AN American couple holidaying in Bury are desperately trying to get back home to find out news about friends they fear might have been caught up in the terrorist attack on the World Trade Centre last week.

Husband and wife Joe and Helen Taylor found their flight back last Thursday (Sept 13) had been cancelled after the American Aviation Authority closed their air space to the majority of international flights following the devastation in New York.

The couple live in Mendon, just on the outskirts of Boston, where the planes involved in the terrorist attack were hijacked.

Mr Taylor (85) said: "Boston is the closest airport to us, and we just do not know if our friends were on the hijacked planes. We have spoken to our family and they are okay, but getting information has been difficult."

Mr and Mrs Taylor flew to England a month ago to visit their cousin, Dorothy Lloyd (81), who lives in Dalton Street, Bury.

"We were ready to fly home last week and we are just in limbo. We are ringing the airline every day to find out the latest.

"Although the thought of flying back home does scare us, security is so tight that it is probably safer for us to fly now than before."

Mrs Taylor (81) added: "I want to get home quickly as we are desperate to find out about our friends."

The couple, like millions around the world, watched the horror of the attack unfold live on television.

"At first it did not sink in. I still can't believe it," said Mr Taylor, an American Air Force pilot in the Second World War.

He added defiantly: "We will get those responsible. The American nation is very resilient."