Lenny writes:

Date: Sept 12th
Dear ****,

I want to express my deepest sympathy for your loss.

I have lived on Duane & Hudson streets since 1980.   At 8:45 we heard the sound of the
first plane hitting tower one.  From the sounds in the street, and then the news, we 
quickly realized that there was a tragedy at 1 WTC.

We went up to the roof of our building.  It is a 10 story building directly north of the 
WTC.  We had an unobstructed view of the tragedy.  We saw clearly as the second plane
flew into the second tower.

But far and away the most horrifying visual that sticks with me is watching dozens of
people jumping out of the top floors of 1 WTC.  We could clearly see that from the south
facing side of the tower, people were trapped by the flame.  With inferno like heat and
fumes from behind them, they chose to jump to their almost certain death.

Against a beautiful clear blue sky, with a helicopter hoovering just over them unable to
assist we witnessed people jumping.  One person would jump flailing their arms and legs,
often a necktie point skyward, then another, then another, each 5 or 10 seconds apart.  
This happened in groups of 5-10 people.  We saw many groups jump.  I guess in the end 
many dozen jumped to their death.

I can not describe the deep horror of the visual.  They were very aware of what they were
doing and acted deliberately as a group.  It was clear that those who survived the initial
blast were there for each other in the final moments of their lives.

Watching individuals jumping to their death for what seemed like an hour created a more
horrifying memory then any other I have ever had.  To my disappointment, I do not believe
this part of the tragedy was well broadcast.  It would help to rally worldwide support for
the type of reaction I believe is necessary.

In my life I have experienced the premature loss of many close friends.  I found myself
thirsty for details of these tragedies.  As clear facts and details emerged it helped me
cope with the reality of my situations.   Aside from passing my condolences to you this
is the purpose of this eMail.  Feel free to forward this letter to your co-workers if you
think it would be helpful.

Lastly, I have been gathering my thoughts and those of others at my website
http://www.barshack.com/  I encourage you to read some of the posts and links at you
 convince.

Lenny