These dust-covered shoes are a poignant reminder of the terror and destruction visited on New York on 9/11. They are also a symbol of the determination of a Bermudian woman who witnessed the attack on and collapse of the twin towers and then walked for almost ten hours across New York, crossing the Hudson River and walking through New Jersey to get home to her 10-year-old son.In 2001 Kristi Foggo worked on the service desk of the American Stock Exchange, which was located only one-and-a-half blocks from the World Trade Center. On the morning of September 11 she got off the Path train at the World Trade Center subway station and headed to a branch of one of the banks a few floors up in one of the twin towers. She made a quick banking transaction before heading to her job at the stock exchange, unaware of what was happening.Ms Foggo still has the bank receipt from that day, stamped with the date and time, showing that she was at the World Trade Center around the time the terrorist attack began.When she reached her workplace at the American Stock Exchange (AMEX) she changed her shoes, put on her trading jacket and went to the trading floor where she saw televised pictures of one of the towers on fire.“All the monitors on the trading floor were showing that the tower had been hit by a plane. I thought it was a small private plane that had struck the tower by accident. Then we watched in horror when the second plane came and hit the second tower and I heard people saying ‘New York is under attack’.“There was chaos and hysteria and an absolute fear in people’s eyes. I felt shock that was beyond my comprehension,” said Ms Foggo.“We defiantly refused security’s order to go to the basement of our building and tried to open the huge exit doors only to find that they were blocked by falling debris from the burning towers. Many minutes passed as the men tried frantically to get the doors open.”Finally, she and her colleagues got outside where they could see, hear and smell the tragedy unfolding. Initially they walked towards the burning towers. There was darkness, dust and papers raining down, and the smell of fuel burning and loud sounds.“We witnessed so much travesty and chaos. When the towers were collapsing we were running away. We ran south to the South Street Sea Port. The sky was so dark and we feared all the other buildings were going to collapse as well.”In the confusion wild stories began to circulate. Ms Foggo could see thousands of people walking across the Brooklyn Bridge to escape from Lower Manhattan.“There was a concern that the bridge would explode or that we would be doused by some sort of poison spray that would result in more casualties.”Much of Lower Manhattan was smothered in dust and debris. Ms Foggo remembers her clothes being covered in the fine grey dust as were her slip-on shoes. There was a strict business attire dress code at the AMEX so each day she would change from her dress pumps to the shoes she had bought for comfort as she spent so much of her working days on her feet at the stock exchange. Now those shoes were a means of survival as she and thousands of others tried to escape from the devastation of Lower Manhattan.She headed home to her son Anthony Howell in Jersey City, alternating between walking and running. She made it across town to the West Side Highway where a ferry carried her across the Hudson River to Edgewater in New Jersey. From there she continued her long trek to Jersey City all the time she could still see the fires and clouds of smoke above Manhattan.“The only thing on my mind was my son Anthony. When I reached home he was being looked after by a neighbour.”It was four days later that she and a skeleton crew were called back to their jobs. The American Stock Exchange was temporarily relocated inside the New York Stock Exchange. Ms Foggo said: “On my journey back I could still smell the flesh and fuel and see what was left of the towers still burning. There were troops with guns everywhere and helicopters flying overhead non-stop. There were relentless security searches and checks and we had to wear masks because of the debris and smell. I felt tremendous fear going back to the area and deep sorrow.”In the tragedy the man who had acted as her mentor at the American Stock Exchange, Rudy Bacchus, along with eight other stockbrokers from the AMEX, had died. They attended a weekly breakfast meeting at The Windows of the World restaurant in the North Tower every Tuesday morning.“I knew him from the stock exchange floor. He had taken me under his wing and was instrumental in teaching me how stocks and options traded. I still carry his business card in my wallet. He was a generous person who provided scholarships for under privileged students.”She also learned that fellow Bermudian Boyd Gatton had died. “Some mornings I would see Boyd at the Path train station. We both would get off at the World Trade Center, chat and then go our separate ways.”In the days and weeks after 9/11 she found it almost impossible to sleep, but she took strength from her faith and with support of her family, particularly her mother and father Elaine Fox and Glaggett Foggo and her sisters Chari Johnston and Komlah Foggo-Wilson.Realising she no longer wanted to work in the world of finance, Ms Foggo pursued her ambition to become a teacher, attending school at night and obtaining a Master’s degree in Education before eventually returning to Bermuda. She is now a teacher at St David’s Primary School, where she teaches primary six.Even today, ten years later, she still feels the impact of 9/11. She does not like loud sounds and is deeply uneasy about flying. She added: “In reflection the tragedy that happened that day has made me more resilient and determined to move on with an appreciation for life.”She has kept the shoes she wore that day still covered in the 9/11 dust. When asked why, she answered: “The shoes were instrumental in my survival. They took me from that tragic event to my home. They represented my job and my will to get to my son no matter what. The shoes were comfortable enough for me to make that long and very arduous journey.”