VOLUME 13, NUMBER 01 • SEPTEMBER 21, 2001

Security and Powerhouse Employees Work Extra Shifts to Keep Rockefeller Safe and Functioning

The university's "essential" employees know that they will be asked to come to work during disasters. Last Tuesday, they were asked not to go home. After news of the World Trade Center attack reached campus, managers in essential services like Security and the powerhouse realized that the next shift might have trouble getting to work. Those on duty were asked to stay on, and all off-duty workers were called in to help. Over the next two days, people worked double and triple shifts to keep the campus safe and functioning. "One of our security guards, Linden Baynes, even walked from Brooklyn on Tuesday to be here," says Joe Nekola, senior director of Security.

Extra security was in place after the attack at the World Trade Center.

To ensure safety on a day and evening of uncertainty, the campus increased security patrols and established a rigid ID process at the university gates. "Our disaster plan worked perfectly," says Nekola. "It had been in place for years but never utilized."

"The President's Office and the Housing Office arranged for our staff to have meals and a place to sleep so that we could have our security people here around the clock and so everyone would have a chance to rest," adds Nekola. "It was very reassuring to see how the different offices at Rockefeller worked together, and how willing our security force was to give a lot extra. We asked them to stay and not go home, and they did so willingly. They never fail to amaze me."

The powerhouse is another essential function at Rockefeller because the delicate laboratory experiments on campus require a stable source of electricity.

"All of the powerhouse workers on duty at the time of the World Trade Center attack volunteered to stay on campus until second-shift workers could arrive to relieve them," says Alex Kogan, director of Plant Operations. "We also called our third shift people and asked them to come in, which they all did." Like the security force, powerhouse employees were housed on campus for the days immediately following the crisis.

The powerhouse also contributed to the emergency efforts downtown at the request of Mayor Giuliani's task force. Rockefeller loaned the city a new, but not yet installed 800-kilowatt generator capable of powering a four- or five-story building. "The task force asked to borrow it, because it was one of only a few operational generators of this size in New York," says Kogan. "We were happy to lend it to them. We all wanted to do our part for the city."