Greenfield Firefighter's Account of 9/11, Trip to Ground Zero

Editor's note: Written by Kevin Wisniewski of the .

I am a firefighter for the City of Greenfield. It is the third largest city in Milwaukee County. We are a smaller department with three shifts, two stations and (at the time) 48 full-time firefighters including nine paramedics. In 2001, I had been on the department for 14 years. I was 41 years of age (my badge number!) and was a heavy equipment operator as well as the department mechanic.

My shift, B-shift, was on duty the morning of Sept. 11, 2001. We had just finished roll-call, checking our vehicles and gear when someone came over the PA telling us to turn on the TV. “A plane had just collided with one of the twin towers in New York!” I remember it being just after 9 a.m.

Every station had the live video feed on of the first tower on fire. “How did this happen?” was what we were all thinking. How could a plane accidentally hit a skyscraper? We all spoke openly, speculating about the incident, how we would handle it, how the building would hold up, what kind of command center and the amount of firemen that would be needed. All the stuff a fireman talks about in regard to a major incident. We were all thinking it was possible that this was intentional, but no one dared vocalize it. The horror of such an idea would be too much to consider. Word was it may have been a commercial jet liner full of passengers that had hit. Now we truly wondered.

Then it happened. Right there on live television we witnessed the second airliner strike the second tower. I remember hearing the sound one makes when you suddenly inhale in horror, then nothing in the room but silence. The commentators on the TV began to lose composure and were panicking. I remember saying, “Oh my God, we are being attacked!” And someone else said, “Looks like we are going to war!” Being into U.S. History and WWII in particular, I remembered thinking how this must have been what it was like the morning Pearl Harbor was attacked by Japan.

We stayed glued to the TV from then on. I do not recall any emergency calls coming in that morning, but we were all braced and wondering who would be hit next. I thought about my own family and that perhaps I should get home. Slowly, more information began to come in on the TV. There were reports coming in about other possible related attacks as well on the Pentagon and that the White House was a target. How could this be happening? Why was it happening? My mind was swirling and I admit part of me was frightened at the thought of dealing with multiple attacks. Attacks that could happen right here, nearby. All the while we watched helplessly as the fires grew in intensity. Hundreds of firefighters and vehicles swarmed around the twin towers. We witnessed helpless office personnel leap to their deaths at horrifying heights rather than burn to death at the windows of their offices. There was no hope of rescue. Some attempted to climb down the side of the building only to eventually slip and fall as well. Debris, some burning was falling to the streets below. Even on TV, you could hear the audible thumps as bodies impacted the ground at terminal velocity. The whole scene was disbelieving and horrifying. I felt sick.

Still we all played the easy-chair quarterback and verbalized what we would do if we were there. How could people be evacuated, the fires fought and lives and property saved? Could the buildings take such damage? The TV reporters now had experts on who insisted the buildings were designed to take such a blow. It made sense to us. The crews battling the blaze did not seem to be panicking or doing anything out of the ordinary to deal with this major incident. But it was apparent that the fires were not getting under control and that in fact the situation was deteriorating.

Then, without warning, the unthinkable happened. The fire floors of the first tower collapsed onto themselves, starting a chain reaction of multiple and rapid pancake-type collapses. The whole tower started to just disappear downward as smoke and dust replaced steel and glass. Once again we all fell silent in the room, unable to comprehend or believe what was happening as we stared at the television like we were comatose. “My God!” someone said. “All those poor devils still in there.” I cannot explain the feelings as I watched. It just seemed incomprehensible that one of the tallest and most recognized buildings in the United States could just disappear into dust! And in such a short time since the building was struck. We felt helpless as the disaster turned even worse and people blocks from the site were running for their lives.

Suddenly we all seemed to come alive again and began commenting and praying and gasping. The reality hit us all that it was inevitable that the second tower would soon share the same fate as the first. All we could do was watch, pray and hope that those firefighters and civilians in the second tower were getting out as fast as possible. At that time we had no idea how far up fire crews actually were or in fact that many had no clue what caused the rumbling sound of a locomotive or an earthquake nearby. Many continued to do their tasks of getting people off the floors and out of the building. The second tower followed in the fate of the first with a pancake- or curtain-type of collapse of dust, debris and choking smoke. We once again were in shock, wondering how many fellow brothers and sisters had just perished in the second catastrophic collapse. It was over.

I cannot fully describe my feelings that day or the rest of the night. All I can say is that I hope to not have them again. We just kept busy and just tried to move on. Always wondering when or where the next terrorist strike would be. Families became closer and churches became full.

We soon heard details of the crash and resulting deaths at the Pentagon. We also heard about the heroic efforts of the passengers on Flight 93 who thwarted the attack on the White House at the expense of their own lives.

Most everyone knows the rest, the statistics and what caused the failure and how the force was so great that everyone caught inside was turned to dust. Vaporized except for some lucky few who happened to be in a void space or a stairwell at the right moment. These survivors would turn up over the next days and weeks as recovery teams swarmed over ground zero. In the end as a firefighter, we lost 343 of our own. A number I shall never forget.

We all wanted to go to New York to help. Efforts were made and plans put together to book flights out or drive in car pools. But most indications were that no more help was needed. There were actually more rescue workers than the agencies in charge could handle. All we could do is watch the progress on television just like everyone else.

We at the Greenfield Fire Department and Local 1963 decided to organize fundraisers for the widows and families of firefighters, police and civilians who were lost. We held numerous events and different locations over the next year. Turn out was so great that we literally would have a drive through set-up so people could get in and out quickly to make their contributions. All were overwhelming successes as people would wait in long lines and give large bills. T-shirts were made up for free from sponsors to commemorate the lost and these were given to those who donated.

Everywhere you looked you would see American flags flying from homes, cars, motorcycles and bicycles. The unity and patriotism was something to behold. Everywhere we went in uniform, people thanked us for our service and shared compassion for our losses. I was never so proud to be a fireman and at the same time never so ashamed of the attention as I was not at Ground Zero. I had lost no one close or even anyone I knew. Still I would get watery-eyed at the outpouring of humanity or sob when a certain song would play. Don’t even ask me about the effect of amazing grace on the bagpipes!

Being on the State Honor Guard I was invited to hear our governor and state representatives speak in Madison on the steps of the state Capital. They were reinforcing what President Bush was saying, that we, as a nation and our military would take action against this strike and that the perpetrators would pay. They memorialized and honored the police and firefighters who perished with some very emotional speeches. My family had come along and we sat as part of a group of firefighters from around the state right behind the speakers. It was another very emotional day for us all.

Every event from then on, that the fire department or the Honor Guard was involved in, had some mention or ceremony recognizing the attack and the loss of lives.

Part 2 of Kevin Wisniewski's emotional story, including his trip to Ground Zero on the first anniversary of the attacks, will run tomorrow, Sept. 10, 2011.