Message #230480

[Adrienne]

05/01/2011 11:41 PM Impromptu Songs And Cheers At Ground Zero

HuffPost's Rob Fishman reports from Ground Zero:

A few-hundred-strong crowd has gathered along Church Street across the way from the lighted skeleton of 1 World Trade Center.

Most of them holding iPhones and cameras, and mostly young, they're breaking out impromptu into songs and cheers — "We Are the Champions," The Star Spangled Banner, USA, USA! Moments of intensity are punctuated by silence until the next chant starts afresh.

One man in the crowd, Jack Krupey, has lived in New York for three years. He was away in college on 9/11 but grew up nearby.

"Shock and excitement," he said. "We just wanted to come down and see what was going on and celebrate with everyone."

"It's weird to live so close to a piece of history like this."

His friend, Christine Banker, had just come to visit from Rochester — only for the night.

"Who could have picked it?" she said.