All language subtitles for 9.11 - Fifteen Years Later (2016)

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Oh, my gosh.

Tonight, the attack
that stunned the nation...

The World Trade Center, we took
a hit on that last explosion.

...caught on camera...

Mayday! Mayday!

We got to get everybody out!
Let's go!

...inside
the World Trade Center...

I saw the second one hit
the other tower.

...as the first tower fell.

Tower One to Division 1,
where are you?

...on a day
we'll never forget...

Command Post to Tower One,
evacuate the building.

...9/11.

For some, September 11, 2001,
seems a lifetime ago.

For others,
it was just yesterday.

But for everyone
in this country,

the ruthless attack
that happened

on that clear, sunny day is
seared in our minds.

Good evening.
I'm Denis Leary.

The entire nation gasped
when the Twin Towers,

reaching high into the sky,

symbols of success
and achievement and possibility,

were brought crashing down

when two hijacked jetliners
flew directly into them.

Here at the 9/11 Memorial
and Museum,

are the names of the almost
3,000 innocent lives

that were lost that day,

including 343
of New York's bravest.

CNN is honored to bring you
the epic film "9/11"

that was born
when two French brothers,

Jules and Gédéon Naudet,

with fellow filmmaker
and firefighter James Hanlon,

were shooting a documentary
about a rookie New York fireman

in downtown Manhattan.

On September 11th, their film
about a year in the life

of a young firefighter

was transformed into a gripping,

minute-by-minute eyewitness
account of the first responders

who rushed to the scene
and tried to save people

while the towers burned,
then fell.

The Naudet brothers
kept their cameras rolling,

capturing historic footage
of New York's real-life heroes,

heading towards danger
in the area

that became known
as Ground Zero.

When you work
in a firehouse

7 blocks from the two tallest
buildings in New York...

...you get to know every step,
every staircase, every story.

Good morning, Jim.
Couldn't get too close
to that razor blade?

I'm James Hanlon.

I'm a filmmaker and was
a New York City firefighter

at Ladder 1 downtown.

During the summer before 9/11,

there were days we'd go
to the Trade Center

five times in a single shift.

10-4. We're going to also
send in some help.

My point is, we knew those
towers as well as anybody,

but nobody...

...nobody expected
September 11th.

- Excuse me!
- Got to get out!

Go to the Trade Center.

On that day, guys
from my firehouse,

my best friends,

were some of the first
firefighters in the Tower One

after the plane hit.

We've got jumpers.

What they did that day,

what everyone there did,
was remarkable.

Chief!

And almost as remarkable,

it was captured on videotape

inside the tower,

beginning to end,

and tonight,
you'll see all of it.

The tape was shot
by two brothers,

Jules and Gédéon Naudet.

Holy shit.

They're documentary filmmakers

and old friends of mine.

There is always a witness
for history, I guess.

For that day, we were chosen
to be the witness.

The strange thing is,
the tape, the whole story,

it kind of happened by accident.

I mean, we didn't mean to make
a documentary about 9/11.

We wanted to make a documentary
about a firefighter.

That's how the whole
thing got started.

9, 10.
1, 2, 3, 4.

More to the point, the plan
was to follow a rookie.

On the job,
we call them probies.

The idea was to show
a kid, almost,

become a man in 9 months.

We need some more!

My name's Paul Denver.

John Carroll.

Antonios Benetatos,
Tony for short.

I was a police officer.

For a while, I was
a pizza man, actually,

an Irish pizza man in the Bronx.

This is my first job.

It sounds kind of cheesy,

but I always kind
of wanted to be a hero,

and this is really
the only thing

you could do
that you can do that.

Immediately, we were like,
"Okay. This is the kid.

This is the kid. Let's go."

We got Tony assigned
to my firehouse,

one of the biggest
in the city.

It's Ladder 1, plus a whole
other company, Engine 7.

Steve Lova.

They're guys who fought some of
the worst fires you can imagine.

- What's up with that shirt?
- What's the matter with it?

Soon, they'd face
the unthinkable.

Question was,
would Tony be ready?

I'm terrified.

This is what I want to do,
but it's -- it's scary.

You know, I'm still worried

about how I'm going
to actually react

when there's fire
flying over my head.

The thing is,
when you're a probie,

what you're supposed to do...

We got to do the sheets.

We change the sheets
in the mornings.

...is pretty much everything.

More news and traffic
coming up. It's 6:22.

♪ Oh, I, I got work to do ♪

♪ I got a job, babe ♪

♪ I got work,
I got work to do ♪

♪ I got work to do ♪

Get all the wheels.

Then we start up top,
and we wash the way down.

I think I'm doing decently.

You know, I'm still
waiting for a fire.

That's all.

Engine niner.

Should we grab that big,
long thing from the back, too?

Yeah.

GédéTony was nervous,
of course, terribly nervous.

And as the days would pass,
Tony waiting for his first fire,

wanted to prove
to the other guys

and even more to himself

that he was going to be
a real great fireman.

We're going to break your chops
until you laugh about it...

- Right.
-...because that's how we do.

It's all part of learning how
to handle people and situations.

Now, say you got
up there now,

got your helmet on,
your bunker gear,

and you got to get
your mask on.

How are you going to do that
without letting go?

Uh, I don't know.

Start moving, guys.
Hot in here. Hurry up.

Not bad.

- Payday today, man.
- Yes.

For 2 weeks,
I got $672.25.

You got to be kidding me.

You couldn't even buy
a six-pack with that.

Holy crap.

If I wanted to get rich,
I would've become a lawyer...

but I wanted something that
I'd be able to live with

for the rest of my life.

This I can live with.

A lot of the guys feel that way.

You get to get up in the morning
and look yourself in the mirror

and say, "You're doing
something with your life."

Somebody's in there.
Hit the door.

You do your job.

You risk your life
to help people...

and to be part of a family
at the firehouse.

How you doing,
Jimbo, huh?

- You doing pretty good?
- I'm doing pretty good.

Oh!

Oh!

- Oh! Oh!
- Oh, man!

It's been 4 weeks, I think,
5 weeks, something like that,

and I'm still -- still no fire.

But it'll come, probably when
I'm asleep and not ready for it.

That's when it'll come.

It's 2:30 in the morning, bro.
You can sleep.

- You can.
- All right.

Trust me.
When the alarm goes off,

they'll come and get you.
- Okay.

I got to spray water.

If they're all like that,
it's going to be a fun 20 years.

Come here.
There's fire over here.

There's the fire.
Okay?

Start your line.

Put out the steaks.

Gédé By the end of August,

we knew that we had
a great cooking show,

and there were no fires.

But every time we would talk
with some of the senior guys,

they always told us,

"Well, be careful
what you wish for."

Yesterday,
a 27-year-old firefighter,

in Staten Island
he was stationed,

went to a job,
and he passed away.

We'll go to the funeral
on Saturday, and...

what can you say?

At the time, we didn't think
there could be anything worse

than losing
a single firefighter.

I mean, looking back,
we were all just

kind of innocent...

especially Tony.

A bunch of the guys were talking
about what different parts

usually get them at the funeral.

When the coffin went past,

that was...

that was a little rough.

I don't know.

I hope it's my last one.

Ahh.

They'll go straight up
right now.

There's a lot of things
going on at all times, you know.

You have to be
on the top of your game.

All right.

There's a lot of things
to think about, you know.

Tunnel vision, focus, really...
- Right.

...because that's what's going
to keep you alive,

and that's what's going
to give you the opportunity

to help anybody else.

Right.

Fire or no fire, Tony
had learned a lot that summer.

Get him up.
Get him over the roof.

Sure, he had a ways to go,
but we'd teach him.

Far as we knew,
there was plenty of time.

A few days later, Jules cooked
a French dinner for the guys.

At least, he tried to.

Decided to cook leg of lamb.

Gédé I think he cooked one, and we
really needed at least five.

Where's Frenchie?

A couple more meals like this,
we'll be able to share shirts.

We stayed up late, just telling
jokes and busting chops.

This is the best
part of the meat.

GédéEven though the guys
were making fun of us

because we didn't cook enough,
we were all having a great time.

We're getting accepted.

Silence!

Touchdown!

It was really a great night.
Little did we know.

It was the night
of September 10th.

Should be a beautiful day
today, sunshine throughout,

low humidity,
really a splendid September day,

the afternoon temperature
about 80 degrees,

great weather for
the primary election.

Tonight, clear and cool,
low 60...

It's begun to sound like
some sort of a cliche,

but really,

September 11th started out
like every other day.

I was off that day.

Thirteen guys
from my firehouse were on.

- Around 8:30...
- Engine, ladder.

...I believe the run came in.

Get the run for the gas leak
or an odor of gas in the street,

actually, I think it was.

Just Lispenard and Church,
odor of gas.

You know, don't think
anything of it.

You get on the rig.
You go.

You say, "All right.
It's an odor of gas."

Jules was riding with the
battalion chief, Joseph Pfeifer,

videotaping.

It was just another call,

and I'm riding
with the battalion chief.

We checked the area with meters,
and it was kind of routine.

It was 8:46 in the morning.

That's when this stopped
even resembling a normal day.

Holy shit!

Holy shit!

Come on!

Holy shit!

Right then and there,
I knew that this was going to be

the worst day of my life
as a firefighter.

Go to the Trade Center.

Immediately, I knew
that this wasn't an accident.

Oh, my god.

That looked like
a direct attack.

What?

Chief Pfeifer made
the first official report.

We have a number
of floors on fire.

It looked like the plane
was aiming towards the building.

Transmit a third alarm.

We'll have
the staging area.

All right.

Vesey and West Street.

Everyone we was passing
was looking up.

It's like the world
just stopped.

We are just currently getting a
look at the World Trade Center.

We have something that
has happened here.

Flame and an awful lot of smoke
from one of the towers.

Whatever has occurred has
just occurred within minutes,

and we are trying to determine
exactly what that is.

Right in there.

As we swung around
in front of World Trade,

my mind tells me,
"Wow, this is -- this is bad."

What do we do?
Like, what do we do for this?

My whole team,
let them know.

We're going to team up.

We park right under the awning
of one World Trade Center,

and Chief Pfeifer
puts his gear on,

and I remember asking, "Chief,
can I come in with you?

I want to come in with you."
And he says, "Yep."

Yeah.
Stay with me.

"Come in with me.
Never leave my side."

All right. Ready?
Who's got the 10?

I go in, and I hear screams,
and right to my right,

there was two people
on fire burning.

I just didn't want to film that.

It was like, "No one --
no one should see this."

Pfeifer was the first
chief into the building.

Right away, a guy from
the Port Authority told him

the damage was somewhere
above the 78th floor.

But all you had to do
was look around.

It was obvious something
had happened

right there in the lobby.

You just saw that all
the windows were blown out.

The lobby looked like
the plane hit the lobby.

Later, they'd figure out
that flaming jet fuel

had shot straight down
the elevator shaft.

All of this damage
was done already.

People was all over the place.

So you knew it was going to be
worse when we got upstairs.

Flames are shooting out.
Smoke is pouring out.

I want you to get an engine
to team up...

- Let's get an off-site line.
-...and talk to 7.

And I want to be
a couple higher than 78.

My main concern was we
had, you know,

20 floors of people above.

Chief, do you have any idea
where the floors are...

And we had to figure out
a way to get them out.

Stay close.

Chief, we haven't
found elevator yet.

You don't have
an elevator yet?

As it turned out,
we had no usable elevators.

Freight elevator.

Any elevators working?

With the elevators out,

there was only one way
to get up there --

walk.

Companies come in.

You see them with a concerned
look on their face.

Can we get an extra man?

And they're sent up.

A firefighter in full gear

carrying sixty-something pounds
of hose and equipment

takes about a minute to climb
one flight of stairs.

These guys were looking
at 80 stories just to get there.

Then they'd start working.

I felt the mood that we were
going to put the fire out.

Everyone seemed to be confident.
I know I was.

You basically looked at
it and said, "Okay.

We got 10, 20 stories of fire.

You know, we'll deal with it.

We'll get up there.

You know, we'll get to it."

There are fire crews
just screaming into this area

from every
conceivable direction.

By this time,
some of the top chiefs

in the department
have joined Chief Pfeifer,

running the Command Post,
sending guys upstairs.

One of the men who went up
was Lieutenant Kevin Pfeifer,

who was in charge of Engine 33
and was the Chief's brother.

I just remember we both looked
at each other, said a few words,

but it was more
the look of real concern

that this was going
to be something tough.

It was going to be a tough job.

It was going to be a long job.

They'll put it out.
That's what they do.

The last time Jules had
seen his brother

was an hour ago
at the firehouse.

Far as Jules knew,
Gédéon had followed Tony,

the probie, into the tower.

So for me, my brother
is going up the stairs.

It turns out Gédéon
was with Tony.

Engine 7, Ladder 1.

This is
Firefighter Benetatos.

But Tony was still
at the firehouse.

Yeah. No.
I was off-duty.

And now he'd been
ordered to stay there.

Everybody's been recalled.

All available units must
come back to the firehouse.

While Tony tried to keep up
with the phones...

This is
Firefighter Benetatos.

...Gédéon took his camera
and started walking

down towards the Trade Center.

He was sure his brother
was inside,

and he wanted to get to him.

GédéWhat really stick in
my mind is passing by people

and filming them and filming
their astonishment.

I remember tilting
the camera back and forth

between the people
and the tower in front of me.

Let's go!
Let's move it!

Both towers
of the World Trade Center

have been hit by aircraft.
Both are in flames.

Reporter #
There is black smoke coming
from both of the towers.

It's a horrific scene here.

- Mayday!
- Mayday!

There were two planes.
I saw the second one hit.

- Tower One.
- It hit the other tower.

All we knew was that
a second plane hit,

and we had a lot
of people trapped.

Stay together!
Stay together!

Let them know
what's going on.

You're just gonna have to hurry.
There's one way to go.

Second plane just hit.
- For real?

Now the chiefs would have to
set up a whole other operation

over in Tower Two.

Now he's going to...
I'm going to send him up.

I got to check it.

When the second plane hit,

that's when you could see fear.

Both of them
are on fire.

You could see it
in everybody's eye.

- Was it a plane or a bomb?
- We saw it! We saw it! A plane!

You saw a plane
go into the building?

A plane ran straight
into the building right there!

We heard, "Boom,"
and the whole...

What are those people
going to do?

On the second one...

All the elevators
are blocked out!

Well, the staircases
might still be...

Right?

The stairs were crowded.

People were coming down burnt.

Upstairs in Tower One,
the guys from my firehouse

were now 10 floors up
and climbing.

If we did talk, it was to
the people coming down,

trying to comfort them,
telling them,

"It's all right. Get out.
Stay calm."

I run up finding a woman
in the C staircase.

Her arms were all burnt.

She was just sitting there
basically in shock,

so I picked her up
under her arms,

and I put her in
with a group of guys,

and I asked the group of guys
to, you know, take her down.

I knew we had to get up
to help people.

We had to get up there.

Man #People pretty much said,
"Why are y'all going up there?

Get out."

Their concern was
to get everybody out.

That was the key,
as much people out as possible.

Most of the people in Tower One

came out on the mezzanine
above the lobby.

Then they'd get out
through another building.

All right. I want to use the
lobby of seven as your triage.

The chiefs didn't want anyone
going through the lobby doors.

First it was because
debris was falling outside.

Then...

Jumpers.

...it was people falling.

You don't see it,
but you know what it is.

What's that?

And you know that every time
you hear that crashing sound,

it's a life
which is extinguished.

It's not something
you could get used to.

And the sound was so loud.

I just remember
looking up, thinking,

"How bad is it up there that
the better option is to jump?"

The FBI is now investigating
reports of a plane hijacking

before these crashes
we're telling you about

at the World Trade Center
towers this morning.

Pieces of the building
and the planes

actually landed blocks away.

Do not walk
in this area, please!

Gédéon was walking
with his camera

when he found a chunk
of the plane engine

that had crashed completely
through Tower Two.

Whoa. Whoa.
What are you doing?

Don't be kicking stuff, homey.
This is evidence.

Now you don't kick it.
- All right. All right.

Just get out of the area.
Just go.

This is evidence.
You're kicking stuff.

What's the matter with you?

That was as close as Gédéon
would get to the Trade Center,

without a firefighter anyway.

Go! Go! Let's go!
Move!

GédéSo I decided that
the smartest thing to do

was to slowly walk back
to the firehouse

and find a way
to get to Jules.

We're just getting word now.

One of the two planes

was hijacked after
take-off from Boston.

Reporter #
Two airplanes have crashed
into the World Trade Center

in an apparent terrorist
attack on our country.

Reporter #We now have reports
of a fire at the Pentagon.

The fire at the Pentagon
being reported this morning.

And I was just saying
that the officials

are calling this
an act of terrorism.

They're saying that's
clearly what it is,

clearly not an accident.

Gédé Arriving back at the firehouse,

and Tony is still alone,

and he has no clue
of what to do.

The Pentagon's
on fucking fire?

War.
This is war.

Gédé And, just by listening to him,

freaking out and swearing

and behaving like I've never
seen him behaving,

Tony was expressing
what we all felt.

I can't believe
the fucking Pentagon.

Somebody has balls.

Tony just wanted to go there.

In the lobby,
the chiefs were trying to run

the largest rescue operation
any of them had ever seen.

You got a phone
that's working?

I assumed the entire
world knew more than we did.

Everybody had seen the attacks.

Everybody had seen
the tower burning.

I'd seen the Pentagon.

For us, we didn't have a clue.

...other than NYPD,
Port Authority,

police and the military,
and I need that done now.

On top of everything else,

just talking to the guys
in the stairwells was tough.

I want David
to Battalion 7.

The tower's internal
communication setup

had been knocked out
by the crash.

That left
fire department radios.

Suddenly, you have hundreds
and hundreds of firefighters

that have radios.

Seems to become more
and more difficult.

And one guy from the WTC
who was trying frantically

to reach anyone
on the elevators.

69 car.
Can you respond?

Is there anyone
in this car?

And going through the list...

Hello?
Is there anyone in this car?

...there's about 98 elevators
in the World Trade Center.

The cars are dead.

In the middle of all this,

suddenly,
an elevator opens up...

and we see people,

not having a clue
of what's going on

because they've been stuck in
there since the first plane hit.

We see the look
on the firefighters.

I don't know.

It was not fear.
It was, "What's going on?"

Disbelief.

That made me panic a little bit.

That made me panic.

For the first time,
I had seen Father Judge,

the chaplain, as he's called.

He was in the lobby with us,

and I could tell
that he was praying.

You know, Father Judge, he would
at least make eye contact

with you and kind of give you
a reassuring look.

That wasn't occurring,

almost like he knew
that this was not good.

This is a dangerous way
to go out.

Back at the firehouse...

- What's up?
- What's up?

...off-duty guys
were starting to show up.

We're just waiting
right now.

What's that?

We're just waiting
right now.

GédéTony was... He just had
one thing in his mind...

This is bad.

...to go there,
and he couldn't,

and that's when
Chief Byrnes arrived.

We need to have a look.

Larry Byrnes joined
the fire department in 1957.

He retired in 1998,
a battalion chief.

I couldn't wait.

I had to get down there
because you know what?

They're my firefighters.
It's my building.

It's my city.

So you get
them all together.

Get a flashlight
and a bottle of water.

Okay.

Gédé I remember Tony asking me

to bring him some gloves,
medical gloves...

Grab the box of gloves.
Go grab the box of gloves.

...and by the time
I found them and rushed back,

they were gone.

What are we gonna do?

The probie and the retired chief
were lost in the crowd,

headed down to the Trade Center.

I think, at that point,
the lobby was pretty empty.

There were just a few of us
in the lobby,

and we were discussing tactics.

Some of the outlying companies

didn't know what Tower One was
and Tower Two,

so we were just trying
to help them out

by writing it on the desk
to make it obvious to people.

It was just before 10:00,

a little over an hour
since the first plane hit.

Firefighters from all over the city

were inside those towers,
hundreds of them.

I remember filming
Chief Pfeifer,

and he's on the radio.

A situation that started bad

just gets worse
and worse and worse.

The World Trade Center
South Tower,

which was hit by a plane
and wracked by an explosion

approximately an hour ago,

has totally collapsed.

What happened?

If you're just joining us
this morning,

you're in for
a horrific surprise.

This scene here is just one
right out of one of those movies

you would see in Hollywood --

people walking around
with cell phones,

in tears, holding their heads,

looking up at what's left
of the World Trade Center

and just shaking
their heads in disbelief.

Out on the street...

...everyone knew
what just happened.

The South Tower was gone.

What the hell
is going on?

They saw it collapse and ran.

I waited.

Time slowed down, and everything
became pitch-black.

- Everybody all right?
- Yeah. I'm okay.

How's the way out of here?

Then I realized,
"Okay. I'm not dead."

Yeah.
Right here.

So let's turn on my floodlight
on top of my camera.

All right.
Come on down this way.

Yeah. Let's get out
the way we came in.

Come on back.
Everybody down.

Inside the Trade Center,

all Jules
and Chief Pfeifer knew...

Yeah, right here.

...all anyone knew...

...was that something
had gone terribly wrong.

Got a light?

No, right here.

They asked me, "You,
with the light, help us out."

We got to get
everybody out.

So I was pointing my light
wherever they needed.

Right here.

I remember
seeing Chief Pfeifer.

Command Post
from Tower One,

all units,
evacuate the building.

What's going on?

Command Post
to all units.

He gave it right away,
very calm.

Didn't wait, and it was,
for him, it was a precaution.

It was, "Okay. Something wrong
is happening.

Let's get everybody out."

- Where's that flashlight?
- Tell me what's going on!

From the tone of his voice,

I knew that it was
no normal thing.

I knew it was time to leave.

I remember saying to the guys,

"Well, we're on our own now,"
and, for the first time,

I looked in someone else's eyes
and saw fear...

Whew!

...which you don't see
with fire.

We totally evacuated.
It was such long walk.

21, 17, 16, 15, 14, 13.

I was going down the stairs.

I could remember a fireman
resting on the landing

and telling them, you know,
"You've heard a Mayday.

Get out of the building."

I don't think they --
A lot of them,

I know for a fact,
did not take it serious.

- Hey, Pete! Pete!
- Come on.

I was not even
consciously filming.

I just had my camera by my side

and pointing the light
wherever they needed.

Sorry.

They needed my light
to actually help someone,

and then I realized
it was Father Judge.

Hey, guys.
Hey, we need a hand here.

Come back!
Come back down.

They saw him lying at the base
of the escalator where we were,

and I removed his white collar,

and I opened up his shirt,

and I remember checking
for his pulse,

realizing at that time
he was gone.

All right.
We got four guys.

Top of the escalator.

- Top of the escalator?
- Top of the escalator.

After that, we had to figure out
how to get out of where we were.

Because if you go out this way,

right where we are now,

people are still jumping.

Debris is still falling,
and it's too dangerous.

You cannot go out this way.

One World Trade Center,

we took a hit
on that last explosion.

Which way?

Can we get out here?
Out this way?

Go across.

Chief Pfeifer tells the people
carrying Father Judge,

"Okay. Stay here."

Which way?

I told them that I'll
be back and wait here,

and I'll see if the bridge
is still here.

Chief Pfeifer went to
check one of the footbridges

leading out of the Trade Center.

If it was still standing,
it'd be their best way out.

Did you hear what happened
with the other tower?

- What's up?
- Did you see the tower collapse?

The top
or the whole thing?

Looked like
the whole thing.

We'll head down together.

And I wondered for the first
time if Jules is still alive.

I never thought about it before.

I realized that Jules
could be dead

that very moment.

I had to find Jules.

Gédéon hitched a ride
with three off-duty firemen,

determined to get
the Trade Center

the only way they could --

in a pickup truck.

You shouldn't have
even come in here.

Everybody out.

- Okay.
- Battalion 1 to Division 1.

We were walking
and walking and walking.

Going for Mayday.
Going for Mayday.

There are Maydays being given,

and we start to figure out,
"Okay.

This must be worse
than we think

because you cannot
have that many Maydays

and all that dust
and that noise."

Mayday! Mayday!
Mayday!

Whoa!

GédéThat's when I felt
the danger for the first time.

It was all around you.

I mean, every single cell
of your body is telling you,

you know,
"You shouldn't be here."

The scenery was
radically different.

I mean, it was this
white powder everywhere.

Get yourself a mask.
You got masks?

We're getting Officer Silva,
and then we're gonna go in.

Just a few people
here and there...

and this kind of silence.

The ambulance
is straight down, okay?

Of course, there's no
word on casualties...

Ambulance is straight down.

...but suffice to say, the loss
of life presumably profound.

Ambulance straight down.
Ambulance is straight down.

Reporter #At this time,
everyone's concern

is just getting north,

getting away from
the World Trade Center,

as well as finding out
where their families are.

The South Tower of
the World Trade Center,

just minutes ago,
collapsed to the ground.

Only one tower is
standing at this point.

Reporter #
I have a direct line of sight

to what is left
of the World Trade Center.

The fire continues to burn.

I can see the flames
through the smoke.

By this time,

Chief Pfeifer
had found a safe exit...

...and tried to radio
the men in the lobby.

No answer.

Going for Mayday.
Going for Mayday.

So we walked across the bridge
back towards the Trade Center.

He's still trying to call
on the radio

and not getting through.

The guys that were left there,
they're not there anymore.

They had already gone
out another way,

carrying the body
of Father Mychal Judge

down the street
to St. Peter's Church.

They laid his body on the altar.

Father Mike's death certificate
is number 00001,

the first official casualty
of the attacks.

The chief, his aide Eddie Fahey,
and Jules walked outside,

underneath the footbridge
they just crossed

and into a scene that none of
them could even comprehend.

And there's debris everywhere.

There's dust covering
the entire place,

and we look,
and the tower's here.

So we say, "Okay.
Probably do something else.

The tower is nice.
It's standing,"

and the other one,
we can't see it,

but it's probably just,
you know, on the other side,

and no one tells us.

We have no clue.

So we walk north,

just trying to figure out
what to place here.

And then try to gain
some control.

And there was just a sense

that this wasn't
a good place to stay.

Chief Pfeifer's priority

was to set up a new command post
and find his men.

Right now, they were
coming down the stairs.

At some point, I started to run.

I don't even know if I was
touching stairs on my way down.

When I got about to three or two

is when I started think
of my family, you know,

because I got to
get out of here.

When we reached the lobby,

I-I joked about it.

I said, "The command
post was abandoned.

The board was set up,
and nobody was there."

I said, "Oh.
This is not a good sign."

Yeah.

I knew there was nothing
that I could really do.

I mean, I was not a fireman.

But, as a cameraman,
there was something I could do,

and it was to document
what was happening.

Strange enough, the only thing
that was -- that was --

My primary occupation
was to -- to clean my lens.

Jules was with Chief Pfeifer,

who was plotting
his next move.

The firefighters from my house

had reached the lobby
and scattered.

We're kind of
walking at this point.

We knew we were out of the
building, felt we were safe.

Unfortunately, there were people
jumping out of windows.

You could see them hitting
the ground all around you,

debris hitting the ground.

Let's move.
Come on, officers.

Basically, everybody
was standing

right in the shadow
of Tower One.

It was 10:28 in the morning.

And this huge roar.

And I don't even have time
to think at that point.

I just -- I just run.

Then I feel someone
jumping on top of me

and then the dust.

Gédé At that point, I realized
that I was going to die...

We need help!

...and the only thing I could
think about was Jules,

and I remembered
telling myself that,

if I would survive that,

I would --
I would be a better brother.

Let's go before
the car blow up!

- That way!
- This way!

And it's dead silence,
nothing, no radio calls,

no -- no sound, nothing.

And I feel the person
who was on top of me get up...

Got to get up.

Are you with me?
- Yeah.

And I recognize
it's Chief Pfeifer's voice,

and I just realized
just, you know,

he jumped on top of me
to protect me from all this.

Chief Pfeifer said,
"Okay. Let's go now."

And we get up,
the dust starts to clear

because the wind was blowing
in the opposite direction.

After that, I was just trying

to literally walk
around the block

and recoup or walk back
to the scene

and see what we could do.

Holy shit.

The most surreal scene
I have ever seen.

I cannot describe
what took place.

Reporter #It was a scene just
not to be believed,

the smoke still billowing.

What we do have is a lockdown.

You can't get in.
You can't get out.

You can't go up.
You can't go down.

I see that I'm still
in the middle of the street,

and I see there's a little deli

that seems to be open
in the corner.

Yeah, we got O2 now.

A lot of people injured.

Firefighters, bloody nose,
things like that.

And then it hits me,
you know, "Where is my brother?"

Go back here.

I start realizing that
I've probably lost my brother.

So I try to go back
to the World Trade Center.

I need to go find my brother.

Where are the guys?
- I have no idea.

I was with Chief Pfeifer.

And I'm in the middle
of the street, walking,

and a cop approached me
and says, you know,

"Who are with?"

I'm with Chief Pfeifer
with Battalion 1.

- Oh, you're Battalion 1?
- Yeah.

- You got ID?
- My letter...the Commissioner.

Take your letter and your
camera and get out of here.

All right? Go.

So I go back up, walk north,

not really knowing
where I'm going.

- Police department?
- No.

I'm making a documentary
on the fire department.

Come on. This ain't fucking
Disneyland. Let's go.

Then after a while,
I said, you know,

"There's nothing I can do here.

I need to go back
to the firehouse.

Maybe they'll have some news,

and maybe he's
already back there."

But at that point,
I just...

...I think he's dead,

and it becomes too overwhelming.

It's not easy being a survivor.

Little to little,

the guys started
to come back, one by one.

I can't explain why I'm
here and there's so many dead.

- Very emotional.
- Yeah.

- A lot of guys are crying.
- So many thoughts and emotions.

We were --
We were in One.

Two fell first, and then
they told us to get out.

- Two fell first?
- Two fell first.

I can't figure out this out.
If One didn't fall --

That's why they were
getting us out.

We got to call our loved ones,
tell them we were okay.

It's fucking sick.

But we just got out.

We had just got out,
and I got two blocks,

and I'm like,
"I'm still not far enough."

You know, you just needed to be
with the guys, you know?

I couldn't get back in.
They wouldn't let me up.

I was never so glad
to see firemen in my life.

It was a -- It was a --

It was a great thing to know
that, uh...

that people were surviving this.

I thought you guys
were dead.

You're not
the only one.

I thought I was dead.

That was the scariest thing,
when I came out.

I was like, "Oh, my god.
Am I glad to see you."

We were the lucky ones.

I don't think it's luck, Eddie.
It's a miracle that we're here.

"Miracle"

isn't a word you hear
much from firefighters,

especially not on that day,

but what else
could you call it?

One guy after another was
making it back, safe.

Down here looking.

I got...

I-I can't believe
we all made it out.

How did we make it
out that building?

30 seconds...

another two flights higher...

GédéOne guy from
the firehouse came to me,

and I ask him, you know,

"Have you seen Jules?
Do you know where he is?"

and he look at me,
and he said, "Yes.

He's behind you,"

and I turn over,

and Jules was there
in the firehouse.

I didn't even see him coming in.

It was like meeting
for the first time.

I ask Jules, "You all right?"

He tells me yes.

He tells me that he was,
all that time, in the lobby.

And, um, I know now
what it's like to think

you're going to die,

and then I tell him
I got the first plane,

and I filmed and,
"Do you have enough tape?"

Unbelievable.
Unbelievable.

You okay?

- Yeah.
- Yeah, close?

I'm good.

Yeah. Okay.
Good.

I'm all good, actually.

You'll be all right.

And it definitely was a miracle,
you know?

Oh. Fuck, man.
Where were y'all?

We didn't know
what happened to you guys.

Everybody's
accounted for?

- Come stand right here.
- Is that everybody?

Everybody's
accounted for?

Everybody come back one
by one in the firehouse,

except one.

Did you see Tony
over there in the tunnels?

Looking for Tony.

Yeah.
That's what I heard.

We were all accounted
for except for Tony.

Everybody was wondering
about Tony.

There is not
anything recognizable

of what were
the two Trade Towers,

nothing standing out

from those clouds
of dust at this time.

You guys were
in the building together?

Put your hands down
for me gently.

Okay?
- Yeah.

Oh, that day...
That day changed everything.

I think you got fibers
in there.

You got fibers
in there.

When I came back that day
to the firehouse,

one firefighter came to me,
and he said,

"You know, yesterday,
you had one brother.

Today, you have 50."

It's good to see you.

It's hard to even
describe the emotions

in the firehouse that day.

It was just like,
you heard the ground rumble,

and it was just fucking debris
was just chasing you.

We were running,
hauling ass.

On one hand, you're celebrating.

A very frightful
day, man.

I'm really happy
to be here.

Somehow, the guys
from our house, they got out.

We lost so much
in that 2-hour period.

How are you doing?
All right?

And we felt like we got
the hell kicked out of us.

John, I don't know
what to do, man.

Go back down there
or what?

I'm fucking in shock.

At the same time, we
knew hundreds of firefighters,

thousands of people had to have
died in those towers...

- Oh, my goodness.

...and every hour that passed,

we were more certain
Tony Benetatos

was one of them.

Hey, guys.
Deputy Chief Hill called.

First Division,
he doesn't want anybody else

down there right now.

Let's go, guys. Come on.
We're moving out. Let's go.

But the truth is,
the guys had to go back,

had to start digging
for survivors.

Let's go!

I had to go back...

Billy.

...and find the kid.

Hold on.

Shit.

It's gone, man.

I got down there just as Seven
World Trade finally collapsed.

Hey, Rick, they've been going
live with you.

No sign of Tony anywhere.

It had to be almost 6:00,

9 hours after everything
started...

Benetatos!

...that Tony just walked in.

I walked in like a daze,
and they were all like, "Hey.

It's Benetatos.
You're all right."

What's wrong with your hand?
Anything?

- No.
- No?

- How are you doing?
- Good.

- You okay?
- Yeah. I'm all right.

What happened
on your end?

I was in the building.

- Were you?
- Yeah.

Is everyone
from the house --

- Everybody's back.
- Everyone?

- Everybody's accounted for.
- My God.

I just asked,
"Did everyone get back?"

and they were like, "Yeah."

That felt pretty good.

I left here right after
the first collapse.

Turns out Tony had been with
Larry Byrnes the whole time,

the probie
and the retired chief.

They were right there
when Tower One came down.

I checked all the rigs.

There were rigs crushed,

paramedic trucks covered
with rubble, flipped,

fires burning everywhere,
huge fires.

That whole day, I just
searched through rubble,

lifting things up,
checking underneath.

It's hard for him,
just very hard for him.

He's only been a firefighter
for, you know,

a couple of months,

but he proved himself
that day to all those guys.

Yeah.

There was so much that we didn't
know about that first day --

who had attacked us, how, why.

All we knew was that
nothing would ever be the same.

Just a while ago, Mayor Giuliani
held a news conference

saying it's important
not to lash out in anger

because of the attacks
on the World Trade Center."

- You all right?
- Yeah, I'm all right.

One of the things
that sticks with me

more than everything I saw...

is I sat down
sitting next to Ted.

He looked real bad.

He said, "Tony, man.
It was raining bodies."

The roof of the Marriott...

We were on the roof
of the Marriott.

There was parts all over
the fucking place, legs, feet.

It was nasty.

The man had been through hell.

Good evening.

Today our fellow citizens,
our way of life,

our very freedom
came under attack

in a series of deliberate
and deadly terrorist acts.

It's a very depressed,

dismal, miserable mood.

...secretaries, businessmen
and women, military...

Hundreds of your firemen,

thousands of civilians
are gone...

as quickly as you're
blowing a matchstick off.

Flip a switch, and they're gone.
That's it.

Those buildings came down, gone.

It's hard to believe
they're not there.

They're not there.

It did happen, right?

It's not something that
I'm going to close my eyes

and open them again,

and I'm going to see
the tower, right?

It's not there.

Around midnight, we sent
Tony up to lower the flag

to half-mast again.

There's going to be
a lot of pain

to deal with in the future.

A lot of guys, we all lost
friends and family.

I don't want to ever have to put
that thing at half-mast again

for the rest of my career.

That's it.

Until the recall ends, it's
24 on, 24 off, 24 on, 24 off.

We got word that we'd start
digging in the morning.

Some of the guys with wives
and kids went home

just for a few hours.

They knew it might be days

before they would see
their families again.

My son was sleeping.

I picked him up,
and I put him in my bed.

And I wanted him to be with me,
and, normally,

I would take him out of my bed
and put him in his own bed.

But this night was the opposite.
He didn't mind that.

He actually had a big smile
on his face,

and it was wonderful
to see that smile again.

Probably the best, best entrance
I ever made to a place.

And the kids came out,

and we just kind of all cried
in one big hug.

It was a --
And we just cried.

No, gonna put two there.

Get a couple more guys out here.
We'll set up a little line.

Keep the three and a half
in the middle.

I came back to
the firehouse the next day.

I couldn't wait to get back
actually

because I wanted to get down,
and I figured,

"Well, we're going
to have plenty of people

that are going to be
trapped for sure.

We're going to get them out.

I mean, we have to.
We always do."

We're all alive.

That's more than we could have
possibly hoped for,

so our job now is to go

and do whatever needs to be done

and do as much and as hard
as we can

for as long as they'll let us.

Some of the guys
took a city bus down to

what the media was already
calling ground zero.

You guys, I got extra
surgical gloves.

You guys need to put them
in your pockets.

Some firemen called it the pile.

For us, it was still
the Trade Center

even if it was gone.

Hey, guys.
If you hear three horns,

that means something
might be coming down.

So keep your eyes open

when you're walking
around down there.

We'll do what we can.

And I just realized

something that I always wanted to deny

is how evil evil can be.

I need five firefighters,
19 and 12.

I need
five firefighters.

And we went down there
and formed up companies,

five man and an officer.

Let's go.

We went to work right away
trying to look for survivors.

Try to get some
buckets back here.

Buckets!

Guys were digging fast,
passing those buckets quick,

digging frantically.

Bucket.

Hey.
Watch your back, guys.

We'd be digging, and,
all of a sudden,

everybody would say, "Quiet."

Quiet!

And the whole place would get
quiet, and people would look.

Hello!

And then slowly they would go
back to work and start again,

and that's how things
went down there.

We'd clear what
we could by hand.

Then the ironworkers
would come in,

cut the steel beams
and lift them out.

Then we'd just start
digging again.

You have two
110-story office buildings.

You don't find a desk.

You don't find a chair.

You don't find a telephone,
a computer.

The biggest piece of a telephone
I found was half of the keypad,

and it was about this big.

The building collapsed to dust.

How are we supposed
to find anybody in this

that there's nothing
left of the building?

Bucket!

We found a body.

It was a girl.

She was dead.

She was definitely dead.

All her clothes had been
burned off her.

She looked to be pregnant.

Some people thought
maybe she was just bloated,

but I don't think so.

She was encased in rubble.

And we had her
about halfway uncovered

and getting the body bag ready.

And then they told us to run,
and we ran.

So I never got to see
if they got her out.

It would have felt good saying,
"All right.

At least I got one person out.

One family will be able
to have a decent funeral."

- Quiet.
- Quiet.

Our first shift was 24 hours,

and, in all that time,

there was one person
pulled out alive -- one.

It was beyond discouraging.

It was even hard to understand.

Walking back to
the firehouse...

...people were cheering us...

Thank you.

...but we sure
didn't feel like heroes.

Every day, total strangers
were showing up with supplies.

Somebody said that you
could still use towels,

so that's the end
of the towels.

- Thank you very much.
- Okay.

I know it's early
in the operation here,

but I just wanted
to thank everyone

for all their hard work
that they've been doing.

How we're here, only God knows,

but, again, guys,
thank you so much.

I really... You have no idea
how much love I have have...

Check the lockers, bro.
Check the lockers.

All the lockers.
Take whatever.

Listen.
We tried to keep hope,

but as days turned into weeks,

we began to accept...

there just wasn't
anybody to find.

- Hey, Chief.
- Yes, sir.

We got another body
over here.

Day after day, it pushed guys
to their limit,

maybe passed it.

A lot of guys don't know

if they're going
to do the job anymore.

I know it's either this
or the Army now,

and I like saving lives.

I don't like taking them,
but, after what I saw,

if my country decides
to send me...

to go kill...

I'll do it now.

Every night, the fire
department would put out a list

of firefighters
confirmed dead,

and, every night,
that list got longer.

It is with regret
that the department announces

the death of the
following members --

Battalion Chief
John P. Williamson,

Firefighter William Henry,

Firefighter Eric T. Allen,

Firefighter Manuel Mojica,

firefighter...

We lost so many people that
everybody has lost dear friends,

and not just one
or two, but dozens.

Most days, there was a memorial
service for some guy you knew.

Some days, two or three.

Some days, four.

One of those services
was for Kevin Pfeifer,

the Chief's brother.

He was last seen
in the stairs of Tower One

directing guys to the fastest
way out of the building.

I would say Chief Pfeifer's
brother saved my life.

He saved a lot of lives.

And I remember walking
down West Street.

I just remember him saying,
you know,

how much my brother and I
used to love being downtown

and...and doing this job...

and...

and...

...and how now I didn't
love it anymore.

Eventually, we started
going on runs again...

It feels good though.

...and trying our best
to love the job again...

...but things will never be
the way they were.

So did you want
the new tape?

As for Jules and Gédéon, it's
strange how things work out.

In the beginning,
they came to me, and they said,

"Let's make a documentary
about a boy becoming a man."

During those 9-months
probationary period,

it turns out Tony became a man
in about 9 hours

trying to help out on 9/11.

You know how you can tell that?
He's not bragging about it.

Do I feel like it's given me
more of a sense of self-worth?

Yes.

Has it made me a man?

What's a man?

Hey, Benetatos!

I don't think it's so much
the severity of an event

that alters who you are.

I think it's how you interpret
it that changes who you are.

Gédé We keep forgetting how many
people were saved on that day.

Stay together.
Stay together.

On 9/11, firefighters
saved 20,000 people.

I have that much
respect for human life.

I'm honored.

Sometimes I still don't
even think I'm ready,

but I am honored
to be a fireman.

Here in the 9/11
Memorial Museum,

the last column,
as it's known,

reminds visitors
of the 343 members

of the FDNY
we lost their lives,

the largest loss of firefighters
in this country's history.

9/11 was a day that defined
the end of an era

and the dawn of another,
making us understand

we are vulnerable as a nation,
and, ever since,

we've been adjusting
to our new normal --

wars overseas, acts of terror
at home and abroad

and an ever-present fear

of where the next attack
will come from.

Tonight, we meet again
some of the firefighters

from the documentary

who live the true
meaning of heroism

every day of their lives.

The firefighters
of Engine 7 and Ladder 1

have a new responsibility

soaring over the neighborhood,
the Freedom Tower,

World Trade Center One.

The firehouse on Duane Street
is busier than ever.

Only a handful from 9/11
are still there.

One of them is John McConnachie.

The new guys that are coming on
are just as good

as the guys we had before.

They're so eager
to learn and work.

Now I'm one of the old guys
in the firehouse.

The firehouse now responds to
nearly 6,000 emergencies a year.

There's nothing
like getting on the rig,

hauling down Broadway
with the lights and sirens.

Johnny Mack, as he's
called in the firehouse,

had been there for 8 years
on September 11, 2001.

It was just a terrible day,

and it's tough being the hero.

That's why I don't
like that whole thing

and whatever anybody
says about that.

We were there.

We saw it firsthand.

For me, the best thing I ever
did was stay at the firehouse

and stay down there.

I think that was my therapy,
you know?

A lot of guys, after 9/11,

had a lot of trouble,

drinking and depression
and post-traumatic stress.

That's real.
It's definitely real.

You know, we had a lot
of support groups,

but the only really
support group

for I think the firemen
were the other men.

That's all, you know?

The firehouse for me.

All right, babe.
Have a good day.

I'll call you.

Still, that same firehouse,
for Steve Rogers, too.

The firehouse is a big family.

You know, you have
your family at home,

and your second
family's the firehouse.

And, when something happens,
guys gather together,

everybody steps up
and does the right thing.

That's what a family does.

And that's what Steve did
when he rushed into work

on 9/11, his day off.

I think, truly, 9/11
should be a national holiday.

A lot of heroes that day.

There was people that were
doing extraordinary things,

and they should be remembered.

Driving to work for 31 years,

the changing skyline
has meaning for him.

When I used to come over
the bridge from Staten Island,

come to work,
and you look at the skyline.

And you always seen
the Trade Center,

the towers and everything.

And, for a long time,
there was nothing there.

Now it fills a void.

It just makes you proud.

It shows you that we're not
going to stand for it.

Dennis Tardio retired in 2002.

Even if 9/11 never happened,

it's a tough job to leave.

There's no other job
like it,

the brotherhood,
the camaraderie.

He says, "Not a day goes
by without remembering."

When my head hits
the pillow at night,

I can see that plane
hitting the tower.

It's hard to believe
they're not there.

They're not there.

That's etched in my mind
and will always be there.

The memories also used
to haunt Ron Schmutzler.

He was promoted to chief
the year after 9/11

and asked for a transfer.

...to the building.

I felt like I wanted to leave

because every day you'd be
driving by the site,

so it was a reminder
of my 343 guys.

But the FDNY had
other plans for him.

I thought for sure I'd be moved,

and the Chief
of Departments said,

"We lost so many guys
in Lower Manhattan.

I'm going to ask you to stay.

Stay for 2 years,

and help us out down
there to rebuild.

Rebuild the fire department.

Get us back to where we were."

So I did, and, after the 2 years
was up, I stayed.

And I became
the Battalion Chief,

and I watched
the firehouses grow again.

When you walk through here,
you're going to have to hold on.

All right.

And it was like a breath of
fresh air to see the young guys

coming back
into the firehouse again,

but it took years and years
for us to rebuild

and to get back
to where we were.

It's quite a view.

He's now in charge of
all seven fire companies

in Lower Manhattan.

Now you look
at the entire landscape

down here has changed
so fast, so rapidly.

The high-rises
that are going up,

one building is bigger
than the next.

It seems like they can't
build them big enough

and they can't build
them fast enough.

We're looking at new ways
of getting the firemen

up faster to the fires.

There's that many more people
in the building to worry about.

Worrying about the public's safety

is also front and center
for Chris Connor.

He retired from the FDNY,

and he became a safety
expert on construction sites.

As my luck would have it,
I was assigned to work back

at the World Trade Center.

I was back at the scene
of the crime, so to speak,

back in a place where I never
wanted to go again.

He has spent 7 of the last 10
years within the 16-acre site.

When I started to work there,

it was still very much
a hole in the ground.

You had to literally walk down
a 10-story ladder

into the bottom of what we
called the pit as firefighters.

Eventually, when the below-grade
construction was completed

and the buildings started to
come out of the ground,

for me, that's when
the magic happened.

You really saw these beautiful,
beautiful buildings.

The first of five towers planned
for the site opened in 2014 --

World Trade Center One.

At 104 stories,
1,776 feet high,

it's the tallest building
in the United States

with a bomb-resistant base,

and like most new high-rises,
a concrete core.

They've gone above and beyond
the New York City building code,

which is very strict.

Also now open,
the marble transportation hub

with its startling
sculpture, Oculus.

It took 12 years to complete

and is the most expensive
train station ever built.

Cost -- $4 billion.

Safety for the rebuilt area,

as well
as all of New York City,

rests on the shoulders of
FDNY Commissioner Daniel Nigro.

Since 9/11, buildings
have become stronger,

and the record of high-rise
buildings is that they are safe.

As the city continues
to grow vertically,

and that's happening
at such a rapid pace,

we hope we have the ability
to keep up with it,

but it is certainly
taxing to our people.

Chief Joseph Pfeifer,
who lost his brother Kevin,

a lieutenant in
the fire department,

has turned that personal
trauma into purpose.

The thoughts of my
brother and losing him on 9/11

actually shifts
a lot of my own thinking of,

"How do we make it safer
for our firefighters?"

Go right
in that corner right there.

He was the FDNY's
Chief of Counterterrorism

and Emergency Preparedness...

On your way out
with anybody?

...and drills together
with the police department.

He is invited to speak
around the world

and went to Paris
after the November attacks...

Let me tell you
some of my nightmares.

...to share strategies with
the French first responders.

The thing we're worried
about is vertical spread,

multiple floors.

One of the things that
we need to prepare for

is to deal with a terrorist
attack on high-rise buildings,

the use of automatic
weapons and explosives

and the use of fire
as a weapon.

The 9/11 firefighters,

who now make up
the FDNY's top brass,

talk about managing
the next attack.

Terrorism is always
on your mind today,

so when this does happen again,

I think we will be
a little more prepared.

Prepared so that nothing
resembling

that devastating death toll,

losing 343 in one day,
ever happens again.

There is such a thing
as survivor's guilt,

and I would have
to say most of us

who made it out
that day have it.

As somebody who was
in charge that day,

I probably have the biggest case
in the department,

but it's something one
must learn to live with.

New York firefighters
are also learning to live

with the physical toll
working at Ground Zero

took on so many of them,

diagnosed with a variety
of cancers

linked to breathing in
that 9/11 dust.

In 2006, we talked to
retired chief Larry Byrnes

about the gathering
storm of disease.

There's something out there
cooking in all of us,

and I fear for what 10 years
are going to bring us.

Our beloved chief, Larry Byrnes,

died from a 9/11-related cancer,

the third from
the Duane Street Firehouse.

Now there are names inscribed
at the FDNY headquarters,

firefighters who died from
9/11-related diseases,

among them John Sullivan,

who died of pancreatic cancer.

His son, Mike, is a legacy kid,

the FDNY's turn
for the new generation

related to firefighters

who died in the line
of duty 9/11.

It's not the day he passed away,
but it's the day

that made him pass away.

Mike works in upper Manhattan,

Ladder 34,

the same firehouse
as his father and grandfather.

What I like most about being
on the job is, hands down,

the family and where I am.

Seeing the guys in the house,
they're so amazing.

They're like my uncles,
and now we're brothers.

They've taught me a lot
in between cooking.

Hell, that's a big thing.

You know, the Hot Pocket guy
before, and now, watch out.

I'd spend my career
in Hook and Ladder 34

because that's what I love.

It's the most beautiful rig.

On the job,
those tillers are...

You know, that's sexy
right there.

The firehouse's street
has been named for his father,

John P. Sullivan Way.

The only thing that
I can hope that, one day,

is that I make an impact,
and at the end of my career,

I could put my boots
next to his.

I don't want to fill his.
I could never fill his.

I'm too emotional to fill his.

He's tough -- tough box
of nails, that guy.

I'd do anything
to have him back.

You can have this job
if it meant my father standing

in front of me today.

Our legacy kids
are special, I think.

It says a lot about
what's inside them.

It most likely says a lot
about their parents,

and, their parents,
how they lived their lives.

It was after 9/11 when I knew

that I have to make sure
that I get on this job

for me wanting to always
be a firefighter

but for also me wanting to carry
on my father's legacy.

Another legacy kid --
Josephine Smith.

Her dad, Kevin,
was a hazmat specialist.

Her father rushed to the towers
after the first plane hit.

He never came home, and his body
was never recovered.

When I'm always looking
up at my dad, I'm like,

"You're going to see, Dad!

I'm going to be
a firefighter one day.

Like, I'm going
to work with you,"

and he never said no.
You know?

He never said, "No, I don't
want you being a firefighter.

No, you can't be a firefighter.

Like, girls can't
be firefighters."

He never told me that.

He would just smile.

I would always remember he would
just look down at me and smile.

Josephine is now one
of 53 women on the job

with more than 11,000 men.

I'm small and petite,
but I can still do the job.

I want them to be able
to trust me

that I can have their back

just as much
as they can have my back.

It's been almost 2 years now,

and I don't think
there's one guy in the house

that doesn't believe
I can't do the job

just as much as they can.

My father is a hero.

He's someone I look up
to still every day.

Woodley Joseph looks up
to a hero too --

His brother, Karl Henry Joseph.

My brother being on the job was
probably the number-one reason

why I probably
became a firefighter.

His rig was found
at Ground Zero, crushed.

No remains have
ever been recovered.

Woodley finds solace visiting
the 9/11 Memorial.

Being on the site, trying
to imagine, like, where he was,

now knowing that
I'm a firefighter

and trying to imagine,
like, how he felt that day.

His brother's name is inscribed
with all those who died

at the reflecting pools next
to the 9/11 Memorial Museum,

which opened in 2014.

It holds a collection of more
than 11,000 artifacts,

including visceral reminders

of all those firefighters

who headed straight
towards danger,

a crushed firetruck
that we remembered seeing

in the street that day.

Chief Pfeifer's helmet
is on display

as is Gédéon Naudet's camera.

GédéTo see braveness, to see
courage right in front of you,

for me, has more of an imprint

than the fear
I experienced on that day.

The Naudet brothers were made
honorary members of the FDNY.

They have continued
to live in New York

and still make
documentaries together.

This film for us
is all about hope.

It's all about the best
of humanity at a moment

when the worst is there.

I am now a director
in Hollywood.

I go to work now,
and I direct television,

and I go home
at the end of the day,

and when I lie in bed,
my head hits the pillow,

I'm like a firefighter.

Benetatos!

And everyone always asks
about Tony Benetatos,

the probie from our film.

Now, being a lieutenant,
being in the fire department

and being able to
make a difference

is the best profession

I could ever hope to have.

Nice and comfortable?

Yes.

Whoa!

He thinks he may have found
the answer to the question,

what makes a man?

Maybe getting up
for work every day,

and then coming home
and reading to your children

and doing the dishes

and taking care
of your family,

maybe that's what
defines a man.

- On me?
- Okay.

Family is at the center
of the lives

of all these firefighters
we've had the privilege

of getting to know
over the years.

Chief Schmutzler's son, Steven,

is now a firefighter
in Manhattan.

Have you had to go up
60 flights, no elevators?

No.

I go to work,
and I go to fires,

and you just do your job.

You don't really think
about the danger,

until my son got on,
and I think, for the first time,

I realized what my wife
was going through

for the last 30 years
because I go off to work,

and she's wondering if
I'm coming home the next day.

They all say
the horrors they witness

and the challenges they face
pale in comparison

to the rewards
of being on the job.

Every day is a great day
in the fire department,

but the danger
is always there.

Tonight, the strength
and beauty of this city

is on display once again.

From the top of the Freedom
Tower One World Observatory,

now standing tall where
the Twin Towers once stood,

a symbol of this
nation's resolve,

rebirth and resilience.

I'm Denis Leary.

Thanks for watching,
and good night.

♪ Oh, Danny boy ♪

♪ The pipes,
the pipes are calling ♪

♪ From glen to glen ♪

♪ And down the mountainside ♪

♪ The summer's gone ♪

♪ And all the flowers
are dying ♪

♪ 'Tis you, 'tis you must go ♪

♪ And I must bide ♪

♪ But come you back ♪

♪ When summer's in the meadow ♪

♪ Or when the valley's hushed ♪

♪ And white with snow ♪

♪ 'Tis I'll be here ♪

♪ In sunshine or in shadow ♪

♪ Oh, Danny boy ♪

♪ Oh, Danny Boy ♪

♪ I love you so ♪

♪ And when you come ♪

♪ And all the flowers
are dying ♪

♪ And I am dead as dead ♪

♪ I well may be ♪

♪ You'll come and find ♪

♪ The place
where I am lying ♪

♪ And kneel and say ♪

♪ An Avé there for me ♪

♪ And I will hear ♪

♪ Though soft
you tread above me ♪

♪ And on my grave ♪

♪ Will warmer, sweeter be ♪

♪ For you will bend ♪

♪ And tell me that you love me ♪

♪ And I shall sleep in peace ♪

♪ Until you come to me ♪