Rick Rescorla
by Sarah from Philadelphia
Rick RescorlaWhen Islamic terrorists bombed the World Trade Center in 1993, Rescorla was instrumental in evacuating the building. He was literally the last man out. He did research and warned authorities that he expected another attack, but was ignored. At Rescorla's insistence, all employees practiced quarterly emergency evacuations.
On September 11, 2001 American Airlines Flight 11 hit World Trade Center Tower 1 at 8:48 a.m. Rick Rescorla ignored officials' foolish advice to stay put and began the orderly evacuation of Morgan Stanley's 2,800 employees on 20 floors of WTC 2, and 1,000 employees in WTC 2. Rescorla reminded everyone to "be proud to be an American," and sang "God Bless America" and other songs over his bullhorn to help evacuees stay calm as they left the building. Rescorla had most of Morgan Stanley's 3800 employees and people working on other floors of WTC 2 safely out of the buildings by the time United Airlines Flight 175 hit WTC 2 at 9:07.
After having reached safety, Rescorla returned to the building to rescue others still inside. He was last seen heading up the stairs of the tenth floor of the collapsing WTC 2. His remains have not been recovered. He leaves a wife and two children. He saved over 2,700 lives on 9/11 just to risk his own.
Page created on 6/24/2012 12:00:00 AM
Last edited 7/26/2026 4:18:04 AM
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