> -Caveat Lector- > > Click Here: <A HREF="http://biz.yahoo.com/rf/010913/n13231304_2.html";>Yahoo - > Morgan Stanley says miraculous number o.</A> > ----- > Related QuotesMWD > 48.90 > +0.00 > > delayed 20 mins - disclaimer > Thursday September 13, 7:37 pm Eastern Time > > Morgan Stanley says miraculous number of staff alive > > (UPDATE: Adds details, executive quotes) > > By Brian Kelleher > NEW YORK, Sept 13 (Reuters) - Investment bank Morgan Stanley (NYSE:MWD - news > ), the World Trade Center's largest tenant with 3,700 employees, said on > Thursday a remarkably high number of its staff escaped Tuesday's vicious air > attack that pulverized the twin towers. > > ------------------------------------------------------------------------ > Morgan Stanley Dean Witter & Co., which occupied 25 floors in the complex, > was only missing 15 employees, a high-ranking official said. The firm, which > had 3,700 employees in the complex, had earlier said between 30 and 40 > workers were unaccounted for. > ``It's a miracle,'' Chief Executive Philip Purcell told reporters Thursday > evening. > The firm had emergency plans that were sharpened in the wake of the 1993 > World Trade Center bombing, and President Bob Scott said Morgan Stanley's > staff knew exactly what to do. > ``I would describe it as a collective reflex,'' Scott said. Morgan Stanley > had offices between floors 44 and 74 in Two World Trade Center, the second > building struck by a hijacked commercial plane on Tuesday. > The news is in stark contrast to the grim story of bond trading firm Cantor > Fitzgerald. > Cantor's offices, which held 1,000 employees, were on floors 101 and 103 > through 105 in the World Trade Center's 110-story north tower. The company > has issued a preliminary list of 320 workers it has accounted for but its > chief executive said in a TV interview Thursday he is unaware of anyone who > escaped from their World Trade Center offices. > Two hijacked commercial planes slammed into the twin towers Tuesday morning, > eventually causing them to collapse and creating chaos in the downtown > financial district. > In a tearful interview on ABC-TV, Cantor Fitzgerald Chief Executive Howard > Lutnick said he wasn't in the office on Tuesday because he was bringing his > son to his first day of kindergarten. > ``My view of business is different,'' Lutnick said. ``I need to try to be > successful in business so I can take care of ... 700 families who are > dreaming to find someone,'' referring to the families of the employees feared > dead. > MORGAN STANLEY EXECUTIVES' TOP PRIORITY IS ITS PEOPLE > Purcell's top priority has been the firm's employees since he and other top > executives hastily abandoned a Tuesday morning meeting to watch the tragic > events unfold. > ``I went to the window in my office, because you can see World Trade 1 and > 2,'' he said. The second plane attack stunned him. > ``I said 'My God, I hope they're out'.'' > Workers at Morgan Stanley's Discover credit card unit call centers fielded > about 50,000 calls from people looking for or offering information on the > firm's employees. > Morgan Stanley's operations at the World Trade Center, which processed trades > and maintained account data for its retail brokerage accounts, will largely > be moved to a contingency site in lower Manhattan, executives said. > New York City officials allowed the other facility to operate with a skeleton > crew on Thursday and Morgan Stanley expects a full crew of 400 people to be > working there on Friday. > ``Morgan Stanley is open for business,'' Purcell said. > U.S. bond markets reopened on Thursday morning, while national stock markets > closed for the third day in a row. U.S. stock markets will open on Monday at > 9:30 a.m. EDT (1330 GMT), according to Richard Grasso, chairman of the New > York Stock Exchange. > Exchanges and firms will start running tests of their systems on Saturday > morning. > Email this story - Most-emailed articles - Most-viewed articles > > ------------------------------------------------------------------------ > > More Quotes and News: Morgan Stanley Dean Witter & Co (NYSE:MWD - news) > Related News Categories: banking, US Market News > ------------------------------------------------------------------------ > > Help > NSP Lista isprobava demokratiju u praksi ==^================================================================ EASY UNSUBSCRIBE click here: http://topica.com/u/?bUrBE8.bVKZIq Or send an email To: [EMAIL PROTECTED] This email was sent to: [email protected] T O P I C A -- Register now to manage your mail! http://www.topica.com/partner/tag02/register ==^================================================================
