announcing "if you wish to leave you can". I then
headed for the elevator pushed the hall button and stepped in when the 2 plane crashed into my
building throwing me first into the left wall then the right wall landing on the floor on all fours in the
dark. I then jumped from the elevator before the doors could close and risk being trapped, now I headed
for the nearest emergency stairway opening the door to find it unlit and filled with smoke. I started
running down the stairs following the white glow in the dark stripe on the steps. When I arrived on the
78th floor I was shocked to discover the stairs ended. I reached along the wall and found a door handle
and was relieved to find that it opened and saw daylight coming from the opening. Upon entering I
heard someone yell "do not go down that staircase, use this one". I walked briskly to where I heard the
voice coming from and passed a woman who was bleeding and being helped by a man, but otherwise
OK. I then started down the next staircase; I was moving quickly and passing people on the staircase. I
then turned a corner and saw a woman and man standing on the steps in front of a wall that fell in from
the explosion and blocked the way. They said to me that they "could not pass". I did not even
acknowledge them; I just put my hands under the wall and lifted. The wall came up and came to rest on
the banister, just enough for us to crawl under. I continued down to the next floor where a smaller
portion of a wall had fallen and blocked the stairs. I jumped from the stairs on top of the wall and rolled
over onto the landing and continued my descent.

Further down I ran into another co-worker Peter whom I was about to pass. He stopped me and said,
"We should stay together". I remember responding, "OK but he would have to keep up with me". About
this time I switched my 2 -way radio to the channel our Facilities people use. I heard one of our security
person Jerry Banks who was outside the building calling Dave who is in communications department.
Dave was still in the building telling Jerry that there was a lot of smoke and to send help.

At the time I was surprised we did not see many people in the stairway. But thinking back a lot of
people must have left when the 1st plane struck. When we reached the 30th floor my legs where shaking
and I was concerned that I would collapse, but I kept on going. When we reached the bottom we were
directed out of the building by Port Authority Police and Security people. We exited on Church Street
by Borders Book store. As we walked up Fulton Street along side the church cemetery Peter stopped and

http://www.technologyshoppe.com/fern.asp 3/25/2004

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