Document text
--> --> Dan Claflin of Mr. C's Market on Highway 99 is glued to the television news this morning. Ashland Daily Tidings/DENISE BARATTA Local residents react in horror; some believe relatives are dead By Vickie Aldous Ashland Daily Tidings Ashland residents and visitors said they felt shock and disbelief at the news of the double attack on the World Trade Center in New York City and the Pentagon in Washington, D.C. Others feared for the safety of relatives in those areas or serving in the United States military. Ashland resident Cindy Martinez sat with her friend Cindy Sevier this morning in the Breadboard Restaurant, looking over a map of Manhattan Island, home of the World Trade Center and Martinez's cousins. "I think they're gone. I don't think they're alive," Martinez said. She said she was unable to reach her family members because phone lines were down, and felt she needed to leave her home to gather her thoughts. A former New York City resident, Martinez said she is not shocked that the World Trade Center was the target of an apparent terrorist attack. "It's where I was raised," Martinez said. "It's my home. It's my backyard. I remember looking out the window at the twin towers ... The twin towers are New York City's icon. They're New York's claim to fame. When you look at the skyline, you look at the twin towers." Rebecca Bianco, an Ashland Family YMCA staff member, said this morning's events likely will shock many younger Americans unaccustomed to attacks on the United States. "People in my age group haven't really lived through a war or a potential war. It made me feel how people must have felt during World War II when Pearl Harbor was attacked," Bianco said. "People were afraid for our country. People were afraid for our children. It's very emotional" She said few people came into the YMCA this morning for their workouts, and children - either old enough to know what has happened or simply catching on to their parents' moods - have been afraid to leave their mothers and fathers for daycare. Dan Claflin of Mr. C's Market also compared today's attacks to Pearl Harbor. "It's kind of like FDR said, `The day that will live in infamy.' This generation is finally going to know what it's all about," Claflin said. However, some residents said they were worried the United States might launch retaliatory strikes without fully considering what may have prompted the initial attacks. "The thing I'm nervous about is I think there's going to be a huge gut reaction to attack someone without seeing who did it," said Ashland resident Josh Hersk, as he worked in the Brothers' Restaurant kitchen while listening to news of the attacks on the radio. Jefferson Cook, an Ashland resident and also a YMCA staff member, said the United States should try to understand the reasoning behind the attacks. "It is scary. How could it not escalate from here?" he said. Others around town said the attacks were on par with other major events that shook the nation, such as the assassination of former President John F. Kennedy. "It's like JFK, only worse," said Becky Takacs of Independence - near Salem - as she stood outside the Apple Cellar Bakery & Rotisserie. She said she was dismayed by the loss of life and concerned about additional attacks on large cities or United States military personnel. "I have a nephew in the Navy who went out to sea a few weeks ago," she said. Tom Takacs, her husband, said he works as a salesman and his company is based in Chicago. He said he would not like to be traveling at this time, and also fears more attacks on other cities. "Are they really done?" he said. Email your... Technical questions & comments to: WebMaster Daily Tidings editorial comments & questions to: Editor Visit our other Oregon Newspapers... | Albany Democrat-Herald | Ashland Daily Tidings | Corvallis Gazette-Times | | Lebanon Express | Newport News-Times | Springfield News | Cottage Grove Sentinel | Ashland Daily Tidings 1661 Siskiyou Blvd. Ashland, OR 97520 Telephone 541-482-3456 © Copyright 2001 Lee Northwest Publishing