Tri-Boro First Aid Captain Reminded of 'Eerie' Scene at Ground Zero

Wayne Hammaker, captain of the Tri-boro First Aid Squad, was reminded today of the "eerie scene" at Ground Zero nearly ten years ago.

"The whole area was covered with ash and strangely quiet," he said Monday.

The news of Sunday night brought Hammaker back to the several days he spent assisting with recovery efforts and transporting victims of the attacks on the World Trade Center to nearby hospitals.

"It brought me right back to watching it on the tv first of all, and going straight to the squad building and getting called down," he said.

Hammaker said he was he was on duty on Sept. 11 and raised his hand to volunteer to help on the New Jersey side, transporting victims to New Jersey hospitals. He remembered city officials putting a call out for any ambulance services that were willing to offer assistance.

"On the 11th, we took people to the hospitals who had respiratory problems and the like," he said. Hammaker said he worked through the night that night, transporting and helping victims. Two days later, Hammaker was requested at Trinity Church, near Ground Zero, to help emergency responders who were still involved in search and recovery efforts.

"We were down there as a backup duty crew," he said. "We were there to assist rescuers if they needed assistance. What I ended up doing was spending most of the night sitting on the back of the ambulance talking to a firefighter who had lost his buddy. It was just a very, very eerie situation."

What surprised Hammaker most about the scene was the silence.

"I was really impressed by how quiet it was at the site," he said. "Even though there were cranes and there were sirens, how overall quiet it was."

White ash blanketed the buildings and ground all around him, Hammaker said. But ash was not all that lined the streets on that fateful day.

"I remember when we drove into the city, people were lined up in lower Manhattan applauding us as we came in," Hammaker said. "And I remember thinking , 'This is a strange feeling.' I remember thinking, 'Why are they applauding us for doing what we do?'"