Photo credit: 9/11 Memorial staff
Accession Number: C.2019.194.6
Dimensions: 5 in X 3.5 in
Dimensions (Metric): 12.7 cm X 8.89 cm
Dimensions (Metric): 12.7 cm X 8.89 cm
Source: Alejandro Eguiluz
Credit Line: Gift of Alejandro Eguiluz Christoffersen
Pasaporte, Recuperado
Keywords
3 World Trade Center/New York Marriott World Trade Center Hotel
Evacuation
Recovered Property
Survivors
Witnesses
3 World Trade Center/New York Marriott World Trade Center Hotel
Evacuation
Recovered Property
Survivors
Witnesses
Description
Recovered Mexican passport issued to Alejandro Eguiluz. The cover is dark green with gold-colored text that reads: "MEXICO | PASAPORTE" and the coat of arms of Mexico in the center.
Recovered Mexican passport issued to Alejandro Eguiluz. The cover is dark green with gold-colored text that reads: "MEXICO | PASAPORTE" and the coat of arms of Mexico in the center.
Historical Notes
The week of September 10th, 2001, brought 24-year-old Alejandro Eguiluz on business from Mexico City to New York, where he registered to stay at the New York Marriott World Trade Center Hotel. He was scheduled to speak at an event on Thursday, September 13th in the Windows of the World meeting space atop the North Tower. At the time, Eguiluz was an Investor Relations Officer representing Grupo Televisa.
On Tuesday morning, September 11th, Eguiluz was in his hotel room when he felt an abrupt sensation of the building shaking followed by the noise from a “huge explosion.” Eguiluz decided to abandon his room and all the belongings in it to evacuate, grabbing only his room key card. Once outside, he joined a crowd of other confused guests, tourists, and commuters trying to determine what was happening. Suddenly, another loud noise overhead caused him to look up and witness a second plane, hijacked United 175, smash into the South Tower.
Eguiluz stayed in the vicinity of the Marriott Hotel until the unexpected collapse of the South Tower. He ran south to find shelter. After the North Tower fell, Eguiluz instinctively tried to walk back to reclaim his belongings at the Marriott Hotel. Police on the scene, however, told him that the hotel was gone and he had to leave the area immediately. Later that Tuesday, Eguiluz finally managed to place a call to his secretary at Grupo Televisa to inform her of his whereabouts; she transferred him to a live broadcast feed with the station’s news anchor, Joaquin Lopez Doriga, to be interviewed.
About a week after the 9/11 attacks, Eguiluz managed to return to Mexico City. Approximately two years later, he received a letter from the NYPD Property Clerk reporting that some of his personal items had been found in the wreckage. Enclosed in a plastic evidence bag and sent to his residence in Mexico City, were his home keys, Nokia cell phone (in damaged condition), Mexican passport, travel visa and job card, a chipped pen, a notebook, and various other documents.
Eguiluz’s experience as a survivor is representative of many out-of-town and international travelers: caught up in the vortex of 9/11 with neither the local advantages of replacement belongings and forms of identification nor the support network of nearby family, friends, and homes.
The week of September 10th, 2001, brought 24-year-old Alejandro Eguiluz on business from Mexico City to New York, where he registered to stay at the New York Marriott World Trade Center Hotel. He was scheduled to speak at an event on Thursday, September 13th in the Windows of the World meeting space atop the North Tower. At the time, Eguiluz was an Investor Relations Officer representing Grupo Televisa.
On Tuesday morning, September 11th, Eguiluz was in his hotel room when he felt an abrupt sensation of the building shaking followed by the noise from a “huge explosion.” Eguiluz decided to abandon his room and all the belongings in it to evacuate, grabbing only his room key card. Once outside, he joined a crowd of other confused guests, tourists, and commuters trying to determine what was happening. Suddenly, another loud noise overhead caused him to look up and witness a second plane, hijacked United 175, smash into the South Tower.
Eguiluz stayed in the vicinity of the Marriott Hotel until the unexpected collapse of the South Tower. He ran south to find shelter. After the North Tower fell, Eguiluz instinctively tried to walk back to reclaim his belongings at the Marriott Hotel. Police on the scene, however, told him that the hotel was gone and he had to leave the area immediately. Later that Tuesday, Eguiluz finally managed to place a call to his secretary at Grupo Televisa to inform her of his whereabouts; she transferred him to a live broadcast feed with the station’s news anchor, Joaquin Lopez Doriga, to be interviewed.
About a week after the 9/11 attacks, Eguiluz managed to return to Mexico City. Approximately two years later, he received a letter from the NYPD Property Clerk reporting that some of his personal items had been found in the wreckage. Enclosed in a plastic evidence bag and sent to his residence in Mexico City, were his home keys, Nokia cell phone (in damaged condition), Mexican passport, travel visa and job card, a chipped pen, a notebook, and various other documents.
Eguiluz’s experience as a survivor is representative of many out-of-town and international travelers: caught up in the vortex of 9/11 with neither the local advantages of replacement belongings and forms of identification nor the support network of nearby family, friends, and homes.
Curator's Comment
The destruction of the World Trade Center displaced more than just the employees who worked there or the residents who lived in its vicinity. For many international visitors or business guests present that day, the disaster forced them to navigate an unfamiliar and panicked city. Alex Eguiluz’s passport exemplifies the nature of international survivor accounts from September 11, 2001, as it was among several lost forms of identification that complicated his return to Mexico. As an eyewitness object to the collapsing Twin Towers, the Mexican passport reflects the diversity of circumstances and aspirations that drew people from across the world to the World Trade Center.
HIDE
The destruction of the World Trade Center displaced more than just the employees who worked there or the residents who lived in its vicinity. For many international visitors or business guests present that day, the disaster forced them to navigate an unfamiliar and panicked city. Alex Eguiluz’s passport exemplifies the nature of international survivor accounts from September 11, 2001, as it was among several lost forms of identification that complicated his return to Mexico. As an eyewitness object to the collapsing Twin Towers, the Mexican passport reflects the diversity of circumstances and aspirations that drew people from across the world to the World Trade Center.
HIDE
