Damage to Communications Systems Is Massive

Nov. 1, 2001
The fall of the twin towers decimated much of the communications infrastructure in downtown Manhattan. Debris from 7 World Trade Center, which collapsed at 5 p.m. the afternoon of September 11, fell against the area’s central telephone switching office belonging to Verizon, the local telephone company. The basement at 140 West St. flooded with water from shattered pipes, rendering the backup power

The fall of the twin towers decimated much of the communications infrastructure in downtown Manhattan. Debris from 7 World Trade Center, which collapsed at 5 p.m. the afternoon of September 11, fell against the area’s central telephone switching office belonging to Verizon, the local telephone company.

The basement at 140 West St. flooded with water from shattered pipes, rendering the backup power generators useless. Thus, many telephone lines were either damaged or deemed useless because they were connected to telephone switches without power. Failures of backup power also hit several other network facilities around downtown Manhattan.

The damage to the West St. central office affected about 200,000 voice lines for homes and small business, or about 10% of all Verizon lines in the city. But that doesn’t account for the 100,000 voice lines for large businesses and their data-capacity equivalent of about 3.5 million circuits. In addition, 10 cell-phone sites were destroyed, and AT&T was unable to continuously run its telephone-switching equipment in the nearby World Financial Center because of electric power interruptions.

About the Author

Joseph R. Knisley | Lighting Consultant

Joe earned a BA degree from Queens College and trained as an electronics technician in the U.S. Navy. He is a member of the IEEE Communications Society, Building Industry Consulting Service International (BICSI), and IESNA. Joe worked on the editorial staff of Electrical Wholesaling magazine before joining EC&M in 1969. He received the Jesse H. Neal Award for Editorial Excellence in 1966 and 1968. He currently serves as the group's resident expert on the topics of voice/video/data communications technology and lighting.

Voice your opinion!

To join the conversation, and become an exclusive member of EC&M, create an account today!

Sponsored Recommendations

Electrical Conduit Comparison Chart

CHAMPION FIBERGLASS electrical conduit is a lightweight, durable option that provides lasting savings when compared to other materials. Compare electrical conduit types including...

Fiberglass Electrical Conduit Chemical Resistance Chart

This information is provided solely as a guide since it is impossible to anticipate all individual site conditions. For specific applications which are not covered in this guide...

Considerations for Direct Burial Conduit

Installation type plays a key role in the type of conduit selected for electrical systems in industrial construction projects. Above ground, below ground, direct buried, encased...

How to Calculate Labor Costs

Most important to accurately estimating labor costs is knowing the approximate hours required for project completion. Learn how to calculate electrical labor cost.