NYC 5 years later...

I lived in NYC for 20 years, heard the first plane overhead just before striking the North Tower (the sound shook my building so violently that dishes and windows rattled). That day, I watched as the towers burned, knowing that once the fire had come full circle around their waists, they would crumble.

I also remember wondering where in the hell were the helicopters to rescue those trapped on the top floors. Later, as the survivors came streaming up Sixth Avenue and MacDougal on foot (many covered with ash), I recall one fellow saying that the firemen were all headed up the stairs as he was running down. The building he was in collapsed soon thereafter and he was sure the firemen weren't coming out.

• Post 9.11, New York City remains largely unprotected from further air attacks. Military flight patrols were discontinued some 6 months after 9.11. Like sitting ducks, a number of huge tanks full of flammable and/or toxic chemicals lie a mere 20 miles away and 2 nuclear reactors a mere 50 miles away. Although the port authority's ship patrols have increased -- unless I have missed some new news item -- little is being done to prevent another attack by air.


• Further to the above, there are as yet no viable evacuation plans for NYC. A fellow with a sailboat once pointed out to me that, in the event of attack, with all arteries leaving the city coming to a virtual standstill, thousands of small boats would have to ferry people off of the island.There are however no docks in place to accommodate these boats. It was one thing to ignore worst-case scenarios during our privileged years of invulnerability. Now that our sense of security is so deeply altered, one can only wonder at the lack of imagination and/or concern.