Sept. 11, 2001 – While Gov. Charles W. Turnbull sent out a press release on Aug. 31 urging the Water and Power Authority board to consider several water line projects on St. John, WAPA's director, Joseph R. Thomas Jr., says the request doesn't come with any money.
"These projects end up at the end of the line, so revenue is hard to find," Thomas said.
The governor called for improvements to the existing potable water lines in Cruz Bay and Pine Peace as well as installation of new lines in Adrian. Thomas said upgrading and installing these lines would not solve the island's annual winter water shortage, "but it will help, short term."
Additionally, he said, production capability at WAPA's Frank Bay plant on St. John has been increased by 80,000 gallons a day to an output of 260,000 gallons a day, and this also will help.
Thomas said the installation of a permanent undersea pipeline from Red Hook to Cruz Bay should put an end to the shortages on St. John. He said WAPA is in the midst of the permitting process to undertake that project.
WAPA also must find funding for the leg of the water-distribution system on St. Thomas that runs between Red Hook and Tutu, Thomas said. "We're working hard to get it funded," he said.

Sept. 11, 2001 – Following is information concerning events and operations in the Virgin Islands that has been announced as a result of the terrorists attacks in New York and Washington, D.C., Tuesday morning. This posting is being updated as additional information is received.
Notices may be e-mailed to source@viaccess.net. They may be faxed to 777-8136 or to (509) 267-3448.
Government House social functions canceled
"In light of the tragic events that transpired in New York City, Washington, D.C., and other parts of the U.S. mainland, all planned social receptions at Government House in both districts" have been canceled until further notice, according to an announcement from the administration's Office of Public Relations.
Mail for off-island restricted to 1 pound or less
Postmaster Louis Jackson, V.I. coordinator for the U.S. Postal Service, announced on Tuesday afternoon that post offices in the territory will not accept any parcels weighing more than 1 pound that are destined for the continental United States or international locales.
He said the restriction is because of the shutdown of the nation's airports. Similarly, he said, until further notice, timely delivery of Express Mail letters and parcels cannot be guaranteed.
Seaplanes included in FAA shutdown
Along with all of the nation's land-based air carriers, Seaborne Airlines has been ordered by the Federal Aviation Administration to suspended flights flights of its seaplanes until at least noon Wednesday. "We are awaiting word from the FAA," chief marketing officer Omer ErSelcuk said. "After we get the go ahead, we will put on extra flights if necessary to get everybody back home."
ErSelcuk said the airline's recently inaugurated flight from San Juan had just landed on St. Thomas as news of the grounding was received. As a result, "Now, we have three planes waiting on St. Thomas," he said. He said Seaborne will do everything it can to help move passengers on Wednesday, assuming the FAA lifts the suspension. "Like everybody else," he said, "we're still in a state of shock."
Mourning service to be held on St. Thomas
Members of all faiths are invited to an ecumenical Mourning Service that will be held Wednesday evening at the St. Thomas Reformed Church as a response to the terrorist attacks.
The service is to begin at 5:15 p.m. in the historic Dutch Reformed house of worship located at the corner of Nye Gade and Crystal Gade in downtown Charlotte Amalie.
Local blood drive called for to assist victims
Sen. Adlah "Foncie" Donastorg said Tuesday afternoon that he has asked the local chapters of the American Red Cross to help organize a blood drive in the Virgin Islands to assist those injured in the terrorist attacks. A release from his office noted that communities across the U.S. mainland are undertaking similar efforts.
Veterans Affairs office closed
Fernando Webster, director of the Office of Veterans Affairs, said Tuesday that the St. Thomas office will be closed until further notice. Anyone needing emergency service is asked to call 773-6663.
Hearing on V.I. Hotel conversion postponed
The Labor and Veterans Affairs Committee hearing scheduled for Wednesday evening at the Legislature Building on St. Thomas has been postponed until further notice. The hearing was to share information on plans to turn the former Virgin Isles Hotel into a veterans' multipurpose center.
"Several of the investment bankers and developers scheduled to testify … are unable to travel due to the security now being enforced at all airports throughout the nation," the committee chair, Sen. Norma Pickard-Samuel, said in a release. The hearing will be rescheduled, she said.
Telecommunications security heightened
Holland Redfield, vice president for corporate affairs of Innovative Communication Corp., the parent company of the Innovative Telephone, formerly the V.I. Telephone Corp., said Tuesday afternoon that all ICC facilities were on heightened alert and taking security precautions. He declined to provide details.
Innovative also owns the St. Thomas-St. John and St. Croix cable television companies, Innovative Wireless and four other Caribbean cable companies.
Hospitality sector concerns
Asked what impact she thought the terrorist attacks would have on tourism in the Virgin Islands, Beverly Nicholson, executive director of the St. Thomas-St. John Hotel and Tourism Association, said Tuesday afternoon, "I'm concerned about the impact, but right now our hearts go out to the families." She also said member hotels have activated their "normal disaster plans."
Kathy Demar, who manages vacation villas on St. John, said she fears the worst will happen to the territory's tourism-based economy. "How many people will not get on a plane now?" she wondered. However, Nicholson said she thinks people will continue to visit the territory because the American flag flies overhead. "People will feel safer," she said.
Nicholson said that with airports on both islands and throughout the nation closed, guests would be remaining at least over Tuesday night. Hotels were making arrangements to accommodate them, she said.
Wendall Snider, president of the St. Croix Hotel and Tourism Association, said hotels on St. Croix are "on the empty side" at this time of year, so accommodating guests unable to leave is not a problem. He said the federal government did the right thing in shutting down airports across the country as a security measure.
VITEMA advises vulnerable
Clayton Sutton, V.I. Territorial Emergency Management Agency director in St. Thomas, said VITEMA officials have advised all vulnerable areas in the territory to take precautions. He included the Water and Power Authority, telecommunications companies including Innovative Telephone, the hospitals, and the ports on his list.
In planning to deal with disasters, Sutton said, "We try to brainstorm as many circumstances as possible." He noted that terrorist attacks are among those circumstances.
Security stepped up at WAPA facilities
Joseph R. Thomas Jr., executive director of the Water and Power Authority, said the utility has stepped up security at all of its facilities. In addition to its staff security personnel, he said, WAPA has V.I. National Guard personnel on patrol. Thomas said he does not feel that facilities in the Virgin Islands would be a target of the terrorists who attacked on the mainland Tuesday but that it was best to be prepared for any eventuality.
Security increased at Hovensa
The Hovensa oil refinery stepped up its security when news of the attack reached St. Croix, according to Alex Moorhead, vice president for government affairs and community relations. "We have 24-7 security," he said. "We just tightened it up."
He said the huge refinery, one of the largest in the world, has a disaster plan. But should an airplane dive-bomb into the installation, as those did in the New York and Washington Tuesday morning, Hovensa could not be able to defend itself.
Caneel Bay beefs up security
At Caneel Bay Resort in St. John, the staff stepped up security on the advice of Gov. Charles W. Turnbull, rooms manager James Dalmida said. "We're looking for unusual vehicles and suspicious people," he said. He noted that guests were having to remain at the resort due to the closing of Cyril E. King Airport on St. Thomas.
Dalmida said one guest was a World Trade Center worker who would have been at his desk on Tuesday if he hadn't decided to extend his vacation by one day. Dalmida also said other guests had family and friends who worked at the center. Our main concern is caring for them," he said.
Police, firefighters placed on readiness
Police Commissi
oner Franz Christian in agreement with Fire Services Director Ian Williams Sr. issued an advisory on Tuesday afternoon to the effect that all law-enforcement personnel in the territory "should be diligent" in the inspection of the territory's docks, ports, hospitals, the Water and Power Authority, all government buildings and the Hovensa refinery.
Christian and Williams said Police Department and Fire Services personnel should remain in readiness in the event that the mainland attacks "have any causal effect" upon the Virgin Islands.
V.I. airports closed like all other
Cyril E. King Airport on St. Thomas and Henry E. Rohlsen Airport on St. Croix are closed until further notice to both departing and arriving traffic, the Port Authority confirmed. The Federal Aviation Administration ordered the closing of all airports across the United States around 10 a.m. Tuesday, until further notice.
American Airlines flight No. 655 out of New York's JFK International Airport was the last to fly into St. Thomas as scheduled. As of 11:36 a.m., no further planes were being allowed to land. Port Authority officials said no flights would be coming in or out of the airports throughout the day Tuesday, and the closure would be
until further notice.
Security teams were making sweeps of the airports as a cautionary action, but there were no indications of specific security questions in connection with the Virgin Islands airports, according to Monifa Marrero in the Port Authority public relations office. "It was just a general security assessment," she said about 12:30 p.m. Tuesday.
Casino commission meeting rescheduled

The regular meeting of the Casino Control Commission that had been scheduled for Wednesday has been rescheduled for Sept. 19, at 9:30 a.m. at the commission offices in Orange Grove in Christiansted. On the agenda for consideration are casino employee licenses, casino servicing entity licenses, authorization for the operation of new casino games, and the required preparation for implementation of the recent act legalizing Internet gaming in the Virgin Islands.
No indication of cruise ship changes
Calvin Wheatley, spokesman for the West Indian Co., said the two cruise ships scheduled to call in the territory Tuesday were already in port at St. Thomas when the attacks occurred. He expected details on whether they would remain in port or depart as scheduled by mid-afternoon. "The port remains open," he said.
Angelica Rios, secretary of the Florida-Caribbean Cruise Association, based in Pembroke Pines, Fla., just north of Miami, said the association has received no information from cruise lines concerning any plans to change ship itineraries.
St. Croix Senate hearing on block grants canceled
The Legislature Committee of the Whole meeting scheduled for Tuesday night at the Legislature building in Frederiksted has been canceled, Senate President Almando "Rocky" Liburd said. The meeting was to address the proposed apportioning of federal Community Development Block Grant funds.
DPNR offices close for security assessment
Planning and Natural Resources offices located at Cyril E. King Airport were closed while airport staff assessed security, Commissioner Dean Plaskett said in a news release.

Editor's note: Contributing to these reports were Source staff members Shaun Pennington, Jean Etsinger, Molly Morris, Lynda Lohr and Jim Day.

Sept. 11, 2001 – Delegate to Congress Donna Christian Christensen went into her Capitol Hill office early Tuesday morning, hours before suspected terrorists launched kamikaze attacks on the nearby Pentagon and New York City's World Trade Center.
The territory’s representative had gone to work earlier than normal to complete a speech for a meeting she was scheduled to attend later that day in Maryland. It wasn’t until she was on the road when she heard the unbelievable on the radio. She turned around and headed back to the nation’s capital where smoke was billowing from the Pentagon, the inner sanctum of the U.S. military.
"It was utter disbelief that this type of thing could be happening," Christensen related Tuesday evening from Washington, which, like Congress, was literally shut down earlier in the day. "We’re pretty much numb."
That shock, however, must be shaken off quickly as the House will convene Wednesday to draft a resolution condemning the attacks, Christensen said.
There was some debate among House members on whether there should be a session following the tragedies. But after a conference call with House Minority Leader Dick Gephardt (D.,Mo.) and Speaker of the House Dennis Hastert (R., Ill.), it was decided to continue conducting the people’s business.
While the decision was made to show the world that the country wouldn’t be brought to its knees, Christensen said it wasn’t an easy one to make considering that no one is really sure that the attacks have ceased.
Whether it is safe, she said, is "really with the [Bush] administration at this point."
"We need to go back to do work, but we shouldn’t be daredevils about it," she said. "I don’t think we have anything to prove to anyone at this point."
As for striking back at whomever is responsible for the deadly attacks, the delegate said she had mixed feelings. On one hand, she said U.S. officials need to identify the terrorists, where they come from and "make sure they pay."
On the other hand, Christensen said that the United States, particularly national security experts, must learn more about the rabid dislike for the U.S. in some parts of the world, especially when retaliatory strikes will only pour more fuel on the smoldering hate.
"I’m not for fanning those fires just to say we are a big powerful country," she said. "We need to take a look at that."
Meanwhile, Christensen echoed the sentiments of Gov. Charles Turnbull that residents of the territory should be vigilant even though the islands are thousands of miles away from the death and destruction.
"I don’t think the Virgin Islands are under any specific threat," she said. "But it doesn’t hurt to be cautious."

Sept. 11, 2001 – For Virgin Islands residents, visitors and off-islanders, as for people across America and around the world, Tuesday was like no other day in their lives.
Some could remember as far back as the bombing of Pearl Harbor in 1941. For others, the day of infamy in their memories dated back to the assassination of John F. Kennedy in 1963, or the bombing of the Murrah Federal Building in Oklahoma City in 1995. For virtually all, the shock was new and different, and worse.
Here are some vignettes …
Café Amici in downtown Charlotte Amalie closed about 2 p.m. "Nobody wanted to eat," waiter Malachi McCormick said afterward. "People just said they were sick." McCormick said the customers he did serve mainly sat in shock sipping drinks or coffee and talking among themselves and with the staff.
"One tourist couple came in who didn't know about it," he said, "and when I told them, they couldn't believe it." The husband just kept saying, "My God, that's where I work! I would have been there — my friends are there!"
Kris Benjamin, a Virgin Islander living in Washington, D.C., sent the Source an e-mail with the following words of wisdom:
"To Virgin Islanders: It may be a bit difficult to reach family members in the D.C. metro area and / or New York City, but the phones are clearing up. We are asked to use cell phones sparingly. Land line phones may also be busy.
"There are no words to describe the feeling here today, so be patient with family members when we try to explain."
Telephone lines were jammed for much of the day, but relatives in New York finally reached Soumaya Collymore, a waitress at The Green House restaurant on the St. Thomas waterfront, to tell her that her brother Hicham Kabbaj had survived.
Collymore said she knew her brother, a computer analyst who works in the World Trade Center, was at his job when passenger jets smashed into the twin towers of the complex Tuesday morning. "It was horrifying," she said. "It's still horrifying."
When she first saw the television coverage, "I knew he was there," she said. "Then I couldn't get through, and couldn't get through. But then my family reached me."
Cynthia Lockhart, a clerk at the Territorial Court on St. Thomas, said Tuesday afternoon that she had not been able to reach family members to ask about her sister, Glenda Martin, who works as a paralegal for the Army in the Pentagon building.
"I haven't heard from her yet," Lockhart said Tuesday afternoon. "I just hope I can talk to her tonight."
Lt. Gov. Gerard Luz James II said that his daughter works in a building a couple of blocks from the World Trade Center but that she was evacuated from the area before the buildings collapsed.
"We have a lot of family members that reside in New York, and we're very concerned for their safety," James said.

Editor's note: Source staff members Molly Morris and Jim Day contributed to this report.

I spent a good portion of my life working in Washington, D.C., as a congressional press secretary and during my time in our nation's capital witnessed evil in many forms. In fact, I was in my office when an American terrorist destroyed the federal building in Oklahoma City.
Today's acts of terrorism in New York City and Washington, D.C., brought back many of the old feelings I thought I had suppressed. For weeks after the tragic bombing in Oklahoma City, my co-workers and I suffered sleepless nights and feelings of depression over the loss of our fellow federal employees in that massacre. Today I felt myself battling familiar tears and emotions as I worried about my friends and former colleagues in both Washington and New York.
Secondary only to the fear we all felt at the time was an anger unlike anything I had experienced in my life. I was horrified that anyone could attack us that way and kill men, women and children without prejudice. Today, I again felt that old bitter anger well up in me as I watched unbelievable images of carnage. A huge aircraft slicing through the south tower of the World Trade Center … the image of the two towers collapsing down on the men and women trying to rescue those attempting to escape from the towers … the image of our Pentagon building in flames … and the scene of panic in the financial and political capitals of the world.
I remember the feeling of helplessness we all felt at the time of the Oklahoma City bombing, and that, too, is an old nemesis that has revisited me. At the time, we were all quick to blame Arab terrorists for the destruction of the federal building in Oklahoma City, and I hear that same rhetoric repeating itself today. As it turned out, it was not a foreign enemy which caused that destruction in Oklahoma, and I hope that our response to this tragedy is tempered by our experiences then.
We must not lash out at our Arab neighbors, especially Americans of Arab decent, when it is unclear who is responsible for what happened in New York and Washington. When a terrorist succeeds in making the American people and government forget the freedoms and liberties for which generations of our brave military have fought and died to preserve, then they win.
I hope that all Americans show restraint when it comes to turning on our Arab neighbors. People of all faiths and backgrounds must respect each other and only place the blame with individuals and not paint an entire group of people with broad brush strokes.
I intend to do what I can from here in the Virgin Islands, and that is to pray for my friends in D.C. and New York and for the leadership of our nation from both political parties who must lead us in the aftermath of today's events. I encourage all of you, in whatever form you choose, to send positive energies or prayers for the people hurt and killed, their families and friends and our nation. Today's events have changed the world forever, and I just hope that our American system of freedoms and liberties survives this tragic day.
If you want to help, then I encourage our territorial leaders to organize a blood drive to help our American brothers and sisters who have been injured in Washington and New York. Blood is in short supply in those cities, and the people of the Virgin Islands should come together and send our own life's blood to help them with the assistance of the territorial government and, perhaps, the American Red Cross. It is probably the best way we here in the USVI can help ease the pain of this horrific day. America has helped us recover from the tragic destructive power of Hugo, Marilyn and Lenny, and it is our turn to return the favor by helping our fellow citizens recover from this man-made destruction.
God bless America, and may whatever powers that you believe control our human destiny guide us through this, one of our nation's darkest hours.

Editor's note: We welcome and encourage readers to keep the dialogue going by responding to Source commentary. Letters should be e-mailed with name and place of residence to source@viaccess.net.

Sept. 11, 2001 – Facing a fast-approaching deadline, the Legislature, meeting as the Committee of the Whole, decided Monday night not to accept the proposed allocation of nearly $2.2 million in federal Community Development Block Grant funds to 37 agencies that was submitted by the governor.
Nothing was put to a vote at the Monday night session. Instead, the senators decided to come up with their own plan to divvy up the federal funds. They gave themselves until Sept. 24 to do so — when a full session of the Senate is scheduled for a final vote on the grant allocations, which then are to be sent to Gov. Charles W. Turnbull.
The deadline for submitting the CDBG funding plan to the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development, which provides the money, is July 31. For the third year in a row, the territory missed the deadline and had to ask HUD for an extension. Turnbull received an extension to Sept. 30 this year.
Not-for-profit and governmental agencies this year submitted requests that totaled $13.4 million for projects. The CDBG funding available for the territory is $2.189 million. A Planning and Natural Resources Department commission reviews applications and makes its recommendations to the governor, who reviews them before forwarding them to the Legislature.
Laurence Joshua, the CDBG commission director since 1988, took a lot of criticism before the Senate Monday night for missing the deadilne for submitting the information. Sen. Emmett Hansen II suggested that if the territory submitted grant proposals on time, it could get more money for funding. "If they see we can't handle what we have now, we won't get more," he said.
Sen. Lorraine Berry said the fund proposals are always late, "It's not just this governor," she said.
Sen. Adelbert Bryan was sharply critical of Joshua not having written to the commissioner or the governor about the perennial delays."You're a waste," he told Joshua.
The territory's CDBG funds include $437,800 for administrative costs. Sens. Carlton Dowe and Celestino A. White Sr. asked why these costs aren't paid out of the General Fund. White, who made repreated references to his recently announced 2002 gubernatorial bid, said, "When I'm up there, I'm going to smoke you guys out. In 2002, we'll have a new fellow on the block, and we'll change all that."
White also said he thought the funds should be administered by the V.I. Housing Authority, an idea with which Claudette Lewis, Planning and Natural Resources deputy commissioner, agreed. "Te funds could be put to better use under VIHA, which is funded under HUD," she said.
Sen. Donald "Ducks" Cole objected to CDGB funding for school handicap-access ramps, saying such expenditures should come out of the Education Department's $200 million budget. "Schools are supposed to be handicapped-equipped," he said, "and we shouldn't be dipping into these limited funds."
After some quick research, the Senate legal counsel assured Bryan that the Legislature can reprogram the funds. "We've done it before, and we can do it again," Senate President Almando "Rocky" Liburd said later. Attorney General Iver Stridiron said the Legislature can do whatever it wants with the block grants, but "the governor can still line-item veto it."
The gallery was filled with grant applicants who waited from the 5 p.m. scheduled start of the hearing until about 8 p.m.to begin their presentations. The many agencies, not-for-profit and public, told similar stories: year after year of increasing work and decreasing funds. Numerous agencies what had requested more were granted $15,000. The VIHA scuba diving program was granted $7,500, which Sen. Norma Pickard-Samuel described as "ridiculous. My 7-year-old son can spend that in one afternoon at the mall."
Carolyn Smith and JoAnne Saunders, directors of the V.I. Resource Centers on St. Thomas and St. John, respectively, made impassioned pleas for the meager funds they were awarded — $10,000 for St. John, $5,000 less than last year, and $15,000 for St. Thomas.
"I am taken aback at $10,000; I beg you for more," said Saunders, who has been running the St. John program for about 12 years. She said that no matter what happened this year, she was going to organize a wheel chair ballerinas program.
The biggest allocation is $220,000, for rehabilitation of the Frenchtown fishermen's facility. Administrator Louis Hill, aided by architect Torgen Johnson, presented a slide show about the project, which is part of an overall waterfront enhancement plan. It would consist of a covered pavilion for fish cleaning fronted by palm trees and containing two public restrooms.
Johnson, a five-year St. Thomas resident, said he had been working free of charge on the project. He said the territory is "impoverished" when it can afford $1 million for a "bridge to nowhere and can't construct public bathrooms." Johnson, whose presentation was last, said he felt "humbled" appearing after those who presented the other worthwhile projects. But he maintained the facility is necessary and will help the island and the tourism industry.
Not if White and Pickard-Samuel have anything to say about it. Both vehemently opposed the Frenchtown project, accusing Hill and Johnson of putting it ahead of worthy faith-based proposals. Pickard-Samuel said, "We aren't going to have somebody who's lived here five years calling us 'impoverished.' It's unfair to the children you want to put up in jails."
White said, "We don't need palm trees, and why should a lady be scaling fish in the afternoon sun anyhow?" He added, "When I'm up there, I'm always going to have to come back down here to straighten you out."
White and Pickard-Samuel also said the large grant for that project was in conflict with the $40,850 proposed for renovation of the American Legion facility on St. Thomas.
For a full description of the programs and their proposed funding, see the Source story "Governor seeks CDBG funds for 37 projects"
The funding by island is:
– St. Thomas, 18 proposals — $803,950.
– St. John, 5 proposals — $71,650.
– St. Croix, 14 proposals — $875,600.
Administration — $437,800.
Total — $2,189,000.
The Committee of the Whole was scheduled to meet at 5 p.m. Tuesday in the Legislative Conference Room on St. Croix to hear the CDBG allocations proposed for St. Croix agencies. However, that session has been postponed until a later date to be announced because of the terrorist attacks on the mainland Tuesday morning.
Sens. Berry, Bryan, Douglas Canton Jr., Cole, Dowe, Hansen II, David Jones, Liburd, Pickard-Samuel, Vargrave Richards and White were present. Roosevelt David was excused. Adlah "Foncie" Donastorg, Norman Jn. Baptiste and Alicia "Chucky" Hansen were absent.

Sept. 11, 2001 – Gov. Charles W. Turnbull said Tuesday afternoon that the territory's emergency workers were on red alert in the aftermath of terrorist attacks in New York and Washington, D.C.
"This is like war, and we've got to act that way," he said, equating Tuesday's attacks with the bombing of Pearl Harbor. "This is a day that will also live in infamy."
At a press conference Tuesday afternoon, Turnbull said security has been tightened at the Hovensa oil refinery on St. Croix, at both airports, at the cruise ship docks, at Water and Power Authority facilities and at other key spots.
The Cyril E. King and Henry E. Rohlsen Airports closed after the Federal Aviation Administration grounded all domestic flights. The Territorial Court facilities were closed around noon as a security measure.
Virgin Islands Adjutant General Cleave McBean said all National Guard members were on alert but none had been called to active duty.
Later Tuesday, Turnbull ordered that all flags outside government buildings be flown at half staff until further notice, "in observance of the innocent lives lost as a result of the tragic, catastrophic terrorist attacks."

Sept. 11, 2001 – For Virgin Islands residents, visitors and off-islanders, as for people across America and around the world, Tuesday was like no other day in their lives.
Some could remember as far back as the bombing of Pearl Harbor in 1941. For others, the day of infamy in their memories dated back to the assassination of John F. Kennedy in 1963, or the bombing of the Murrah Federal Building in Oklahoma City in 1995. For virtually all, the shock was new and different, and worse.
Here are some vignettes …
Café Amici in downtown Charlotte Amalie closed about 2 p.m. "Nobody wanted to eat," waiter Malachi McCormick said afterward. "People just said they were sick." McCormick said the customers he did serve mainly sat in shock sipping drinks or coffee and talking among themselves and with the staff.
"One tourist couple came in who didn't know about it," he said, "and when I told them, they couldn't believe it." The husband just kept saying, "My God, that's where I work! I would have been there — my friends are there!"
Kris Benjamin, a Virgin Islander living in Washington, D.C., sent the Source an e-mail with the following words of wisdom:
"To Virgin Islanders: It may be a bit difficult to reach family members in the D.C. metro area and / or New York City, but the phones are clearing up. We are asked to use cell phones sparingly. Land line phones may also be busy.
"There are no words to describe the feeling here today, so be patient with family members when we try to explain."
Telephone lines were jammed for much of the day, but relatives in New York finally reached Soumaya Collymore, a waitress at The Green House restaurant on the St. Thomas waterfront, to tell her that her brother Hicham Kabbaj had survived.
Collymore said she knew her brother, a computer analyst who works in the World Trade Center, was at his job when passenger jets smashed into the twin towers of the complex Tuesday morning. "It was horrifying," she said. "It's still horrifying."
When she first saw the television coverage, "I knew he was there," she said. "Then I couldn't get through, and couldn't get through. But then my family reached me."
Cynthia Lockhart, a clerk at the Territorial Court on St. Thomas, said Tuesday afternoon that she had not been able to reach family members to ask about her sister, Glenda Martin, who works as a paralegal for the Army in the Pentagon building.
"I haven't heard from her yet," Lockhart said Tuesday afternoon. "I just hope I can talk to her tonight."
Lt. Gov. Gerard Luz James II said his daughter works in a building a couple of blocks from the World Trade Center but that she was evacuated from the area before the buildings collapsed.
"We have a lot of family members that reside in New York, and we're very concerned for their safety," James said.

Editor's note: Source staff members Molly Morris and Jim Day contributed to this report.

Sept. 11, 2001 – While Gov. Charles W. Turnbull sent out a press release on Aug. 31 urging the Water and Power Authority board to consider several water line projects on St. John, WAPA's director, Joseph R. Thomas Jr., says the request doesn't come with any money.
"These projects end up at the end of the line, so revenue is hard to find," Thomas said.
The governor called for improvements to the existing potable water lines in Cruz Bay and Pine Peace as well as installation of new lines in Adrian. Thomas said upgrading and installing these lines would not solve the island's annual winter water shortage, "but it will help, short term."
Additionally, Thomas said, production capability at WAPA's Frank Bay plant on St. John has been increased by 80,000 gallons a day to an output of 260,000 gallons a day, and this also will help.
Thomas said the installation of a permanent undersea pipeline from Red Hook to Cruz Bay should put an end to the shortages on St. John. He said WAPA is in the midst of the permitting process to undertake that project.
WAPA also must find funding for the leg of the water-distribution system on St. Thomas that runs between Red Hook and Tutu, Thomas said. "We're working hard to get it funded," he said.

Sept. 11, 2001 – If you've got a business that sells energy-efficient products such as wind generators, solar panels, solar hot water systems, and compact fluorescent lightbulbs, the V.I. Energy Office invites you to a meeting on St. Croix or St. Thomas about participating in an upcoming federal rebate program.
The rebate program this time does not include major appliances such as refrigerators, air-conditioning units and washing machines. "No appliances," Jamal Nielsen, spokesman for the energy office, said.
The St. Croix meeting will be held at the Planning and Natural Resources Department conference room on Monday, Sept. 17. The building, which is pink, is located across from the Ann Abramson Bus Terminal on the Queen Mary Highway in Mars Hill outside of Frederiksted.
The St. Thomas meeting will take place on Tuesday, Sept. 18, at the department conference room on the second floor at the Cyril E. King Airport terminal.
Both meetings are begin at 2 p.m.
The federal energy rebate program allows consumers to get a price break on energy-efficient items bought at local stores that agree to participate in the program. The items for which rebates are available change yearly. "This year, the focus is on renewable energy," Nielsen said.