These 4 former FDNY firefighters each ran toward disaster on 9/11

JACKSONVILLE, Fla. – The satellite changed everlastingly 20 years agone erstwhile a level struck New York City’s World Trade Center. Seventeen minutes later, different level deed the 2nd tower, and we would besides larn that a level flew into the Pentagon successful Washington, D.C.

A 4th level successful Shanksville, Pa., went down without hitting its target.

The acts connected Sept. 11, 2001 marked the deadliest violent onslaught successful quality history. They were besides the deadliest incidents ever for instrumentality enforcement and the firefighters successful New York City.

Bob Aponte, Gerard Durkin, John Westfield and Eddie Zielman each unrecorded successful St. Johns County now. They were determination 20 years agone during the onslaught connected New York City, serving with the New York City Fire Department.

Each responded from antithetic firehouses, antithetic jobs and antithetic schedules -- but each responded similar a New York City firefighter.

They instantly ran toward the disaster, wherever 343 firefighters would die.

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Westfield was the archetypal of the 4 connected country -- dispatched earlier United Airlines Flight 175 struck the 2nd tower.

“I watched those buildings spell up arsenic a kid,” Westfield said. “And I ne'er successful my wildest dreams thought I’d ticker them spell retired connected flatbed trucks.”

None of the 4 could ideate however galore successful their brotherhood they would lose.

“All 5 boroughs, person a rescue company. All 5 rescue companies were sent to the World Trade Center, each 5 companies mislaid each subordinate from each of those companies,” Zielman said.

Something happened that hadn’t successful much than 30 years -- a telephone to each firefighter successful New York City.

“Citywide callback is erstwhile they callback each firefighters from their disconnected week backmost on,” Aponte said. “Never happens. Not successful our career. And truthful I remained connected duty, myself and 2 of my firefighters, we were instructed to the study to Shea Stadium.”

Aponte responded from that staging country erstwhile helium was sent to crushed zero.

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Durkin was crossed the stream successful New Jersey and says helium volition ne'er hide what helium saw connected a ferry thrust to Manhattan.

“The adjacent operation comes down,” helium said.

“I was successful the cloud,” Westfield said. “I got caught successful the cloud. I was close successful beforehand of the northbound operation connected West Street erstwhile it came down. We each turned and ran. The unreality caught us.”

Durkin, a nurse, arrived to dainty radical for injuries.

His young sister-in-law -- helium wouldn’t beryllium capable treat. She was killed successful the attack.

“And ironically, she had been precocious the time before. She took the subway,” Durkin said. “That time she took a cab. And she got determination early. Had she taken the mean subway, astir apt beryllium live today.”

Each of the 4 men suffered nonaccomplishment successful the attack.

These 4 erstwhile FDNY firefighters each ran toward catastrophe connected 9/11

It seems each is unable, and it sounds similar unwilling to fto a time walk without remembering the fearfulness and the heroes -- and those near behind.

“You cognize what benignant of courageousness it took for those guys knowing what they had to spell done to get to the apical floors? And immoderate of them got to the apical floors,” Durkin said. “That’s the calling that makes these people.”

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They’ll ne'er hide the attacks and the enactment of trying to prevention lives. The last study connected the onslaught concluded 87% of the radical wrong the buildings were safely evacuated and much than 15,000 souls were saved.

Now, these men are acrophobic that what has been prevented implicit the past 2 decades could prevarication up successful the future.

“Nine-eleven conscionable changed everything,” Zielman said. “There is perfectly nary uncertainty successful my caput that it could hap to hap astatine immoderate moment.”

“I got complacent implicit 20 years that we hadn’t gotten hit, and I was assured successful our authorities to forestall america from getting hurt, but I don’t person that confidence,” Aponte said. “I’m afraid. We could beryllium victims again.”

More than 70 cardinal radical surviving successful the U.S. weren’t calved connected 9/11.

These FDNY veterans – privation to marque definite those young radical recognize what happened and why.

“It’s achy to speech about. It is,” Westfield said. “Everybody has wounds here.”

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“It volition hap again. The warfare connected panic volition spell on,” Durkin said. “And it’s up to the adjacent procreation to prime up their bootstraps and transportation this American imagination guardant different 250 years.”

These 4 men don’t speech astir themselves arsenic heroes, but they intelligibly are.

They said they consciousness a kinship with different archetypal responders and members of the military, considering 9/11 the Pearl Harbor of their generation.

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