Among the units arriving from outlying boroughs was a Staten Island battalion commanded by Chief Thomas Vallebuona. "The thought in my mind is, we were going to end up like the people in Pompeii, totally buried in ash and dust," he recalled.
The Rev. John Delendick, a fire department chaplain, had just finished saying mass at St. Michael's Church in Brooklyn when he heard about the attack. He arrived at the site as first responders and civilians were fleeing for their lives.
"We were running along, and a cop is running next to me," Delendick recalled. "He says: 'Father, can I go to confession?' I looked and said: 'This is an act of war, isn't it?' He said: 'Yeah, I believe so.' I said: 'Then I'm giving general absolution.' I gave everyone general absolution, and I kept running."
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