♪ >>> WHAT AM I DOING? >> 22 YEARS AGO, THEY ANSWERED THE CALL.
>> EVERY AVAILABLE AMBULANCE, EVERYTHING YOU'VE GOT TO THE WORLD TRADE CENTER NOW. >> WE KNEW THAT IT COULD BE UP
TO 20, 25,000 PEOPLE IN EACH BUILDING. >> I AM ON THE 83rd FLOOR. IT'S VERY, VERY HOT.
>> EVERY FIREFIGHTER SAW THE FLAMES AND THEY LOOKED INTO THEIR OWN HEARTS. >> STAY TOGETHER.
>> THAT'S WHEN I SAID TO PETE, PETE, THIS WILL BE THE WORST DAY OF OUR LIVES, AND THAT WAS BEFORE I KNEW THE HALF OF IT.
>> MAYDAY, MAYDAY! MAJOR MAJOR COLLAPSE! >> IN THE DARKNESS, I WONDERED
IF I WAS DEAD OR ALIVE. >> PETE! PETER HAYDEN! >> TONIGHT --
>> THE WORLD TRADE CENTER COLLAPSED. >> THE FIRE DEPARTMENT OF THE CITY OF NEW YORK AND THE
GREATEST ACTIVE GALLANTRY EVER BESTOWED ON AN AMERICAN CITY. >> I DON'T WANT THIS TO BE SOMETHING THAT'S IN A HISTORY
BOOK THAT A PAGE IS TURNED AND WE'RE FORGOTTEN. >> I'M LESLEY STAHL. >> I'M BILL WHITAKER.
>> I'M ANDERSON COOPER. >> I'M SHARYN ALFONSI. >> I'M JON WERTHEIM. >> I'M CECELIA VEGA.
>> I'M SCOTT PELLEY. THOSE STORIES TONIGHT ON "60 MINUTES." >>> IN THE NEIGHBORHOODS OF NEW
YORK, THERE ARE 217 FIREHOUSES. EACH HOLDS A MEMORIAL TO FIREFIGHTERS WHO ANSWERED THE CALL 22 YEARS AGO AND NEVER
RETURNED. AS WE FIRST TOLD YOU IN 2021, 343 MEMBERS OF THE FIRE DEPARTMENT OF THE CITY OF NEW
YORK PERISHED ON 9/11 IN THE GREATEST ACT OF GALLANTRY EVER BESTOWED ON AN AMERICAN CITY. THIS IS THEIR STORY.
>> THIS PLANE RACED PAST US ALONG THE HUDSON RIVER AT SUCH A LOW ALTITUDE, I COULD READ "AMERICAN" ON THE FUSELAGE.
>> AT 8:46 THAT MORNING, BATTALION CHIEF JOE PFEIFER WAS BLOCKS AWAY SEARCHING TO PR A ROUTINE GAS LEAK.
>> I SAW THE PLANE AIM AND CRASH INTO THE NORTH TOWER OF THE WORLD TRADE CENTER. >> HOLY!
>> FROM THAT MOMENT, THE FIREFIGHTERS OF THE FDNY WOULD HAVE ABOUT AN HOUR AND A HALF TO SAVE 17,000 LIVES.
>> THEY KNEW THAT THEY MIGHT NOT COME HOME, BUT THEY KNEW THERE WERE PEOPLE TRAPPED. THAT'S OUR JOB.
>> THERE IS NO WAY WE WERE GOING TO STAND BACK AND SAY WE ARE NOT GOING IN. THAT WOULDN'T BE THE FDNY.
>> OUR AIM WAS TO GET ABOVE THAT FIRE AND GET THOSE POOR PEOPLE OUT THAT WERE CALLING US. >> WE ARE ON THE FLOOR AND CAN'T
BREATHE AND IT'S VERY, VERY, VERY HOT. >> AND ALL OF THE DISPATCHER COULD SAY IS WE'RE COMING FOR
YOU. SO WE LIKE TO KEEP OUR PROMISES, YOU KNOW. WE TOLD THEM WE'RE COMING.
WE'RE COMING. >> JOE PFEIFER WAS COMING WITH A CAMERA. FILMMAKERS JULES AND GIDEON
NAUDET WERE MAKING A VIDEO. >> IT LOOKED LIKE THE PLANE WAS AIMING TOWARDS THE BUILDING. >> ENGINE 6.
>> THE WORLD TRADE CENTER TOWER NUMBER ONE IS ON FIRE. >> ENGINE 1, WORLD TRADE CENTER,
SEND EVERY AVAILABLE AMBULANCE, EVERYTHING YOU'VE GOT TO THE WORLD WORLD NOW. >> DISPATCH LAUNCHED AN ARMADA.
ENGINE 2 ONE-ON-ONE. ENGINE 22, ENGINE 53. >> 121 ENGINES, 62 LADDER COMPANIES, 100 AMBULANCES, 750
MEMBERS OF THE FDNY. >> ATTENTION, 35 ENGINE, 64 ENGINE, 94 ENGINE, 83 ENGINE. >> AT FDNY HEADQUARTERS IN
BROOKLYN, 54-YEAR-OLD CHIEF OF DEPARTMENT PETE GANCI JR. RACED TO HIS CAR. HE WAS THE BOSS LEADING THE
SECOND LARGEST FIRE DEPARTMENT IN THE WORLD AFTER TOKYO. DAN NIGRO WAS HIS NUMBER TWO. >> WE WENT DOWNSTAIRS, GOT IN
THE CAR AND HEADED OVER THE BROOKLYN BRIDGE WHERE WE COULD SEE THE DAMAGE, SEE THE SMOKE, SEE THE FIRE.
THAT'S WHEN I SAID TO PETE, ETE, THIS WILL BE THE WORST DAY OF OUR LIVES. AND THAT WAS BEFORE I KNEW THE
HALF OF IT. >> CAR 3 TO MANHATTAN. >> PETE GANCI'S VOICE WAS RECORDED EN ROUTE.
>> ALONG FOR THE POT, STAGING AREA THREE, CHIEF SOMEWHERE ON WEST STREET, OKAY. >> A BOX IS A LOCATION.
K SIGNALS THE END OF A MESSAGE. A THROWBACK TO THE 19th CENTURY TALL GRAPH, WHICH ON THIS DAY WAS PUNCTUATING THE GREATEST
CRISIS IN THE DEPARTMENT AGENCIES 136 YEARS. >> RIGHT AWAY I GOT A DEEP SENSE THAT WE WERE GOING TO LOSE A LOT
OF FIREFIGHTERS THIS DAY. >> DIVISION 1 COMMANDER PETER HAYDEN MET BATTALION CHIEF JOE PFEIFER IN THE LOBBY OF THE
BURNING TOURER. >> I KNEW WE WANT GOING TO BE ABLE TO PUT OUT THE FAIR. SO THE ORDER OF THE DAY WAS TO
SEARCH AND EVACUATE AS MANY PEOPLE AS WE COULD. I KNEW WE WERE NOT GOING TO BACK AWAY.
>> THE FIRE WAS 93 FLOORS ABOVE. ELEVATORS WERE OUT. SO FIREFIGHTERS CLIMBED TIGHT STAIRWELLS SHOULDERING 75 POUNDS
AND MORE. >> I THOUGHT WE WOULD HAVE ENOUGH TIME TO GET THE PEOPLE OUT AND EVERYBODY THAT WAS ABOVE
THE IMPACT OF THE PLANE WE WERE PRETTY MUCH SURE WERE EITHER DEAD ALREADY OR GOING TO DIE. THERE WAS A LOT OF PEOPLE
JUMPING OUT ALREADY. >> 1355 PEOPLE WERE TRAPPED ABOVE THE FIRE. THE BOEING 767 HAD SEVERED ALL
THREE STAIRWELLS, LEAVING ONE WAY OUT. >> JUMPERS! JUMPERS!
>> DIVISION I, BE ADVISED, BATTALION ADVISED THEY HAVE JUMPERS FROM THE WORLD TRADE CENTER.
>> WE HEARD A LOUD THUD, AND I KNEW THAT WAS SOMEBODY THAT EITHER FELL OR JUMPED FROM THE BUILDING.
>> THE FIRST FIREFIGHTER KILLED WAS HIT BY A FELLOW HUMAN BEING. >> IT WAS HAPPENING SO RAPIDLY, THAT I GRABBED THE PENI.A. SYST
AT THE FIRE COMMAND POST AND I SAID, FIREFIGHTERS ARE COMING. IF YOU CAN HOLD ON. >> IT'S SOMETHING THAT'S GOING
TO HAUNT US PROBABLY THE REST OF OUR LIVES. >> SAL CASSANO HAD ARRIVED PRECISELY 17 MINUTES AFTER THE
NORTH TOWER WAS HIT. >> JUST AS I GOT OUT OF MY CAR I HEARD ANOTHER EXPLOSION AND I COULD TELL YOU EXACTLY WHAT TIME
IT WAS. 9:03. THAT WAS THE PLANE THAT HIT THE SOUTH TOWER.
>> YOU HAVE A SECOND PLANE INTO THE UNDER TOWER OF THE TRADE CENTER, MAJOR FIRE. >> MAYDAY, MAYDAY!
ANOTHER PLANE HIT THE SECOND TOWER, K? >> THE SECOND 767 EXPLODED INTO FLOORS 77 THROUGH 85.
NOW 2,000 PEOPLE WERE TRAPPED A QUARTER MILE HIGH. CASSANO RAN INTO THE DEPARTMENT CHAPLAIN, MYCHAL JUDGE.
>> I TOLD HIM, FATHER, WE ARE GOING TO BE IN FOR A BAD DAY. WE NEED A LOT MORE CHAPLAINS HERE.
>> MORE AND MORE FIREFIGHTERS KEPT COMING IN. THEY TOOK THEIR ASSIGNMENTS WITH NO QUESTION.
YEAH. PRETTY TOUGH THOUGH. >> BUT IT'S ALSO HARD TO GIVE THEM THOSE ASSIGNMENTS?
>> IT WAS. YEAH. IT WAS. BUT, YOU KNOW, I COULD TELL WHEN
I GAVE THE ASSIGNMENTS OUT, I COULD SEE THE LOOK IN THEIR EYES. I REMEMBER SEEING FIREFIGHTERS
HUGGING EACH OTHER AND HEADING UP. >> HOW MANY FIREFIGHTERS DID YOU SEE THAT DAY REFUSE TO GO UP THE
STAIRS? >> NOBODY REFUSE TO GO IN. >> STAY TOGETHER. >> I CAN REMEMBER ONE LIEUTENANT
FROM ENGINE 33 COMING UP TO ME AND NOT SAYING A WORD. AND WE STOOD THERE WONDERING IF WE WERE BOTH GOING TO BE OKAY.
AND THAT LIEUTENANT WAS MY BROTHER, KEVIN. AND THEN I TOLD HIM WHAT I TOLD MANY OF THE OTHER FIRE OFFICERS.
I SAID, GO UP TO THE 70th FLOOR. >> 70, THEY HOPED, COULD BE A STAGING AREA IN THE NORTH TOWER IN LESS THAN HALF AN HOUR, THE
FDNY HAD RESCUE OPERATIONS IN THE NORTH TOWER, THE SOUTH TOWER, AND THE NEARLY SOLD-OUT 800-ROOM HOTEL BETWEEN THEM.
>> FROM THE TIME THE FIRST PLANE HIT THE NORTH TOWER UNTIL THE SECOND THE TOWER COLLAPSED WAS 102 MINUTES.
THE THINGS THAT WERE GOING THROUGH PETE'S MIND IN JUST 102 MINUTES IS MIND BOGGLING. >> SAL CASSANO WAS WITH CHIEF OF
DEPARTMENT PETE GANCI AT HIS COMMAND POST ON THE STREET BELOW THE TOWERS. THIS IS THE ONLY KNOWN PICTURE
OF GANCI THAT DAY. >> WAS GANCI THE KIND OF BOSS THAT YOU DID THINGS FOR BECAUSE YOU FEARED HIM, OR BECAUSE YOU
DESPERATELY DID NOT WANT TO LET HIM DOWN? >> YOU DID IT BECAUSE YOU LOVED HIM.
>> GANCI JOINED THE FDNY IN 1968. WHAT KIECHBD MAN WAS PETE GANCI? >> YEAH.
PETE, I GUESS PETE WOULD SAY IS MY ALTER EGO. HAD A CHEST FULL OF MEDALS. HE WAS JUST A DOWN TO EARTH,
HONEST, HARD-WORKING GUY, YOU KNOW. HE IS A PARATROOPER IN THE ARMY. WORKED HIS WAY UP TO BE CHIEF OF
DEPARTMENT IN THE FDNY. QUITE A STORY. >> A STORY OF COURAGE OVER HIS 33-YEAR CAREER.
>> HE WON THE DEPARTMENT'S MEDAL OF VALOR CRAWLING INTO A BURNING APARTMENT ON HIS HANDS AND KNEES, GRABBING A CHILD WHO WAS
CERTAINLY GOING TO DIE, AND DRAGGING THAT CHILD OUT AND SAVING HER LIFE. >> THAT'S THE KIND OF PERSON
PETE WAS. HE WOULD PUT PEOPLE IN BEFORE HIMSELF, WITHOUT A DOUBT. >> HE PUT HIS FIREFIGHTERS
BEFORE HIMSELF THREE MONTHS BEFORE 9/11. GANCI, THE CHIEF OF DEPARTMENT, RESPONDED FROM HOME TO A CALL OF
FIREFIGHTERS TRAPPED IN A BURNING STORE. HE WENT IN WEARING SHORTS AND BOAT SHOES.
>> HE ONCE SAID HIS 11,000 FIREFIGHTERS WERE HIS CHILDREN. ON THAT DAY IN QUEENS, HE LOST THREE.
ON 9/11, THE MAN RESPONSIBLE FOR FIREFIGHTER SAFETY WAS CHIEF AL TURI, WHO WAS TORMENTED BY THE PASSING MINUTES.
>> HE ASKED PETER HAYDEN IF HE HAD CONSIDERED THE THREAT OF A PARTIAL LOCALIZED COLLAPSE ON THE BURNING FLOORS.
>> I SAID, YES, BUT WE NEEDED TO GET THE PEOPLE OUT. THERE WERE HUNDREDS OF HUNDREDS OF PEOPLE COMING DOWN THE
INTERIOR STAIRS. >> HOW MUCH TIME DID YOU THINK YOU HAD? >> I THOUGHT WE HAD A COUPLE OF
HOURS. >> THE CHIEFS KNEW NO STEEL HIGH-RISE IN HISTORY HAD EVER COMPLETELY COLLAPSED DUE TO
FIRE. >> NONE OF US EXPECTED THE BUILDING TO COME DOWN. WE EXPECTED THE FIRE TO KEEP
BURNING AND CONDITIONS TO GET WORSE, BUT IF WE COULD JUST GET ONE ROUTE ABOVE IN EACH BUILDING, PERHAPS WE COULD BRING
SOME FOLKS DOWN AT LEAST. >> YOU JUST NEEDED A LITTLE MORE TIME? >> WE JUST NEEDED TIME.
>> ALL RIGHT. NO ONE WOULD DO MORE WITH TIME THAN ORIO PALMER. THAT'S HIM ON THE RIGHT WITH THE
MUSTACHE. HE IS RECEIVING ORDERS TO GO TO THE SOUTH TOWER TO TRY TO CLEAR A PATH TO THE TRAPPED SOULS
CALLING 911. >> HOW MANY PEOPLE WHERE YOU ARE AT RIGHT NOW? >> LIKE FIVE PEOPLE HERE WITH
ME. >> ALL OF THEM ON THE 83rd FLOOR? >> 32-YEAR-OLD MELISSA DOI WAS
SAYING THE HAIL MARY PRAYER WHEN 911 ANSWERED. SHE WAS MANAGER IN A FINANCIAL FIRM ON 83, ONE OF THE BURNING
FLOORS IN THE SOUTH TOWER. >> ARE YOU GOING TO BE ABLE TO GET SOMEBODY UP HERE? >> THERE IS NO ONE HERE AND THE
FLOOR IS COMPLETELY ENGULFED. WE CAN'T BREATHE. AND IT'S VERY, VERY, VERY HOT. >> THE OPERATOR WAS RIGHT.
SOMEONE WAS RISING TOWARDS MELISSA DOI. ORIO PALMER RAN MARATHONS AS A HOBBY.
>> BATTALION 7 IS CHIEF PALMER. LADDER LADDER 15 IS A TEAM OF FIREFIGHTERS A FEW FLOORS BELOW.
>> THIS IS LADDER 15'S LIEUTENANT JOE LEAVEY. >> WE ARE ON 71. WE ARE COMING UP BEHIND YOU.
>> ALL RIGHT. >> PALMER FOUND FIRE MARSHAL RON BUCCA ON THE 75th FLOOR EVACUATING CIVILIANS.
>> LADDER 15? >>
. >> PALMER HAD DISCOVERED THE ONLY INTACT STAIRWAY TO THE TOP OF THE SOUTH TOWER.
UNLIKE THE NORTH TOWER, THE SECOND PLANE HAD MISSED STAIRWAY A. IF PALMER COULD CLEAR THIS
STAIRWELL, 619 SOULS WOULD HAVE A WAY OUT. HE WAS FIVE FLOORS BELOW MELISSA DOI AND RISING.
>> I'M GOING TO DIE, AREN'T I? >> NO, NO, NO. >> MA'AM, MA'AM, SAY YOUR PRAYERS.
>> YOU ARE NOT -- >> I'M GOING TO DIE. >> YOU GOT TO HELP EACH OTHER GET OFF THE FLOOR.
>> THE ASSENT OF ORIO PALMER AND PETE GANCI'S SACRIFICE WHEN WE COME BACK.
>>> AN HOUR HAD PASSED SINCE THE ATTACK ON THE WORLD TRADE CENTER BEGAN. IN THE SOUTH TOWER, BATTALION 7
CHIEF ORIO PALMER TOOK THE ONLY WORKING ELEVATOR AS HIGH AS IT WOULD GO. THEN HE LED THE MEN OF LADDER 15
ON A CLIMB FROM THE 40th FLOOR. PALMER WAS TRYING TO CLEAR A PATH TO 619 PEOPLE TRAPPED BY FIRE.
THIS IS PALMER'S RADIO TRANSMISSION FROM THE 78th FLOOR OF THE SOUTH TOWER. HE IS CALLING THE FIREFIGHTERS
OF LADDER 15, WHO ARE COMING UP WITH RESCUE GEAR FROM A FEW FLOORS BELOW.
>> 10-45 CODE 1s WERE FATALITIES. MORE THAN HE COULD COUNT. HE PRESSED TOWARDS 79, CLIMBING
AT ABOUT ONE FLOOR A MINUTE. AS HE ROSE, MELISSA DOI SPEAKING TO 911 FROM THE 83rd FLOOR THOUGHT SHE HEARD SOMEONE.
>> WE DON'T KNOW WHAT SHE HEARD, BUT HEARING NO ANSWER TO HER SHOUT, MELISSA DOI RETURNED THE DAHL.
>> ORIO PALMER KNEW HOW DANGEROUS THIS WAS, AS HE DIDN'T STOP. LADDER 15 KNEW HOW DANGEROUS IT
WAS. WHAT WE NEVER THOUGHT THAT AN ENTIRE HIGH-RISE BUILDING WOULD COLLAPSE.
THERE WAS NO HISTORY OF IT ANYWHERE IN THE WORLD. >> BUT THIS DAY HISTORY WAS CHANGING BECAUSE THE PLANES HAD
BLASTED AWAY THE SPRAY-ON FIREPROOF FOAM INSULATING THE STRUCTURAL STEEL. THE BURNING FLOORS WERE SAGGING,
SLOWLY PULLING THE EXTERIOR INWARD. E.M.S. DIVISION CHIEF JOHN PERUGGIA WAS THE CITY EMERGENCY
OPERATION CENTER WHERE HE RECEIVED A WARNING FROM AN OFFICIAL HE BELIEVES WAS AN ENGINEER.
>> HE SAID, THE BUILDING IS SEVERELY COMPROMISED. YOU CAN SEE SLIGHT LEAN. THEY ARE IN DANGER OF COLLAPSE.
SO I GRABBED ONE OF MY STAFF GUYS, EMT RICH ZARRILLO, AND I SAID GO TO PETE GANCI. DON'T TALK TO ANYONE ELSE.
DELIVER THIS MESSAGE. THE BUILDINGS ARE IN DANGER OF COLLAPSE. >> IN THIS FOUR-SECOND VIDEO, AT
FAR LEFT YOU SEE RICH ZARRILLO'S BLUE SHIRT. HE IS DELIVERING THE WARNING TO PETE GANCI.
ZARRILLO HARDLY GOT THE WORDS OUT WHEN GANCI'S ATTENTION WAS DRAWN TO A ROAR FROM THE SOUTH TOWER ABOVE HIM.
>> LOUD NOISE. HAD NO IDEA WHAT IT WAS. ALL WE SAW WAS A PLUME OF DUST AND SMOKE, AND DEBRIS.
>> IN THE MOMENT BEFORE, MELISSA DOI HAD GIVEN THE 911 OPERATOR HER MOTHER'S PHONE NUMBER AND THE MESSAGE THAT HER DAUGHTER
LOVED HER. THEN THERE WAS SILENCE. >> OH, MY GOD.
>> PALMER'S LAST RADIO TRANSMISSION WAS BATTALION 7 TO LADDER 15, AND THERE IS NOTHING AFTER THAT.
THAT'S WHEN THE TOWER COLLAPSES. >> HE MUST HAVE KNOWN THAT WITH EVERY STEP HE ASCENDED, HIS CHANCE OF SURVIVAL DROPPED.
>> DIDN'T DETER HIM ONE BIT. THE ONLY THING THAT WAS IN HIS MIND WAS LET ME GET UP, LET ME GET AS MANY PEOPLE OUT AS I CAN,
AS QUICKLY AS I CAN. >> JOE PFEIFER, NEXT DOOR IN THE NORTH TOWER, WAS 200 FEET FROM THE CASCADING TWIN.
>> AND THEN THE LOBBY GOES PITCH BLACK. >> EVERYBODY ALL RIGHT? >> I'M OKAY.
>> AND IN THE DARKNESS, I WONDERED IF I WAS DEAD OR ALIVE. >> WE GOT TO GET EVERYBODY OUT. LET'S GO!
>> I GOT ON MY RADIO. I SAID, COMMAND TO ALL UNITS IN TOWER ONE. >> EVACUATE THE BUILDING.
>> JOE PFEIFER WAS GIVEN THE ORDER TO EVACUATE, AND ONE OF THE FIREFIGHTERS WERE CALLING MY NAME.
>> PETE! PETER HAYDEN! >> HE SAYS WE HAVE SOMEBODY DOWN.
>> I FELT SOMEBODY AT MY FEET, AND I SAW THIS WAS OUR FIREFIGHTER DEPARTMENT CHAPLAIN, FATHER MYCHAL JUDGE.
I REMOVED HIS WHITE COLLAR AND I CHECKED FOR HIS PULSE AND BREATHING, AND HE NONE. AND I KNEW HE WAS GONE.
>> SEVERAL OF US PICKED HIM UP AND WE CARRIED HIM OUT. THE EMTs THAT TAKEN HIM, TOOK HIM NOT TO THE MORGUE, BUT THEY
TOOK HIM TO ST. PETER CLAVER, A CATHOLIC CHURCH A LITTLE BIT NORTH OF THE TRADE CENTER AND LAID HIM ON THE ALTAR AND CALLED
THE FRANCISCAN PRIESTS TO COME DOWN AND GET HIM. >> TOWER TWO A MAJOR EXPLOSION AND WHAT APPEARS TO BE A
COMPLETE COLLAPSE. >> HAVE THEM MOBILIZE THE ARMY. WE NEED THE ARMY IN MANHATTAN. >> THERE WAS A RUSH OF DUST WITH
HIGH PRESSURE COMING IN, YOU KNOW, WITH FORCE THAT I HAVE NEVER EXPERIENCED BEFORE. >> GANCI'S STREETSIDE COMMAND
POST HAD BEEN SET UP NEXT TO AN UNDERGROUND GARAGE IN CASE SHELTER WAS NEEDED. CAPTAIN JOHN SUDNIK, GANCI, AND
THE CHIEFS DOVE INTO THE ENTRANCE. s. >> I JUST REMEMBER THE DUST THAT
DAY, FEELING LIKE IT WAS SEARING YOUR LUNGS, LIKE IT WAS, LIKE IT FELT LIKE YOU WERE SWALLOWING GLASS.
>> PITCH BLACK. PITCH BLACK. WE HEARD VOICES. ARE YOU OKAY?
THAT'S WHEN BE MADE OUR WAY BACK UP. THEN WE GOT UP TO WHERE THE
COMMAND POST WAS. PETE'S MIND WENT INTO RESCUE MODE. >> PETE GANCI HEARD ON THE RADIO
THE CRIES OF TRAPPED AND WOUNDED FIREFIGHTERS. >> AND THEN I REMEMBER HIM GIVING ORDERS.
I NEED TRUCK COMPANIES. I NEED RESCUE COMPANY. TELL THEM TO COME WITH ME. >> AS HE BEFORE, GANCI WENT INTO
THE DEBRIS TO SAVE HIS MEN HIMSELF. IN THE STILL STANDING NORTH TOWER, MANY FIREFIGHTERS REFUSED
THE ORDER TO EVACUATE WHILE THEY WERE STILL CARRYING THE WOUNDED AND DISABLED. GANCI SENT SAL CASSANO TO SET UP
A NEW COMMAND POST. 28 MINUTES LATER, CASSANO WAS ON HIS WAY BACK. >> AND THEN I LOOK UP AND ALL I
COULD SEE WAS THE ANTENNA FROM THE NORTH TOWER IMPLODING. >> GET OUT OF THE TOWER! MAJOR COLLAPSE!
MAJOR CONDO MAJOR. >> I, IN MY MIND, HAD TO BE RESOLVED WITH DEATH.
>> REGINA WILSON WAS ON THE STREET BELOW THE TOWER. SHE WAS WITH ENGINE 219 IN HER SECOND YEAR AS A FIREFIGHTER.
>> AND I PRAYED, AND THEN I JUST ASKED GOD TO JUST PROTECT ME AND, IF HE COULDN'T, I KNEW THAT I WOULD DIE DOING WHAT I LOVE.
>> INSIDE THE COLLAPSING NORTH TOWER, THE MEN OF ENGINE 39 WERE CAUGHT IN A STAIRWELL. >> AND IT STARTED OUT SLOW,
BOOM, BOOM, BOOM. THEN IT GOT QUICKER. PRETTY SOON, BAM, BAM, BAM, BAM COMING DOWN.
>> JEFF CONIGLIO AND JAMIE EFTHIMIADES WERE ON THE STAIRS NEAR THE GROUND FLOOR WITH 110 FLOORS ABOVE THEM.
>> IT TOOK TEN SECONDS FOR IT TO COME DOWN. BUT IT FELT LIKE TEN MINUTES. I SAW I WAS IN THE BACKGROUND OF
A FUNERAL. I SAW MY CASKET. I SAW MY PARENTS, MY WIFE SITTING IN THE FRONT, AND AS I'M
WATCHING THIS, ALL RIGHT, IT'S GOING TO BE QUICK. I AM JUST WAITING FOR SOMETHING TO TAP MY SHOULDER AND FIGURE
I'LL FEEL A TAP AND THAT WILL BE IT, WE WILL BE GONE. WE ARE NOT GOING TO SUFFER. >> JAMES McGLYNN AND BOB BACON
WERE IN THE SAME STAIRWELL. >> THE WIND CAME UP THE STAIRWELL, YOU KNOW, BLEW ME INTO THE AIR, AND THE LANDING
THAT I WAS ON DISINTEGRATED UNDERNEATH ME. I KIND OF BOUNCED BACK AND FORTH, HANGING FROM LIKE A PIPE.
>> I THINK I SAID A COUPLE OF PRAYERS, GOD, PLEASE GET OUTOUS OF HERE. >> THEIR FRAGMENT OF AN IN FACT
STAIRWELL LAY UPON A MOUNTAIN OF MISERY. 16 ACRES OF WRECKAGE. 91 CRUSHED FDNY VEHICLES AND
QUIET LIKE THE FIRST HEAVY SNOW OF WINTER. >> EVERY ONCE IN A WHILE YOU WOULD HEAR THE RADIO, THE
DISPATCHER ON THE RADIO TRYING TO CONTACT SOMEBODY. >> SILENCE SPOKE OF UNIMAGINABLE LOSS.
>> I NEED DIVISION CHIEF OR ANY STAFF CHIEF AT THE WORLD TRADE CENTER. >> THAT DAY, 23 BATTALION CHIEFS
RESPONDED. ONLY FOUR OF US SURVIVED. >> JOE PFEIFER THOUGHT OF THE LIEUTENANT OF ENGINE 33.
HIS BROTHER, KEVIN, WHO PFEIFER SENT UP THE NORTH TOWER. >> I GOT ON MY RADIO AND I SAID, BATTALION 1 TO ENGINE 33.
AND I REPEATED IT SEVERAL TIMES. AND I DIDN'T GET AN ANSWER. >> KEVIN PFEIFER WAS GONE. AND SO WAS THE CREW OF LADDER
105, WHICH ROLLED FROM REGINA WILSON'S FIREHOUSE. >> WE FOUND THE TRUCK. WE DIDN'T FIND THE MEMBERS.
>> WHAT HAPPENED TO THEM? >> THEY ALL DIED. >> AMONG THEM WAS JOHN CHIPURA, HER MENTOR AND HER SAVIOR.
REGINA WILSON WAS ASSIGNED TO THE DOOMED LADDER 105, BUT EARLY THAT MORNING BEFORE THE ATTACK JOHN CHIPURA ASKED TO SWITCH
JOBS, WHICH PUT HER AMONG THE SURVIVORS OF ENGINE 219. >> I TRIED TO HONOR HIM BY TALKING HIS NAME, AND THAT'S HOW
IT IS IN THE AFRICAN AMERICAN CULTURE. WHEN YOU SPEAK THE NAME OF AN ANCESTOR OR YOU SPEAK THE NAME
OF A LOVED ONE, THEN THEY LIVE, AND SO EVERY TIME I SAY JOHN'S NAME, HE LIVES, AND THAT GIVES ME COMFORT.
>> IT WAS VERY HOT. >> THE MEN OF ENGINE 39 WERE TRAPPED IN THE WRECKAGE NEAR THE NORTH TOWER LOBBY.
THEY COULD HEAR ONLY A FEW FEET AWAY BATTALION CHIEF RICHARD PRUNTY, WHO WAS PINNED AND CALLING FOR HELP.
>> WE COULDN'T GET TO HIM, AND HE WAS PASSING OUT. >> HE WAS COMING IN AND OUT. >> DID YOU HEAR HIS RADIO
TRANSMISSIONS? >> THE LAST THING HE SAID WAS ABOUT HIS WIFE -- >> TELL MY BEEHIVE AND CHILDREN
THAT I LOVE THEM. >> MY WIFE, SHE IS THE MOST IMPORTANT THING TO IN THE WORLD TO ME.
>> AMONG RICHARD PRUNTY'S LAST WORDS. THE MEN OF ENGINE 39 WERE RESCUED, BUT 343 MEMBERS OF THE
FDNY WERE GONE. IN A TRADITION WHERE THE JOB IS HANDED DOWN IN FAMILIES, MANY LOST FATHERS, SONS, AND
BROTHERS. >> GUYS I HAD WORKED WITH, BOTH RETIRED AND ACTIVE, SAYING TO ME, PETEY, YOU KNOW, HAVE YOU
SEEN MY SON? AND, YOU KNOW, FIREFIGHTER COMING UP, CHIEF, HAVE YOU SEEN MY FATHER?
I JUST SAID, NO. YOU KNOW, I DIDN'T HAVE THE COURAGE TO TELL THEM WHAT I KNEW TO BE TRUE.
>> AMONG THE FALLEN WERE PETE GANCI AND 71-YEAR-OLD DEPUTY FIRE COMMISSIONER WILLIAM FEEHAN WHO HAD GONE WITH GANCI TO
RESCUE THE TRAPPED. >> PETE HAYDEN CLIPMBED ATOP AN ENGINE TO ADDRESS THE LIVING. >> I YELLED OUT, WE JUST LOST A
LOT OF GUYS HERE TODAY. LET'S HAVE A MOMENT OF SILENCE. WELL, I TOOK MY HELMET OFF AND I HELD IT.
I HELD IT. AND AFTER A WHILE I PUT MY HELMET BACK ON. THEY PUT THEIR HELMETS BACK ON.
I SAID, OKAY, WE GOT A JOB TO DO. LET'S DO IT. >> DO YOU LOOK BACK AND WONDER
HOW DID I SURVIVE? AND 343 MEMBERS DID NOT? >> I DIDN'T THINK ABOUT IT AS MUCH, WE WERE CRAZY BUSY, I WAS
WORKING 18 HOURS A DAY. THEN IT HIT ME. I SAID, I AM HERE. I GET HOME, AND I'M TIRED, AND
THERE IS ALWAYS FOOD ON THE TABLE WAITING FOR ME, NO MATTER WHAT TIME I CAME HOME.
I'M LAYING IN BED AND I ASK MY WIFE, AND SHE SAID DID YOU EVER THINK THERE WAS A JOB FOR YOU TO DO?
>> THERE WAS A JOB FOR CASSANO AND OTHERS TO DO. REBUILDING THE FDNY. WHEN WE COME BACK, THE CHILDREN
OF THE LOST PUT ON THEIR FATHER'S UNIFORM.
>>> VOLUNTEERS STARTED FIGHTING FIRE IN MANHATTAN IN 1648. NEARLY 200 YEARS LATER DURING THE CIVIL WAR, AN ENTIRE NEW
YORK REGIMENT WAS MANNED BY FIREFIGHTERS. THEIR COMMANDER IS QUOTED, I WANT NEW YORK FIREMEN, FOR THERE
ARE NO MORE EFFECTIVE MEN IN THE COUNTRY. AS THOSE VETERANS RETURNED HOME IN 1865, THE MODERN FDNY WAS
CREATED. THE DEPARTMENT'S TRADITIONS ARE HANDED DOWN IN FAMILIES, AND SO REMAINS, ESPECIALLY FOR THE
CHILDREN OF 9/11'S FALLEN. THE LATE CHIEF OF DEPARTMENT PETER GANCI HAD THREE CHILDREN. HIS DAUGHTER MARRIED A
FIREFIGHTER. THESE ARE HIS SONS. CAPTAIN PETER GANCI III WAS 27 ON 9/11.
BATTALION CHIEF CHRIS GANCI WAS 25. HOW DID YOU LEARN YOUR FATHER DIED?
>> I RAN HOME AND I GOT IN THE DOOR RIGHT WHEN STEVE MOSEILLO WAS MY DAD'S DRIVER. AL TURI, THE CHIEF OF SAFETY.
I JUST REMEMBER THEM TELLING MY MOM THAT HE IS GONE. SHE SAID, GONE WHERE? LIKE THAT.
INNOCENTLY. NO, LIKE, HE IS DEAD. AND I REMEMBER THE SCREAM THAT SHE LET OUT.
I CAN STILL HEAR IT IN MY EARS AND IT PAINS ME TO HEAR IT. THE PAIN OF THE REALIZATION THAT IS HE NEVER WALKING BACK IN THE
DOOR. >> PETE, WHAT KIND OF MAN WAS HE? >> HE LOVED BEING AROUND FAMILY.
HIS FAMILY WAS ALSO THE FIRE DEPARTMENT. WE KNEW IT. MY MOM KNEW IT.
SOMETIMES TO HIS DISMAY, BUT SHE, YOU KNOW, WE UNDERSTOOD THE TYPE OF PERSON THAT HE WAS AND WHY HE CHOSE, YOU KNOW, OUR
CHOSEN CAREER. >> CHRIS, YOU WERE IN BUSINESS AND ON YOUR WAY TO AN MBA. DID 9/11 MAKE YOU A FIREMAN?
>> ABSOLUTELY. HAD 9/11 NOT HAPPENED, I WHAT NOT HAVE BEEN A NEW YORK CITY FIREFIGHTER.
>> YOU QUOTED YOUR DAD AS TELLING NEW GRADUATES FROM THE FIRE ACADEMY, YOU WILL NEVER, EVER BE RICH, BUT YOU WILL
ALWAYS BE HAPPY. >> ALWAYS BE HAPPY. THAT'S HARD TO EXPLAIN TO PEOPLE HOW YOU CAN GET INJURED OR
KILLED, BUT YET SOMEHOW YOU COME HOME WITH A SMILE ON YOUR FACE. I ENJOY BEING A PART OF THE ORGANIZATION.
IT GIVES ME A SENSE OF PRIDE I NEVER FELT ANYWHERE ELSE. AND MAYBE THAT'S WHAT DROVE MY FATHER SO MANY YEARS.
>> I'M JOSEPHINE SMITH. >> JOSEPHINE SMITH'S LATE FATHER, 47-YEAR-OLD KEVIN SMITH, WAS WITH HAZMAT 1 ON 9/11.
>> I ALWAYS WANTED TO BE LIKE MY FATHER. YOU KNOW, I ALWAYS WANTED TO BE BRAVE LIKE HIM AND STRONG AND
WILLING. IT REALLY JUST RUNS THROUGH OUR BLOOD. GENERATION TO GENERATION, I JUST
THINK IT'S JUST WHO WE ARE. IT'S OUR PASSION. IT'S OUR UPBRINGING. >> SOMEBODY ELSE MIGHT HAVE
THOUGHT WITH SUCH GRIEVOUS LOSS, I DON'T WANT TO HAVE ANYTHING TO DO WITH THAT. >> IT'S NOT THE JOB THAT TOOK MY
FTHER. IT WAS AN ACT MUCH TERRORISM THAT TOOK MY FATHER. AND THAT MADE ME WANT TO FIGHT
EVEN MORE TO PROTECT THE CITY OF NEW YORK AND THE CITIZENS. YOU MAY HAVE TAKEN MY FATHER FROM ME, BUT THE PASSION IN THE
BLOOD IS STILL THERE. >> I'M JOHN PALOMBO. I WORK IN 92 ENGINE IN THE SOUTH BRONX.
>> TOMMY PALOMBO, 69 ENGINE IN HARLEM. >> HOW OLD ARE YOU ON 9/11? >> A BEAK WEEK AWAY FROM BEING 8
YEARS OWED. >> 9. >> HOW MANY KIDS IN THE PALOMBO FAMILY?
>> TEN. EIGHT BOYS TAND TWO GIRLS. >> THE PALOMBO BROTHER'S DAD, FRANK PALOMBO, WAS 46 WHEN HE
DIED. LADDER 105. IN A SENSE, IT WASN'T 9/11 THAT MADE THE PALOMBO BOYS
FIREFIGHTERS. IT WAS SEPTEMBER THE 12th AND ALL THE DAYS THAT FOLLOWED. >> MY DAD'S BROTHERS AND SISTERS
IN THE FIREHOUSE, THEY COOKED FOR US. THEY DROVE US PLACES. THEY TOOK US TO SIX FLAGS.
I REMEMBER GOING ON THEIR SHOULDERS AND, YOU KNOW, THEY WOULD TAKE US BY THE ARMS AND SPIN US IN CIRCLES.
>> THE FIREHOUSE TURNED OUT FOR BIRTHDAYS AND GAMES. >> THE STANDS WERE FILLED AT THE HOCKEY GAMES, YOU KNOW?
IT WASN'T THE SAME BECAUSE YOU ARE MISSING THE ONE PERSON THAT YOU WANT THERE, BUT THEY DO EVERYTHING THEY CAN TO FILL IT.
THEY NEVER WILL, BUT -- >> THEY DID EVERYTHING THEY COULD TO FILL IT. AS HARD IT WAS FOR THEM, TAKING
TIME AWAY FROM THEIR OWN FAMILIES. >> THE FIREHOUSE COOKED DINNER FOR THE TEN PALOMBOS AND THEIR
MOTHER EVERY MONDAY FOR FIVE YEARS. UNTIL THE FAMILY MOVED AWAY. >> I AM A FIREFIGHTER, ENGINE
214, LADDER 111 IN BED-STUY BROOKLYN. MICHAEL FLORIO. >> HIS DAD, JOHN FLORIO, WAS 33
YEARS OLD ON 9/11. ENGINE 214. THE SAME HOUSE WHERE HIS SON WORKS TODAY.
>> EVERYTH DAY I WALK IN, MY FATHER'S PICTURE IS ON THE WALL. THERE ARE A LOT OF MEMORIALS OF HIM AND THE OTHER FOUR GUYS THAT
PASSED ON 9/11. I HAVE A LOT OF MEMORIES FROM THE FIREHOUSE, BEING A YOUNG BOY, AND JUST WALKING IN THERE
EVERY DAY AND SEEING HIS PICTURES, IT BRINGS BACK THOSE MEMORIES. IT MAKES ME FEEL CLOSER TO HIM
BEING THERE EVERY DAY. >> ATTENTION! >> MORE THAN 60 CHILDREN OF 9/11'S FALLEN HAVE BEEN THROUGH
THE TRAINING ACADEMY ON RANDALL'S ISLAND IN THE EAST RIVER AND ARE NOW ON THE JOB. TO JOIN, THEY TOOK A WRITTEN
EXAM THAT'S GIVEN ONLY ONCE EVERY FOUR YEARS. ABOUT 60,000 APPLICANTS TAKE IT, AND ONLY THOSE IN THE TOP 10%
EARN A PLACE IN THE RANK AND FILE. >> I AM VERY PROUD. I FEEL THAT THEIR FATHERS WOULD
HAVE BEEN VERY PROUD OF THEM. >> DAN NIGRO, CHIEF GANCI'S NUMBER TWO ON 9/11, WAS PROMOTED TO CHIEF OF DEPARTMENT AND
BECAME THE CITY FIRE COMMISSIONER. AMONG THE OTHERS IN OUR STORY, JOHN SUDNIK, A CAPTAIN ON 9/11,
ROSE TO CHIEF OF DEPARTMENT, AND SO DID PETER HAYDEN. SAL CASSANO BECAME FIRE COMMISSIONER.
BATTALION CHIEF JOE PFEIFER BECAME CHIEF OF COUNTERTERRORISM AND NOW TEACHES CRISIS LEADERSHIP.
REGINA WILSON WAS STUDYING FOR THE LIEUTENANT'S EXAM. AND ORIO PALMER'S NAME LIVES ON THE FDNY'S AWARD FOR THE MOST
PHYSICALLY FIT FIREFIGHTERS. >> A LOT OF BRAVERY. A LOT OF BRAVERY WAS DISPLAYED THAT DAY.
AND FOLLOWED BY A LOT OF SADNESS. >> COMMISSIONER, IT SEEMS TO BE A SAD DAY FOR YOU 20 YEARS
LATER. >> I THINK FOR EVERYBODY THAT WAS THERE THAT DAY, IT IS JUST STAYED WITH THEM.
THE SADNESS. WE HAVE PLENTY OF GOOD DAYS. PLENTY TO BE THANKFUL FOR. THOSE OF US WHO SURVIVED.
BUT IT'S A DAY THAT WILL NEVER LEAVE YOU. >> SADNESS BECOMES PART OF YOUR LIFE?
>> ABSOLUTELY. >> YOUR FATHER SURVIVED THE COLLAPSE OF THE FIRST TOWER. AND INSTEAD OF MOVING TO SAFETY,
HE WENT TO ANSWER THE MAYDAY CALLS FROM HIS TRAPPED FIREFIGHTERS. >> RECEIVING REPORTS OF
FIREFIGHTERS TRAPPED. >> HE KNEW THAT THE OTHER BUILDING WAS IN IMMINENT DANGER OF COLLAPSING.
HE HAD DECIDED IN THAT MOMENT THAT HE WAS NOT GOING HOME. >> AND HE CHOSE HIS GUYS. AND, YOU KNOW, WE COULD GET
ANGRY ABOUT IT. I KNOW MY SISTER AND MOTHER, SOMETIMES WE HIT OUR HEAD AGAINST THE WALL.
BUT WHEN THE SMOKE CLEARS AND YOU THINK ABOUT IT, IT WAS THE ONLY DECISION. I KNEW THE WAY HE FELT ABOUT HIS
MEN AND HIS JOB AND THE FDNY, AND HE WAS GOING TO STAY AND SEE THE JOB THROUGH. >> HE WOULDN'T HAVE BEEN ABLE TO
LIVE WITH HIMSELF IF HE LEFT AND, YOU KNOW, ONE MORE GUY WAS KILLED. IT'S JUST THE WAY HE WAS.
IT WAS, I HAVE TO BE THERE UNTIL THE LAST GUY IS OUT. >> TODAY'S RECRUITS WERE CHILDREN THEN.
AND SO THEY MUSTER BEFORE MEMORIES. THREE COLUMNS OF THE WORLD TRADE CENTER AND 343 LIVES, WHICH ARE
HERE INDELIBLE IN TIME. >> SO MANY OF US SACRIFICED SO MUCH THAT THIS STORY CAN'T GET LOST BECAUSE THE WORLD IS
CHANGING FAST, AND I DON'T WANT THIS TO BE SOMETHING THAT'S IN A HISTORY BOOK THAT A PAGE IS TURNED AND WE'RE FORGOTTEN.
>>> TWO DECADES LATER 9/11 RESPONDERS ARE SEEKING MEDICAL >>> WE CANNOT DO JUSTICE IN THIS HOUR, OR ANY NUMBER OF HOURS, TO
THE SACRIFICES OF THE FDNY, THE NEW YORK CITY POLICE DEPARTMENT, THE PORT AUTHORITY POLICE, AND THOSE WHO FOUGHT TO SAVE LIVES
AT THE PENTAGON AND ON FLIGHT 93 IN PENNSYLVANIA. AT THE TRADE CENTER, 2753 PEOPLE PERISHED, BUT THERE WERE MORE
THAN 17,000 IN THE TOWERS AND 99% OF THOSE BELOW THE FIRES SURVIVED. THAT MORNING, A WITNESS WATCHED
FIREFIGHTERS RUSH TO THE STAIRWELLS AND WONDERED HOW THEY FOUND THE COURAGE. AFTER 22 YEARS OF REFLECTION,
IT'S CLEAR. THEY CLIMBED TO RISE. TO RISE TO THE CRIES 1,000 FEET ABOVE THEM.
TO RISE TO THE DEFENSE OF THE FIREFIGHTER BESIDES THEM. TO RISE BEYOND DUTY TO A PLACE OF SELFLESS DEVOTION.
I'M SCOTT PELLEY. WE'LL BE BACK NEXT WEEK WITH THE SEASON PREMIER OF "60 MINUTES."