We Were There, November 18, 2014

like let me welcome you all officially welcome you to the 9/11 tribute center presentation over we were there my name is Judith Pucci I'm a tribute center walking tour guide as you just heard Lilly explained to you briefly in the film we attribute are all people whose lives have been directly affected by the events of that day we are an extremely diverse group of people we are of different ages from 17 to 90 we're of very different backgrounds in the normal course of life many of us would never have met and now we share a powerful bond and tribute is a home base it's where we find support and it's where we tell our stories about what that day was like from the inside so this afternoon you're going to be hearing two of these stories they're going to be told to you by the people who live - the events they will be telling you about and I am very proud to say this they are my fellow tribute center guides next to me is Bill spade and then we have Joe our charity Joe says our chieri I say Oceania since we're talking about Joe Joe began working at the Trade Center in 1986 correct he worked for the insured the financial services firm Morgan Stanley their offices were at the Trade Center so that means that Joe is a two-time survivor he was here for the 1993 attack as well as the one in 2001 bill is a retired New York City firefighter before he became a firefighter bill was a New York City police officer that was in 1984 bill likes to jokingly say and Bill can get away with saying this he likes to jokingly say that the year after he became a cop he was promoted to firefighter he retired from the fire department in 2003 we're going to begin with Joe's stories I'm just going to take a few moments to briefly set the scene for you Joe's office was high up in the South Tower on the 72nd floor now each of the towers as you may know was a hundred and ten floors each so he was on 72 he was near the top of the building at 903 that morning the second plane struck that building about ten floors above where Joe's office was so if Joe was here the plane comes in here that's an important place to him to have been since the North Tower had already been attacked Joe like thousands of other people in that building had already made the decision whether to stay at his desk or to evacuate so I take it from you last year I moved and while packing my wife came across several things she'd say from 9/11 it was my ID card from the World Trade Center some business cards with my to World Trade Center 72nd floor address on it train ticket I used on 9/11 cards people had sent me in a note from my friend and co-worker Jim I'd work with Jim for about 20 years and when I first thought of working for him people really didn't know him asked me how could I work for this guy he was kind of short with people and very had a very bad temper but once he got to know Jim you realize that his bak was a lot worse than his bite and I always remember him sitting down trying to read The Wall Street Journal if you look closely he had a magazine which was usually tucked in between those reading something not relevant to business you got to know him you realize you really had a kind and generous spirit the morning 9/11 started out as an ordinary day for me I got up around 6:00 I was gonna catch a train leave my house 6:30 try to get to work by 8:00 around that morning the train was a little late so I didn't get to work till about 8:30 when I got to work I got a phone call from Jim he had hurt his back really badly and he was a rather large guy so he couldn't get out of bed and so we're talking on the phone and while I was talking from the other side of the floor a young lady started walking around telling everybody number one that's the North Tower is on fire and we have to leave so I told Jim what was going on I hang up the phone and I walked out of my office and then the office next door to me there was a another woman who worked with me Kathy and Kathy and I had both left the building together in 93 and I should say right here that experience in 93 was like a real life fire drill for us because we realized how difficult it was to get out of that building and walk down 72 flights of stairs so Kathy and I talked for a moment and we made a decision that we were going to leave ironically our intent was really just to go to another Morgan Stanley building in midtown Manhattan and continue working little did we know what was going on so the other people that worked for me we got them together and we decide to leave we walked to the stairwells I got there to the stairwells and there very crowded same as in 93 but 93 I turned around I went back and sent my office for about an hour until I left this time we decided we were going to take the elevators being on the 72nd floor when you take the elevators from that floor you would go to the 44th floor something called the sky lobby got on the elevator really an uneventful trip people are joking around about how good a nice date is and we're getting out of work but as soon as we got to that 44th floor we realized something different it happened people started taking out their cell phones no one could get any reception we stood there for a while and an announcement is made and it was a very simple announcement they said building two is please return to your offices I looked around I saw some people going back upstairs fortunately I did not do that we stood there again for another moment or two when we made our next decision that would continue down we entered the next stair set of stairs walk down probably three flights of stairs when the building shook violently you couldn't stand up yet hold on to the handrail I have to tell you I was really frightened I don't know what I was thinking but I know I was afraid people all around though was saying to everybody to slow down asking everybody if they needed help but we continued walking down finally we got down to the lobby and we got down to the lobby we couldn't exit normally through the regular doors because it was debris falling off of the building so the guards that were there and they led us underneath the concourse it was a shopping center and we walked underneath the shopping center and finally exit on Church three through five World Trade Center it was a boardís bookstore there remember at this point in time I still have no idea which taken place no idea what's going on only information was that one announcement so we could when I come outside I turn around and I look at the two buildings and his flames and smoke coming out of them people they asked me what I was thinking I really don't know what I was thinking when I saw this I had no idea it was going on it was really frightful to look at then we make our next decision the streets crowded with people and my next decision is quite simple we're going to continue to walk to midtown Manhattan oddly the New York City subway was still running and we actually got on it and we got on the train and uneventful ride there's one young guy on there and he has a boombox but he's talking about planes we didn't know what he was talking about we get to 49th Street we walk towards the building we're going to and as we're entering the building we notice everyone's leaving so we want to make some phone calls at this point tell our families that were okay what's going on so we go inside and we get up to one of the lower floors a TV monitor on and they're showing over and over again the South Tower collapsing and we at this point we're probably go into a little bit of shock because we realized we just walked out of that building and we're thinking about all the people who had left behind so I start making phone calls try to call my wife the phone is busy so I called my friend Jim up and I tell him I'm out of the building I tell him who's with me finally I called my wife could guess how it was on the phone she was crying a bit she remembered in 93 I'd called her right away and she's looking at the TV and she saw the plane hitting his Jude it said it was right close to where my office was she probably thought I was dead got home that night went into the house a lot of friends and neighbors were there it was a nice scene actually a lot of hugs and kisses and tears and after when everyone left my wife said to me that Jim came over to the house around 11 o'clock I was surprised because I knew he couldn't get out of bed and she said she was in the process of picking up my daughter and from school my younger daughter and she met him as he was coming and he was in the process writing this note and he then he was on its way to go tell other people that I've told him about that they were safe forgot about the note didn't think much of it until we were moving I never really told Jim thank you he never really mentioned it much that he came over that day Jim passed away a few years ago and I'm sure if he knew I was talking about him right now who'd really be ticked off at me but nevertheless there are all kinds of heroes a lot of heroic acts some big and some small and that was just one of them thank you Joe was one of about 20,000 people that safely evacuated at the Trade Center that morning not many people realize that that many people made it out pretty much whole and healthy that day 13 of Joe's co-workers however were not among them now like Joe bill is a survivor but the paths that each of them took that day were extremely different as Joe was very wisely leaving the towers bill was racing into them he did that because it was his job and because he did his job there are people who are alive today August 28 2001 27 year old New York City probationary firefighter Michael Garamba loses his life in a fire on Staten Island he leaves behind a pregnant wife and the two-year-old son I remember reading the accounts in the paper and it bothered me deeply September 1st 2001 approximately 9:00 a.m. in the morning I remember returning home from work you have to work in 24 hours at the firehouse coming in the door being greeted by my five-year-old son Billy greeting by greeting him and in greeting my wife holding my two month old son John and giving me giving him his usual kiss on the fire and I was off to the shower I was getting ready for the funeral for Michael Garamba they have to shower and I go to my room and appearing in the doorway of my room is my son Billy and he gives me those eyes that say you were just gone for 24 hours and now you're headed out the door again I couldn't give in and I said hurry up get dressed if you want to come with me and he runs off I go to my closet and I look for my dress blue uniform and I can't find it right away and then finally in the deepest part of the closet I find it now that's a good thing that means I have a warning in quite some time you see it usually reserved for marna Duty funerals I remember getting dressed and then appearing at the doorway it was my son Billy he's in his blue stupid I didn't have to tell him what to put on and he wanted to be like dad I'm taking to the funeral for a couple reasons one we usually spend the whole time together the other thing maybe he'll get to understand their closeness the Brotherhood of the fire department one of these to have great friends he'll see that there and also maybe a something happened to me he'd understand what I wanted duty funeral is all about and we head off September 14th 2001 about 2:00 a.m. in the morning I wake up in Metropolitan Hospital in New York city full of sweat soaking wet I haven't been able to sleep in three days I am going through so many different emotions I said I got to get out of this bed and I got to write down once we go through my mind I never go going over to the nursery station at that time and ants the nurse can I have a piece of paper after I think some things down and she hands me a piece of paper like laughs I said no I'm gonna need a tablet and she gives me a bunch of paper and I sit down by by her at the nursery station I begin writing and again I don't start with the events of September 11th I start with Michael Garamba and his funeral still bothered me and then I get to September 11th 2001 about 7:30 in the morning when I show up for the firehouse I rescue five on Staten Island walking the door to music playing say no more dougie Miller's working does it dozen bagels they're in French vanilla coffee made Nicky russamano brings it in every time Joey miss Galli is cooking french toast at the stove tags the little guy brings in a little pound cake and my good friend mike fiore is working it's gonna be a good it's gonna be a great day so we think and then I sit down at the table moments later the alarms go off and we'll head it out for the trade Santa I remember entering the borough Brooklyn just before we get into the tunnel watching the second point strike to strike that north to south tower and the huge ball of fire eventually making a way through the tunnel and arriving in New York and seeing all the body parts and all I know when this is gonna be like nothing else making my way to the North Tower where I begin to operate on the second floor helping to evacuate people to own your feet to your right down the stairs you're out the building good job he's going on for quite some time and then here and allowing the weights from above knowing something that something is collapsing I jump in a stairwell the noise gets deafening everything goes black as well this is gonna be it and then I'm still alive and then I hear people screaming on the other side of the door help help I'm trying to get the door open and apparently trapped in that area and with the help of an emergency service cop John Dallara he and I began to force open that door we get it open and we go out in that area and recover about 15 people eventually leading them to the staircase and then he and I go back and light up the area without flashlights as people walking by and again we're beginning to evacuate in middle of all this he says to me you know I have a wife two kids two boys I said me the same and that's what we're talking about for next 15-20 minutes in the middle of all this alright nothing ever you're talking about our families and then when they seem like there's no one else left in that towel we decide we're gonna leave we're not outside the North Tower 30 seconds and we hear it coming down on top of us I take one step towards a window I'm picked up and blown about 40 feet in the air I remember smashing against the wall climbing into a window in six World Trade Center hiding under a desk starting to get buried and that's when like that I said goodbye to my wife I said goodbye to my son Billy I say goodbye to my two month old and with that I said you'll never know your dad let me tell you that hurt like hell and then it was over I was still alive buried amongst thought of debris putting a finger mom out so I can create an airway to breathe and eventually making our way out and that onto the street going down survivor staircase and then we're reporting in to a police police chief saluting him saying chief there's been a collapse I've lost some men and him tell me we lost a lot of men here today getting an ambulance and get out of here and that's how I wound up a Metropolitan Hospital I remember getting a call that night from my brother-in-law he's in rescue five also him telling me bill did you get the news I said no what news he said all the guys are gone I named everybody I was working with that day 12 of us I was the only one to survive hanging up with him call my wife calling me and she saying to me did you get the news I said I did I said what about the other news I said what other news she said your Uncle Joe was on for like 93 they went down in Pennsylvania I remember Tony give me any bad news you got it was the first day of school like my kid fell doubt I'd be good with it but now I remember the last sentence I wrote was my never ever ever have to tell this story ever again I remember getting home from the hospital getting home and the block was filled with cause little did I know those people in my house being greeted by my wife from the driveway my son Billy hesitant because of my injuries that come up to me I told him I'll get better and give him me a hug and they're making my way to the back bedroom my son was sleeping I remember low in the rail on the crib leaning down give him a kiss on the forehead as I always did and I said I'll be hopefully as long as I can I'm still here unfortunately over the next three months every time I opened my closet Stanley right in the face was that just blue uniform [Applause] for our fire department the first attack took place just as the night shift was ending and the day shift began thank you it's because of this overlap night shift and day shift that so many firefighters responded so quickly and came down here it's the reason why when Bill told you an historic that he was told that we lost a lot of men that day the number is 343 and that was New York City firefighters 23 New York City police officers did 37 Port Authority police did September 11th is the worst loss of first responders in a single event in United States history bill went through years of counseling to be able to share his story and as he will be the first to tell you sharing it has helped make his recovery possible what I'd like to do now is just open this up to you if you would like to ask any questions this is your moment just take a moment and see if anything comes to mind no no it not at all much debris you couldn't see a hand in front of your face the air was chewable it was that thick everything was pulverized when that south tower came down and they get out myself and it turned out to be three other firemen were blown into that room we laid on the floor because there the smoke in the heat and fire that was around us and it took us about an hour to get out we found an open window up top W we were to jump out I'm sorry I just realized I wasn't repeating the questions but I think from Bill's answer you probably understood that the question was but please allow me to redeem myself somebody else asked a question fire me how many people today in terms of firefighters or just in general how many people are sick today because of right what was breathed in all of the carcinogens and so forth that were in the air of that day no many have already perished I couldn't give you the exact amount yeah I was just told by a firefighter the number of firefighters will have died since of September 11th related illnesses it's over a hundred and many of them more are having symptoms in terms of just the general public that is something that I have no information about the reason that we know very well especially the firefighters is that up at Mount Sinai Hospital they are they have a program where they are tending to and keeping track of all of that information but it is not limited to the first responders everyone who was affected that day can be seen in that program well let me just wrap up with this oh we have another question oh please I'm not really because of 1993 did you think that anything like that would happen again I didn't think it could happen the head of security at Morgan Stanley though did and he was the man who predicted 9/11 Rick risk Allah he was I guess they never followed instructions very well seriously though many people have asked me that question I don't know the answer I just felt for some reason that I had to leave I think it was mainly because in 93 I did realize how long it took to get out of the building and it's better to be out of there than to be inside when something was going on well if another question does occur to anyone I just want to invite you all after the program we will be outside that exit door so if you'd like to continue this please feel free I want to and I want to thank all of you this is not just polite happy talk you know thank the people quite generally thank you you probably don't realize this but you are essential to our storytelling because with you together we take here a piece of that brutal day and we create from it a life-affirming experience we hope that what you have heard here today will enrich your time at the Museum so on behalf of the tribute Center on behalf of the boys and me thank you from the heart truly thank you for sharing your time with us [Applause]

Channel: 9/11 Tribute Museum

Views: 12,492

Rating: 4.9418182 out of 5

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Id: q1pkfTiBjro

Length: 25min 31sec (1531 seconds)

Published: Wed Jul 24 2019