The Greatest Hero You Never Heard Of

I am in lower Manhattan on the hallowed ground of the World Trade Center.

On 9/11/2001 Morgan Stanley’s World Trade Center offices occupied 22 floors of Tower 2. With a workforce of nearly 3,000 people, the bank was the towers’ largest tenant. Rick Rescorla was the head of security.

The first plane hit Tower 1 at 8:46 a.m. Rescorla ordered his security staff, floor leaders, and fire marshals to evacuate immediately. He picked up his walkie-talkie and bullhorn and commanded the operation, floor by floor. 17 -minutes later, at 9:03 a.m., the second plane hit Tower 2 smack in the middle of the Morgan Stanley floors.

2,687 employees, plus 250 office visitors, survived. The time that elapsed between crash-to-building collapse was 14 minutes.

13 Morgan Stanley employees died on 9/11. Rescorla was last seen in the 10th floor stairwell, heading higher.

It is important that what gets built on 'Ground Zero' is an inspiring tribute to all who loved the Twin Towers, worked in them, and died there. The new 104-story WTC design accomplishes this and is a fitting tribute.