Friendship trip to Big Apple ends in tragedy
IT WAS a trip to celebrate friendship, an adventure in the Big Apple for 10 Argentine guys who had known each other since high school.
But the randomness of terrorism struck them, more than 8 000km from home.
Five of those friends died on the New York City bike path that was the scene of Tuesday’s truck attack by an Uzbek immigrant, who says he acted on behalf of the Islamic State group. Another Argentine was injured.
They were class-of-1987 alumni of a prestigious polytechnic school in the northeastern city of Rosario.
The men went on to work as architects or businessmen and did well. One of them, manager of a steel factory, had treated some of the others to the plane fare to New York for the weeklong stay.
The five who died were identified as Alejandro Pagnucco, Ariel Erlij, Hernan Ferrucci, Hernan Mendoza and Diego Angelini.
Students at the General San Martin Higher Polytechnic Institute began the day with a minute of silence honouring the victims of the attack, which left a total of eight people dead and 12 injured.
US Secretary of State Rex Tillerson called his Argentine counterpart Jorge Faurie on Wednesday to express his condolences.
Laura Racca, a class of ’87 graduate who once worked with Angelini, a father of four, said the trip these men took illustrated the strong bonds students formed at the school.
“You would think that after 30 years they would not even meet for coffee. But no, they would go on vacation together,” Racca said.
One of the survivors, Martin Ludovico Marro, was hurt in the attack and was being treated at the Presbyterian Hospital in Manhattan.
The truck missed another, Ariel Benvenuto, by about 20cm. His wife, Cecilia Piedrabuena, said that minutes after the attack she got a call from her husband, saying he and two others of the group were OK but the rest were in bad shape.