A New Jersey man who survived the Sept. 11, 2001, attacks on the World Trade Center says he's very lucky to be alive after he was caught up in the fatal New Jersey train crash that injured 108 people Thursday.
Tahir Qureshi was seated behind the engineer in the first car of Pascack Valley Train 1614 when it failed to stop at Hoboken Terminal, instead smashing through to an interior wall, NorthJersey.com reported.
He told the news website that it felt as though a bomb had detonated. When he opened his eyes again, he saw debris strewn throughout the area and heard other passengers screaming. The car he was in "was flattened and resembled a 'pancake,'" according to NorthJersey.com.
"The whole roof collapsed and pinned us," the 42-year-old father of three told the New York Post. "I feel blessed – I'm very lucky to be alive."
Qureshi was on his morning commute, headed to his job at March & McLennan, when the crash happened. According to the Post, he was working for the company at its office in the World Trade Center in 2001 when the Sept. 11 attacks took place.
He was just walking into the south tower of the Center when a plane struck the building.
"It happened now twice to be in a situation," Qureshi told the Post. "It's just one of those blessings that I'm OK."
Rescue crews worked for hours to pull people from the twisted metal and debris left behind on Thursday morning. A majority of the 108 people hurt suffered minor injuries, according to hospital officials. The accident claimed one life.
Fabiola Bittar de Kroon, 34, was standing on a train platform when the crash took place. She was killed by falling debris, New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie said.
The National Transportation Safety Board is investigating the crash.
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