Survivors Tell Remarkable Tale of Stairwell B: A 9/11 Miracle
It was a fateful day on September 11, 2001, when almost 3,000 lives were tragically lost as terrorists turned passenger planes into deadly weapons. The aftermath of this devastating event continued to reveal its heart-wrenching details through personal accounts, poignant voicemails, and the stories of families who endured profound loss.
While there are few accounts of survivors, those who did make it through that harrowing day have shared their stories. One such account has been dubbed “the miracle of Stairwell B.”
The Day that Shook the World
At 8:46 a.m., a hijacked plane crashed into New York City’s north tower of the World Trade Center, sparking an immediate response from emergency teams. Just 17 minutes later, at 9:03 a.m., another hijacked plane struck the south tower.
The south tower crumbled first, collapsing at 9:59 a.m., followed by the north tower at 10:28 a.m. Survivors of the tower collapses were a rare few, but among them was a group of brave emergency responders and one civilian who managed to escape, thanks to each other’s unwavering support.
A Descent to Survival
As the south tower crumbled, a group of firefighters and a police officer found themselves inside the north tower. Among them were David Lim, a Port Authority K-9 officer; Capt. John “Jay” Jonas, FDNY’s chief from Ladder Co. 6; firefighter Bill Butler; firefighter Sal D’Agostino; firefighter Matt Komorowski; and battalion chief Richard Picciotto. Following evacuation orders, they began their descent down stairwell B.
On the 22nd floor, they encountered Josephine Harris, a Port Authority bookkeeper, who was in distress with an injured leg. Without hesitation, the firefighters decided to assist her, carrying her along as they continued their descent.
A Miraculous Shelter
At 10:28 a.m., as they made their way down stairway B, they began to hear a deafening rumble. Astonishingly, all 14 individuals, including Harris, miraculously survived the tower’s collapse while sheltered in stairway B, situated at the building’s core.
The precise mechanics of their survival remain somewhat of a mystery, but it is clear that stairwell B offered them vital protection. Chief Jonas described it as the tower peeling away around them, leaving them unscathed.
The firefighters affectionately referred to Harris as their “guardian angel.”
A Lifelong Bond
“We had a special bond with her. She was our guardian angel. If she had continued down to the lobby and then our building came down, we wouldn’t be around,” Komorowski shared in an interview with CBS News.
The bond between the firefighters and Harris endured for years after 9/11, until her passing in 2011. During her funeral, members of Ladder Co. 6 served as her pallbearers.
The miracle of Stairwell B stands as a testament to the extraordinary resilience and solidarity displayed on that fateful day, when amidst chaos and destruction, the human spirit prevailed.