Dozens of investment firm employees killed during 9/11 attack | 60 Minutes Archive
In a Nutshell
Sandler O'Neal lost 66 of its 83 employees at the World Trade Center on 9/11, wiping out a third of its staff and nearly all its records. The surviving partners committed to keeping the firm running to support victims' families, paying salaries and benefits through 2006 while rebuilding from temporary offices with industry support. The firm reopened markets, resumed trading, and announced its first post-attack deal within a week, driven by a determination to continue operations despite the devastating loss of human capital.
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Sandler O'Neal was a small investment banking firm headquartered on the 104th floor of Tower 2 at the World Trade Center. The firm specialized in providing financial expertise and services to small and medium-sized banks and savings and loans across the country, with clients in Wayne, New Jersey, Sioux City, Iowa, and Santa Barbara, California.
Of Sandler O'Neal's 171 employees, 83 reported for work at the World Trade Center on September 11, 2001. Only 17 survived the attack.
Survivors regrouped in a small Midtown office a few days after the disaster. The firm hired crisis counselors and therapists while searching hospitals and consoling families of colleagues who were dead or missing.
Employees worked phones to contact families, but could not provide the two things families wanted: good news or hard information. They made contact with families including Doug Urgang's mom, David Rice's family (who identified his body for Richard Vonfeld), Chris Newton Carter's wife, and Patty Rosen.
Sandler O'Neal's primary asset was its highly trained employees who understood the company's business and maintained personal relationships with customers. As days passed, it became apparent that much of this intellectual and human capital had been lost.
DNA identification efforts began, with plans to have parents provide DNA samples. Staff requested items with scars, shoe size, blood type, and wedding band inscriptions for identification purposes.
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