Sep 12, 2016

Voices of the firefighters in the South Tower moments before collapse

Read the transcript below

These excerpts of the radio communications between firefighters in the South Tower (WTC2) minutes before collapse were withheld by the Port Authority of New York for several months before finally being released in 2002.
It’s pretty clear from these that the men sent in to deal with the fires did not foresee any imminent collapse and indeed seem to be viewing the situation as well within their control.
At 09:43 they are talking about setting up a “staging area” and are in the process of moving the injured down to the 40th floor where the elevator are apparently still working.
At 09:52, just six minutes before the collapse, the Battalion Seven Chief radios Ladder 15 that he’s reached the 78th floor where he reports numerous dead bodies (“10-45 Code Ones”), and “two isolated pockets of fire” that he thinks “we should be able to knock it down with two lines.”
These men did not foresee a structural collapse because they had no reason to do so. They were experienced firefighters who knew that no steel-frame high rise building had ever fallen even when burning for hours or days with considerably greater force than the South Tower was then burning.
Nevertheless, within minutes of these conversations the South Tower did collapse, at near-free fall, killing all of these men and the people they were trying to save.
Below are transcripts of all portions of the conversations that have been released.

9:25 a.m.

Ladder 15: “Go ahead, Irons.”
Ladder 15 Irons: “Just got a report from the director of Morgan Stanley. 78 seems to have taken the brunt of this stuff, there’s a lot of bodies, they say the stairway is clear all the way up, though.”
Ladder 15: “Alright, ten-four Scott. What, what floor are you on?”
Ladder 15 Irons: “Forty-eight right now.”
Ladder 15: “Alright, we’re coming up behind you.”

9:31 a.m.

Battalion Seven Aide: “Battalion Seven, you want me to relay?”
Ladder 15: “Yeah, Steve tell Chief Palmer they got reports that there’s more planes in the area, we may have to back down here.”
Battalion Seven Aide: “Ten-four.” “Seven Alpha to Seven.”
Battalion Seven: “Steve. Seven to Seven Alpha.”
Ladder 15: “Fifteen to 15 Roof.”
Ladder Fifteen Roof:“Fifteen Roof.”
Ladder 15: “We got reports of another incoming plane. We may have to take cover. Stay in the stairwell.”
Ladder 15 Roof: “Ten-four.”
Ladder 15: “Fifteen to 15 Roof. That plane’s ours. I repeat. It’s ours. What floor are you on, Scotty?”
Ladder 15 Roof: “Fifty-four.”
Ladder 15: “Alright. Keep making your way up. We’re behind you.”
Ladder 15 Roof: “Ten-four.”

9:37 a.m.

Ladder 15 Lieutenant: “Tommy, listen carefully. I’m sending all the injured down to you on 40. You’re going to have to get ’em down to the elevator. There’s about 10 to 15 people coming down to you.”
Ladder 15 Firefighter: “Okay.”
Ladder 15 Lieutenant: “Ten civilians coming down. Fifteen to OV.”
Ladder 15 Firefighter: “Got that, I’m on 40 right now, Lieu.”

9:39 a.m.

Ladder 15 Lieutenant: “Alright Tommy, when you take people down to the lobby, try to get an EMS crew back.”
Ladder 15 Firefighter: “Definitely.”

9:43 a.m.

Battalion Seven Chief: “Battalion Seven to Ladder 15 Roof, what’s your progress?”
Ladder 15 Roof: “Sixty-three, Battalion.”
Battalion Seven Chief: “Ten-four.”
Battalion Nine Chief: “Battalion Nine to Battalion Seven.”
Battalion Seven Chief: “Go ahead Battaltion Nine.”
Battalion Nine Chief: “Orio, I couldn’t find a bank to bring you up any highter. I’m on the 40th floor, what can I do for you?”
Battalion Seven Chief: “We’re going to have to hoof it. I’m on 69 now, but we need a higher bank, kay.”
Battalion Nine Chief: “What stairway you in Orio?”
Battalion Seven Chief: “The center of the building, boy, boy.” “Tac One to Tac One Alpha.”
Battalion Seven Chief: “Battalion Seven to Ladder 15 Roof, what floor?”
Battalion Nine Chief: “Battalion Nine to Battalion Seven.”
Battalion Seven Chief: “…Battalion Nine.”
Battalion Nine Chief: “Orio, I’m going to try and get a couple of CFRD engines on the 40th floor so send any victims down here, I’ll start up a staging area.”
Battalion Seven Chief: “…find a fireman service elevator close to 40, if we get some more cars in that bank, we’ll be alright.”

9:48 a.m.

Ladder 15: “Battalion Fifteen to Battalion Seven.”
Battalion Seven: “Go Ladder 15.”
Ladder 15: “What do you got up there, Chief?”
Battalion Seven Chief: “I’m still in boy stair 74th floor. No smoke or fire problems, walls are breached, so be careful.”
Ladder 15: “Yeah Ten-Four, I saw that on 68. Alright, we’re on 71 we’re coming up behind you.”
Battalion Seven Chief: “Ten-four. Six more to go.”
Ladder 15: “Let me know when you see more fire.”
Battalion Seven Chief: “I found a marshall on 75.”

9:49 a.m.

Ladder 15: “Fifteen to 15 OV. Fifteen to 15 OV. “Fifteen OV.”
Ladder 15: “Tommy, have you made it back down to the lobbby yet?”
Ladder 15 OV: “The elevator’s screwed up.”
Ladder 15: “You can’t move it?”
Ladder 15 OV: “I don’t want to get stuck in the shaft.”

9:50 a.m.

Ladder 15: “Alright Tommy. It’s imperative that you go down to the lobby command post and get some people up to 40. We got injured people up here on 70. If you make it to the lobby command post see if they can somehow get elevators past the 40th floor. We got people injured all the way up here.”
Battalion Seven Aide: “Battaltion Seven Alpha to Seven.”
Battalion Seven Chief: “Go Steve.”
Battalion Seven Aide: “Yeah Chief, I’m on 55, I got to rest. I’ll try to get up there as soon as possible.”
Battalion Seven Chief: “Ten-four.”

9:50 a.m.

“Anybody see the highway one car? Highway one car we need it for an escort to the hospital for a fireman.”
Battalion Seven Chief: “Battalion Seven to Ladder 15.” “15 Irons.”
Ladder 15: “Fifteen to 15 Roof and Irons.”
Battalion Six Chief: “Battalion Six to command post.”

9:52 a.m.

Battalion Seven Chief: “Battalion Seven to Battalion Seven Alpha.” “Freddie, come on over. Freddie, come on over by us.”
Battalion Seven Chief: “Battalion Seven … Ladder 15, we’ve got two isolated pockets of fire. We should be able to knock it down with two lines. Radio that, 78th floor numerous 10-45 Code Ones.”
Ladder 15: “What stair are you in, Orio?”
Battalion Seven Aide: “Seven Alpha to lobby command post.”
Ladder Fifteen: “Fifteen to Battalion Seven.”
Battalion Seven Chief: “… Ladder 15.”
Ladder 15: “Chief, what stair you in?”
Battalion Seven Chief: “South stairway Adam, South Tower.”
Ladder 15: “Floor 78?”
Battalion Seven Chief: “Ten-four, numerous civilians, we gonna need two engines up here.”
Ladder 15: “Alright ten-four, we’re on our way.”

9:52 a.m.

Battalion Seven Aide: “Seven Alpha for Battalion Seven.”
Battalion Seven Chief: “South tower, Steve, south tower, tell them…Tower one. Battalion
Seven to Ladder 15. “Fifteen.”
Battalion Seven Chief: “I’m going to need two of your firefighters Adam stairway to knock down two fires. We have a house line stretched we could use some water on it, knock it down, kay.”
Ladder 15: “Alright ten-four, we’re coming up the stairs. We’re on 77 now in the B stair, I’ll be right to you.”
Ladder 15 Roof: “Fifteen Roof to 15. We’re on 71. We’re coming right up.”

9:57 a.m.

“Division 3 … lobby command, to the Fieldcom command post.”
Battalion Seven Chief: “Operations Tower One to floor above Battalion Nine.”
Battalion Nine Chief: “Battalion Nine to command post.”
Battalion Seven Operations Tower One: “Battalion Seven Operations Tower One to Battalion Nine, need you on floor above 79. We have access stairs going up to 79, kay.”
Battalion Nine: “Alright, I’m on my way up Orio.”
Ladder 15 OV: “Fifteen OV to Fifteen.”
Ladder 15: “Go ahead Fifteen OV, Battalion Seven Operations Tower One.”
Ladder 15 OV: “Stuck in the elevator, in the elevator shaft, you’re going to have to get a difference elevator. We’re chopping through the wall to get out.”
Battalion Seven Chief: “Radio lobby command with that Tower One.”