I was recently honored enough to interview my cousin, Wayne Anderson, for the Georgetown Times. Wayne was in the Secret Service and at the Towers the day they were attacked. I still cry today to think of all that happened that day. This is just one small piece of a much bigger picture. Below is his story:
Wayne Anderson never thought the pursuit of his life-long dream would land him in the middle of one of America’s most historical events.
As an elementary school teacher in Georgetown County’s school system, Anderson dreamed of a more adventurous pursuit – becoming a member of the Secret Service.
“I had always been a lover of history and geography, both of which were subjects I taught,” Anderson said. “Pursuing a career as a Special Agent with the United States Secret Service allowed me to have what I call a front row seat to history and travel the world at the same time.”
When his patriotism finally got the best of him, he quit his teaching career, with the full support of his wife, Tammy, who was also a teacher, and made his dream a reality. He says they both knew the risks that came with such a job.
“I am without question one of the most patriotic people you will meet,” Anderson said. “Protecting the person who holds the highest office in the nation – and questionably the world – goes well beyond strong patriotism. It requires commitment to the mission that must, at all times, be deeply sacrificial. Let’s face it, you are making a decision to, if the unfortunate situation presents itself, place your body between the protectee and the threat.”
After completing basic training in Georgia and advanced training in Maryland, he served a brief stint at the Secret Service Office in Charleston in late 1999. In the summer of 2000, Anderson was transferred to the Secret Service’s largest field office in New York City.
Anderson said he began the morning of September 11, 2001, just like any other. He told his wife goodbye and left their Edison, N.J., home for his morning commute into Manhattan. There was a major accident on the turnpike that morning, delaying his arrival at the World Trade Center to 8:30 a.m.
“I parked my G-ride under Tower 1, took the elevator up, and proceeded over to my office at Tower 7,” Anderson said. “I was sitting at my desk probably less than 10 minutes when one of the loudest explosions I have ever heard occurred. It felt as if our building had been rocked from its foundation.”
Anderson said he immediately turned to the glass windows on his right to see the North Tower beside them engulfed in flames. Without visible evidence of a plane, Anderson said they assumed it was a repeat of the 1993 attack and had been a bomb. Without waiting on word from building security, he said their training as agents kicked in and they began to cover and evacuate the building.
“As we began descending the stairwell, I remember thinking with each step that our building, with many other high profile targets in addition to my own agency, would probably be next, and I wondered how much time we had,” he said.
Once on the ground, Anderson, with several other agents, moved a couple of blocks north to set up a triage area to aid some of the injured. Within minutes, a second plane arrived and collided with the south tower.
“It was at that instance that I knew our nation was under attack,” said Anderson. “By that time, chaos had broken out all around us. People everywhere were in a state of panic and were seeking cover wherever they could find it. For myself and several agents, that place was a nearby school.”
After almost half an hour, Anderson joined approximately 15 other agents and formed a search party for their own missing personnel. Before they were allowed to proceed with the search, each had to sign out with one of the USSS supervisors so they would be aware if anyone did not make it back.
”By this time the air was filled with flying debris and soot making any movement hazardous,” Anderson said. “We actually took our undershirts off, tore them into strips and made handkerchiefs to cover our faces for protection as we headed back to the burning towers.”
Before they could reach to towers, they faced another crise. The south tower had begun to collapse.
“I remember thinking that Tammy would kill me if I didn’t make it back… just one of the crazy thoughts that runs through your head,” Anderson said. “Desperate for cover, we used nearby buildings to shield us from falling and burning debris.”
That was when the decision to evacuate further north was made. They went to an outdoor ball field turned into a temporary relocation site for the next few hours. Verizon’s switching station had been located in the Trade Center and their repeater towers were on top of the buildings, making it impossible for survivors to contact family to let them know they had escaped the south tower.
“As I stood there on the field looking back at the towers, I vividly recall seeing several people leap from windows over 80 stories up knowing that their leap to a certain death was better than facing the inferno behind them.” Anderson said.
Hours passed before Anderson could leave Manhattan that day. The Holland and Lincoln Tunnels as well as the George Washington Bridge had all been closed out of fear of another attack. It was early evening when Anderson and several other agents were finally ferried across the Hudson River back to New Jersey by a Park Service vessel. They were finally reunited with their families.
“I can tell you in hindsight that being in the front row seat to history is not always desirable” he said. “In fact, we can look back over numerous events in our nation’s history that we would surely change or prevent if we were able to do so, such as assassinations, wars, natural disasters, and the list goes on. To that list, we now add September 11, 2001.”
Though he had served our country during one of its darkest moments, Anderson never regretted leaving the safety of his teacher’s position for one of more dangerous service.
“Sometimes you find yourself in a bad place at a horrible time, as was clearly the case during 9/11,” Anderson said. “I never questioned my career choice.”
Today, Anderson is the Site Director for the Department of Homeland Security at the Federal Law Enforcement Training Center in Charleston. He is also the proud father of 8-year-old twin daughters, McKenzie and Makayla.
“Would I have made the same decision today as a father of twins? I honestly don’t think I would have changed a thing,” Anderson said. “I will say that my present job with the Federal Law Enforcement Training Center is also especially rewarding and affords me the opportunity to be home most nights with my family, which is something that I could never place a value upon.”
As an elementary school teacher in Georgetown County’s school system, Anderson dreamed of a more adventurous pursuit – becoming a member of the Secret Service.
“I had always been a lover of history and geography, both of which were subjects I taught,” Anderson said. “Pursuing a career as a Special Agent with the United States Secret Service allowed me to have what I call a front row seat to history and travel the world at the same time.”
When his patriotism finally got the best of him, he quit his teaching career, with the full support of his wife, Tammy, who was also a teacher, and made his dream a reality. He says they both knew the risks that came with such a job.
“I am without question one of the most patriotic people you will meet,” Anderson said. “Protecting the person who holds the highest office in the nation – and questionably the world – goes well beyond strong patriotism. It requires commitment to the mission that must, at all times, be deeply sacrificial. Let’s face it, you are making a decision to, if the unfortunate situation presents itself, place your body between the protectee and the threat.”
After completing basic training in Georgia and advanced training in Maryland, he served a brief stint at the Secret Service Office in Charleston in late 1999. In the summer of 2000, Anderson was transferred to the Secret Service’s largest field office in New York City.
Anderson said he began the morning of September 11, 2001, just like any other. He told his wife goodbye and left their Edison, N.J., home for his morning commute into Manhattan. There was a major accident on the turnpike that morning, delaying his arrival at the World Trade Center to 8:30 a.m.
“I parked my G-ride under Tower 1, took the elevator up, and proceeded over to my office at Tower 7,” Anderson said. “I was sitting at my desk probably less than 10 minutes when one of the loudest explosions I have ever heard occurred. It felt as if our building had been rocked from its foundation.”
Anderson said he immediately turned to the glass windows on his right to see the North Tower beside them engulfed in flames. Without visible evidence of a plane, Anderson said they assumed it was a repeat of the 1993 attack and had been a bomb. Without waiting on word from building security, he said their training as agents kicked in and they began to cover and evacuate the building.
“As we began descending the stairwell, I remember thinking with each step that our building, with many other high profile targets in addition to my own agency, would probably be next, and I wondered how much time we had,” he said.
Once on the ground, Anderson, with several other agents, moved a couple of blocks north to set up a triage area to aid some of the injured. Within minutes, a second plane arrived and collided with the south tower.
“It was at that instance that I knew our nation was under attack,” said Anderson. “By that time, chaos had broken out all around us. People everywhere were in a state of panic and were seeking cover wherever they could find it. For myself and several agents, that place was a nearby school.”
After almost half an hour, Anderson joined approximately 15 other agents and formed a search party for their own missing personnel. Before they were allowed to proceed with the search, each had to sign out with one of the USSS supervisors so they would be aware if anyone did not make it back.
”By this time the air was filled with flying debris and soot making any movement hazardous,” Anderson said. “We actually took our undershirts off, tore them into strips and made handkerchiefs to cover our faces for protection as we headed back to the burning towers.”
Before they could reach to towers, they faced another crise. The south tower had begun to collapse.
“I remember thinking that Tammy would kill me if I didn’t make it back… just one of the crazy thoughts that runs through your head,” Anderson said. “Desperate for cover, we used nearby buildings to shield us from falling and burning debris.”
That was when the decision to evacuate further north was made. They went to an outdoor ball field turned into a temporary relocation site for the next few hours. Verizon’s switching station had been located in the Trade Center and their repeater towers were on top of the buildings, making it impossible for survivors to contact family to let them know they had escaped the south tower.
“As I stood there on the field looking back at the towers, I vividly recall seeing several people leap from windows over 80 stories up knowing that their leap to a certain death was better than facing the inferno behind them.” Anderson said.
Hours passed before Anderson could leave Manhattan that day. The Holland and Lincoln Tunnels as well as the George Washington Bridge had all been closed out of fear of another attack. It was early evening when Anderson and several other agents were finally ferried across the Hudson River back to New Jersey by a Park Service vessel. They were finally reunited with their families.
“I can tell you in hindsight that being in the front row seat to history is not always desirable” he said. “In fact, we can look back over numerous events in our nation’s history that we would surely change or prevent if we were able to do so, such as assassinations, wars, natural disasters, and the list goes on. To that list, we now add September 11, 2001.”
Though he had served our country during one of its darkest moments, Anderson never regretted leaving the safety of his teacher’s position for one of more dangerous service.
“Sometimes you find yourself in a bad place at a horrible time, as was clearly the case during 9/11,” Anderson said. “I never questioned my career choice.”
Today, Anderson is the Site Director for the Department of Homeland Security at the Federal Law Enforcement Training Center in Charleston. He is also the proud father of 8-year-old twin daughters, McKenzie and Makayla.
“Would I have made the same decision today as a father of twins? I honestly don’t think I would have changed a thing,” Anderson said. “I will say that my present job with the Federal Law Enforcement Training Center is also especially rewarding and affords me the opportunity to be home most nights with my family, which is something that I could never place a value upon.”
