Slide #27 - "A Sound Like A Clap of Thunder"

Daryl, The NYU Med Student

I'm surprised that Gage selected Daryl's account for the first slide in this section. He only mentions a single sound before the building collapses, not a battery of explosions as is present in every controlled demolition I've ever seen or heard.

Daryl also says that he watches "the bottom floor cave out." That's an unusual way to describe a controlled demolition, but it's the perfect way to describe something like debris from the initial vertical collapse of the eastern part bashing its way out of the building. (Daryl was interviewed on Hudson Street just after the collapse, so he was watching the building from the east.)

Daryl also mentions that they were watching 7 World Trade because the building was on fire in the lower floors. If the fires were so small, why wasn't Daryl watching any of the other buildings on fire that day? Why 7 World Trade?

7 World Trade was the one to watch. As videos show, smoke was roiling out of the building. The fires were not small, but huge. It was the fear of that building falling that had made Daniel Nigro decide to hold back first responders and volunteers like Daryl.

All in all, Daryl's account doesn't provide any real support to Gage's account of the collapse and actually denies other points Gage wishes to make.

Actually, I'm not surprised Gage chose this one first. To prove the point he wishes to prove, he doesn't have an enviable choice because the accounts don't show what he's trying to prove. Daryl's account is as good as any.

Shockwave and Windows Breaking

Gage does seem impressed with this part of Daryl's account, since he reproduces it on the right side of the slide.

What Daryl is describing is the building trying to redistribute its load because of a structural failure. It is far more likely that a single structural piece has snapped (something associated with Column 79) than explosives are going off inside the building at this point. Why?

Because Daryl only reported one loud sound! The building is shuddering from this event, and all it takes to break window glass is to have the building twisting some while the eastern third of the interior is falling.

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