Troubleshooting
Plugging Back In
November, 2001
One of the most startling views of Manhattan in the wake of the attack was that of the financial district at nightfall. The usually luminous downtown was black, as if someone had pulled a giant plug responsible for lighting lower Manhattan. The terrible darkness raised many questions: How would downtown businesses and agencies operate without the most basic forms of energy available? And further, how would many deal with the loss of entire tech systems?
For employees of many of the district's nonprofits and government agencies, the determination to resume a work routine in order to regain a sense of security and confidence is reinforced by the urgency to serve constituents, many of whom are experiencing greater need than ever following the attacks. The hurdles have been unprecedented. Buildings in the downtown area deemed safe for business to resume operations, lacked basic utility services. Many organizations have been paralyzed by the loss of hard line phone systems, e-mail and Internet connections and, in extreme cases, the destruction of entire office spaces including database systems and all hardware. These organizations face the challenge of devising innovative systems in order to perform functions as simple as responding to phone calls.
Following is a thumbnail sketch of how several city agencies and nonprofits are continuing to grapple with the technological impact of the tragedy.
Safe Horizon
Safe Horizon, a nonprofit offering victim assistance programs to over 250,000 New Yorkers, has offices six blocks from the World Trade Center. Employees returned to work to find their telecommunications system wiped out and their hardware covered in a foul dust, making thorough cleaning a pre-condition for computer operation. In addition to sustaining their ongoing victim relief services, Safe Horizon staff was in the process of organizing Employee Assistance Programs (EAP) to counsel downtown professionals returning to work. This placed them in the difficult position of having to provide resources to others while their own systems were seriously compromised. How could staff communicate without e-mail or phone lines? The answer came in the form of digital technology. Cell phones have replaced hard lines and satellite equipment has been installed in computers allowing for e-mail delivery (with a 24-hour delay), although Internet access is still unavailable. These systems are temporary and operating at a fraction of the speed of the agency's previous tech structure, but for employees who couldn't turn on a desk lamp several weeks ago these systems are a reassuring step towards some degree of normalcy.
Department for the Aging
With its main office located at 2 Lafayette Street, the Department for the Aging (DFTA) continues to deal with interruptions in its tech services related to the destruction at Ground Zero. Pat Wilks, DFTA's Public Affairs Director, said that the agency has only half of its phone lines in operation at any one time and that phone service frequently drops out or changes. Her phone line was in operation in the first few weeks following staff's return to the office on Monday, September 17th, but her service is unpredictable. "I'm speaking with you from someone else's phone line right now because mine suddenly isn't working," she said with an air of amused resignation. DFTA still has no fax service or Internet access and the voicemail system remains down. Ms. Wilks reported that the agency is relying heavily on its Web site to communicate with the public and is urging clients to come in to the office to do business in an effort to avoid tech-related service delays. Two of its financial district senior centers were evacuated and closed down immediately following the attacks but one has already reopened and the second ? which was due to relocate prior to the events of the 11th ? is reopening in its new location in November.
MFY Legal Services
MFY Legal Services ? which began in the mid-1960s as Mobilization for Youth ? is a nonprofit providing legal support to at-risk and low-income populations. Its office is located ten blocks from the World Trade Center. When the fifty MFY employees returned to work following the crisis, a handful of them found it too difficult to function in a facility so close to Ground Zero. Along with the immediate need to rebuild an entire telecommunication system, Executive Director Lynn Kelly was challenged with finding ways for members of her team to work offsite. Rather than force any of her staff to struggle with feelings of unease or discomfort, Ms. Kelly sought a way to facilitate their need to make a gradual return to the agency's physical space. The answer came in the form of laptops provided by the New York Technology Recovery Committee. These laptops allowed for the majority of MFY employees who were still headquartered in the downtown office to remain in contact with offsite staff, and enabling these employees to continue to perform their work from home. "Every new piece of technology to arrive provided a psychological boost for my staff," said Ms. Kelly in reference to the donated hardware.
The Housing Authority
Some offices did not fare as well when the towers collapsed. The New York City Public Housing Authority, the largest housing authority in North America, lost office space for 2,000 of its employees at its Church Street office. The loss of the now off-limits physical space and the computer network systems housed there has had an overwhelming impact on the agency. Unable to access their database, the Housing Authority has resorted to manual data recording systems. Employees are currently working out of government-leased office space elsewhere in Manhattan. The Authority's road to recovery is long and the job is immense. At this time, there is no way to know when Housing Authority employees will be back online. "We were very affected," said Howard Marder, Director of Public Relations. "But next week we have a poetry reading by children in one of our programs. Life goes on."
The Struggle Back
Though at different stages of recovery, alternate tech systems have helped some non-profits continue to provide services. For others, such as the Helen Keller WorldWide Foundation with offices that were located in the World Trade Center the struggle to rebuild will take much longer. The complete destruction of their facilities also meant the loss of their entire data management system ? all agency records, every scrap of information. With employees relocated to temporary offices or working from home, the only agency structure still standing is on the Internet; the foundation website remains intact. For organizations this badly damaged, the work to "plug back in" will be both time-consuming and arduous.