The Only Plane in the Sky: An Oral History of 9/11

Someone called down to Sergeant Mcloughlin and William Jimeno, but then the voice left again. Jimeno felt frustrated and angry; he was in a lot of pain. Mcloughlin and Jimeno prayed together and tried to keep each other conscious.

Above them, workers slowly started removing the wreckage. Many body parts were recovered.

Several people, including Pasquale Buzzelli, FDNY Lieutenant Mickey Kross, and Captain Jay Jonas were alive but trapped in the wreckage of Stairwell B in the North Tower. They managed to reach emergency workers outside via radio, and their rescue became a focal point; many did not believe that anyone could have survived the building’s collapse.

A firefighter searching through the rubble found Buzzelli, who was stuck on the ledge of the broken stairwell and could not safely get down. The firefighter initially mistook Buzzelli for another firefighter; he was shocked and amazed when he realized that he had found a civilian survivor. A special operations rescuer climbed to Buzzelli and lowered him down. Buzzelli began walking painfully across the rubble but was eventually taken out on a gurney, as his foot was broken. He called his wife, Louise, to tell her that he was alive.

Jay Jonas and Mickey Cross managed to climb their way free.