Someone has its called Inside-Out and it's written by a 9/11 survivor who tells his own stories, the stories of others and even stories that have not yet been told publicly. The cover is a brand new never before seen photograph from a man who was barely conscious on the ground when the second plane hit and blindly snapped a photograph of the explosion from below. Can't recommend the book enough.
I think there are several. I like to hear these recorded versions. When I’m nervous about unimportant stuff I gain inspiration from people who faced this nightmare. We have to find strength for ourselves and others.
I've heard so many survival stories from 9/11, all of them both excruciating and amazing, but something about Ron's story and the way he tells it has always been especially touching to me. I can tell from this interview that he's doing better than before. I'm so glad he made it out that day and has done all he has to heal. I appreciate the lighthearted closing to the interview. So great to see him laugh, smile, and light up talking about his life!
Thank you for sharing your thoughts on this conversation. He has a great sense of humor and its fun when it comes out, for sure. The day I met him we shared a lot of hockey talk and he lights up when you talk puck!
I remember reading about Ron about 6 months after the attacks in a beautiful and touching article called "Fighting to live as the towers died". I always wondered what happened to him in the long term. Thank you for sharing. It's very clear that even 22 years later, this still evokes such a visceral and gut wrenching response when he tells the story. Thank you for posting this, and thank you, Ron, for continuing to share such a clearly painful memory. Sometimes it feels like that awful day has been forgotten. God bless.
many of us will never forget. Most people who were so close to the impacts and the results never got to tell their stories. Of those the lucky ones died instantly without knowing what happened. It was Terror that we know about; but it’s still unimaginable.
Mr. Ron……your horrendous experience on 9/11 was well told during this interview. But what I will remember & cherish the most is your smile & your joy at the end. You can’t imagine how grateful I am that you survived and can still find ways to love life. You are an inspiration! Bless you & your family forever.
Ron was saved by a man with the red bandana….out of the 18 people that survived in the south tower above the impact zone, at least 10 or more of them people were saved by him. His story is incredible.
Off the record, I later asked Ron about the man with the red bandana and he said that he never crossed paths with him, at least visually. The story of Welles Crowther is incredible. An absolute hero.
Mr. Ron - I want to thank you from the depths of my soul for your bravery in continuing to share your story. You help us clearly see how the murderous attack on 9/11 profoundly impacted you and continues to do so, both the profound as well as the miracles of your recovery journey. I hear your humanity - the depths of your pain and the inspiration to overcome with positive thoughts, words, & actions. Your sharing helps me understand & renews my faith that I too can overcome past traumas. This is your gift that keeps on giving with every human that hears your shares. The value you bring to humanity is immeasurable, as there are countless humans who struggle with trauma, and you show us that we can truly live and recover so long as we we keep moving forward one moment as a time, one day at a time. With all that said, i want to again thank you and let you know you are appreciated, in particular for your bravery on speaking these painful truths. I, for one, am so blessed by your sharing and i thank God for you that you lived. You are blessed, and, you are blessing us on and on. This is a miraculous gift - thank you
Plus, running down three sets of stairs on fire, and the subsequent burns...no way would he have been able to go back and help anyone through that, since both the heat and the burning were only increasing.
Such an inspiring man. Thank you for this interview. I watched interviews with Ron DiFrancesco years ago and am still in awe of his strength. I do believe that the voice that called him was Divine intervention. I hope and pray that the rest of his life is blessed and that somehow joy will sometime triumph over the survivor’s guilt with which he still lives. He reminds me that it’s possible to move forward even after devastating events. Sending ❤❤❤to him and all survivors and their families.
I have been looking for an interview with Ron for years. I read about his story a few years and wanted to learn more. Thanks for this interview and to Ron for doing it.
I have been watching alot of YT videos on various aspects of that day and immediately after . i am amazed that given what it was like in there that so many made it out and so incredibly happy so many did. I just wish so many more had made it out before the buildings fell. Thanks for sharing..it is very much appreciated by me.
I remember hearing Ron’s story years ago. I was 15 when 9/11 happened, and the after effects have shaped my entire adult life. I have such respect and admiration for him. God bless you Ron! I hope you live a very long happy life, filled with joy and everything you love to do ❤️🙏🏼 thank you for sharing his story!
Everyone always starts with “ it was a beautiful day with clear blue skies “ but very soon the tone changes. It was a day none of us will forget. It can’t be forgotten. We pay tribute by listening to these stories and to remember those who died
As a Torontonian, I’ll forgive him for being from Hamilton. Ron tells his story very well; compelling and heartfelt. I’m mind-blown that you met him by chance in the way that you did. It is interesting having a personal PTSD trauma from just before then and trying to envision that but it being a public, known to the world trauma. It would just be another level, I think. It was a wild day for all of us: up in Toronto I watched plane after plane after plane that had been diverted circle and circle to land at our airport. My own trauma forced me to leave a job I loved but that day I called in as they were very close to our tower and, who knew, maybe it could be hit too.
Interesting fact, on the drive TO the airport about 15 minutes before meeting Ron, I met a gentlemen from Nigeria by the name of Efe He was our driver. We were making small talk about how hot it is in Austin, TX in August and he said to me with his heavy accent 'I was a victim of a shooting many years ago and I will never forget the moment I was laying on the pavement waiting for help thinking about my family and WOW this pavement is HOT!' He skipped over the story so quickly and I stopped him immediately and said, "What do you mean you were a victim of a shooting?' Here is his story: www.kxan.com/news/texas/one-year-later-pflugerville-man-who-survived-odessa-mass-shooting-thanks-his-rescuers/ The next day my mother went in for her first round of Chemo. It was like these two people were placed in front of me to recalibrate my perspective.
@@zoldxzimmer no kidding…that is really something! Efe’s story is incredible too. On the one hand I have been witness to violence (amongst others but the most shocking personally was a stabbing just outside a McDs I was in; more-so as I only heard a scuffle and chalked it up to teenagers. I only began to catch on when I saw a little girl standing near me watching something behind me that made me turn around to see a young man bleeding out. Her dad was helping him so I pulled her into a booth with two other older teens and I used my skill set from working with kids to calm/distract her. Only after I exited the now taped-off crime scene did I realize the extent of what happened. I was also grateful-very-that I live where guns are better regulated as I would 100% have been a sitting duck had it been a gun instead). So, I do believe in “nudges” to ground us, be they people to remind us or us being their fulfilled need in that moment. I hope your mother is doing okay through chemo: I’ll keep her and your family in my thoughts.
Yeah I found out the news after my politics class at Ryerson University and we had gone up to our programs department and the secretary was staring at a tiny tv in her office and crying. It was my only class so i tried to leave but at that point the subways were crowded - they were afraid the CN tower was next. It took me 7 hours to get to my Grandma's place, my parents live much further in Markham - and my Mom told me to stay at my Grandma's in East York because we could be next. My Mom was crying so much that day. I was stuck in the subway so I never saw the towers collapse. I watch them all now
I have a very similar story to you, I was in a Mc Donald’s on Younge Street, across the road from Zanzibar when there was a shooting outside. I don’t think the person died but really don’t know, the news didn’t cover it after the initial shooting. I didn’t see or hear the shooting but it was weird, I saw a girl run into the restaurant and run back out again and I thought, just before she turned to run out,”there’s been a shooting.” We weren’t allowed to leave the restaurant for hours. When we did it was through the back door. I wasn’t really taking too much notice but periodically there was a beeping noise. I eventually learned what it was. The police were interviewing everyone in the restaurant before they left and when the back door opened for them to leave an alarm would sound. Every time I hear that sound it takes me right bank to that night. Apparently all Mc Donald’s have the same alarm on their back door! It’s the only place I hear it.
I have C-PTSD and I instantly knew from the first second he started talking that this guy lives in hell in his head. I wouldn't wish this kind of non stop agony on my worst enemy.
Ron’s story is interlinked (and it has to be said: completely downplayed here) with Brian Clark’s (who saved Stanley Praimnath) which he refers to at 08:50. Brian tells this story in tremendous and articulate detail (see Brian Clark 9/11). Both Brian and Ron are also on a 2002 documentary on You Tube (9/11: A Tale of Two Towers). Ron’s survival is arguably the greatest escape story from 9/11.
Yes, I would have to agree that he downplays it. It is clearly a very difficult thing for him to talk about and I really wanted to be sensitive to this. We really wanted to make sure we let him tell his story and not go deeper to potentially stir up more darkness from that period of time in his life. Brian and Stanley's story is also just incredible. I do find it so interesting how similar and yet how different Brian and Ron's experiences are. Thanks for listening!
Yes I agree with your thoughts and have just watched Tale of Two Towers - Ron understandably very affected then after his harrowing escape. The fact he went back up to 91 floor and then found his way back down again through smoke and fire - unbelievable! Good to see him looking much more recovered. Bless his heart❤
@@zoldxzimmer Yes, I noticed your sensitive and empathetic technique and was so appreciative. You allowed him to talk freely and lead the discussion, which was wonderful to behold. I also noticed and appreciated how you both ended the session...about your children and hockey, two things that tie back to the present and demonstrate ongoing healing, forward movement and a continued interest in present life (not an easy thing to do when one has experienced overwhelming traumatic situations, with residual results---both external/internal and visible/invisible). Kudos to all on thos discussion!
He said in other interviews that the "voice" must have been an angel guiding him to safety...amazing miracle, so inspiring, very sad and sending love to Ron and his family.❤
it's completely insane that people in the 2nd tower stayed in it after seeing and confirming that a fking plane hit the other building... i'd be out so fast, they must be in shock or just dumb- sorry to say. I know they couldn't have known, but to see people jumping out and a plane hitting i'm done for the day.... that's ridiculous people stayed, and i'm just angry that people died because they told them it's safe, just so frustrating to hear these stories of not exiting!!! hate it :(
Most everyone inside the World Trade Center’s two towers and five other buildings on the property didn’t know a plane hit the North Tower, nor did anyone working inside any buildings in downtown New York. And after the bomb exploded in the garage of the WTC in 1993, the greater threat to people’s safety was people leaving the safety of the building to the dangers and chaos unfolding outside the building. Hindsight is always 20/20, and even after the first plane hit, it was thought to be an isolated accident, such as other aircraft accidents in Manhattan in years past. The second plane hit just 15 minutes after the first one, so it was only after that short window of time that it became obvious that this was a terrorist attack and not an accident. But even then, to all those on the inside of the WTC, they still didn’t know what was happening. There were no smart phones; there was no instant alert systems or news alerts. People on the inside were figuratively and in some cases literally in the dark on what was going on. People at home watching on tv or who were outside on the streets knew more of what was going on than all those souls stranded in the buildings. It was a different time, a different world on 9/10. 9/11 changed everyone’s life on this planet. The world has and never will be the same as it was on 9/10/2001 😢
So, he took the express elevator and it still took three minutes to get to his office?! Wow. The elevators I’m sure must be the really fast ones so it is a good representation of how high the towers were!
Someone said it was the guy in the red bandanna. I haven’t heard his story and I don’t know if the commenter was just guessing who it was. It seems pretty obvious though, if it wasn’t for that voice, Ron wouldn’t be here now.
I truly mean this to be constructive so please don’t take it the wrong way but it seems your style of asking questions puts words into peoples mouths and I don’t think it leads to the most constructive conversation.
Appreciate the feedback! We’re certainly not professionals, just doing our best to share people’s stories and provide a platform. Always learning and we will get better so come back when you feel like checking on us :)
You let him tell his story so I thought it was good. I thought good questions. You are young and curious and there is nothing wrong with asking questions but not during his story. Just my thoughts! I'm not brave enough to be on camera for my channel so you're doing great!
Thanks so much! Interviewing and asking great questions is a learned skill, no doubt. Appreciate your compliments and your time in listening to the story
I found myself saying, during the podcast, that they were great questions---thoughtfully and sensitively phrased. And noticing, because I often feel as if an interviewer's curiosity or zeal to get the story eclipses empathy and sensitivity to the interviewee. Well done! I am genuinely curious to the specifics of the commenter's perspective.
1st time ive geard soneone say WHAT I SAID on Sept 11, 2001. I sat there 6 months pregnant, school bus driver. Watched the news fir days. WAITING to see ppl overwhelming emergency rooms. They were empty. Everyone was dead. I didn't understand, couldnt connect dots. I had few kids on my bus that evening. Patents came to schools and grabbed children. Im in Virginia. To this day. I think of yhe enpry ERs. Finishing video now ❤🤍 💙
@Mitzi1221 I was a nurse @ St. Vincent's Hospital (nearest trauma center, 2nd closest hospital to the WTC) on 9/11. I was having a CAT scan on the Upper East Side of Manhattan & called into work to gauge the situation I would be walking into. My asst. head nurse said, "Don't rush, it's only bodies." Everyone that arrived @ our ER was DOA or barely injured, almost nothing in between. As an RN who was born here, it was the worst day of my life, to know there was hardly anyone to save, although my ER got 720 patients that day. The worst injured went to NY Downtown, a 300-bed hospital 3 blocks from the WTC. Burn patients were taken to NY Hospital, & Jacobi Hospital in the Bronx, as they had burn centers.
Someone needs to be putting all of these survivor stories in a book together!
Someone has its called Inside-Out and it's written by a 9/11 survivor who tells his own stories, the stories of others and even stories that have not yet been told publicly. The cover is a brand new never before seen photograph from a man who was barely conscious on the ground when the second plane hit and blindly snapped a photograph of the explosion from below.
Can't recommend the book enough.
I think there are several. I like to hear these recorded versions. When I’m nervous about unimportant stuff I gain inspiration from people who faced this nightmare. We have to find strength for ourselves and others.
I saw one on a bookshelf in another documentary called portraits. Hope this helps.
I've heard so many survival stories from 9/11, all of them both excruciating and amazing, but something about Ron's story and the way he tells it has always been especially touching to me. I can tell from this interview that he's doing better than before. I'm so glad he made it out that day and has done all he has to heal. I appreciate the lighthearted closing to the interview. So great to see him laugh, smile, and light up talking about his life!
Thank you for sharing your thoughts on this conversation. He has a great sense of humor and its fun when it comes out, for sure. The day I met him we shared a lot of hockey talk and he lights up when you talk puck!
I remember reading about Ron about 6 months after the attacks in a beautiful and touching article called "Fighting to live as the towers died". I always wondered what happened to him in the long term. Thank you for sharing. It's very clear that even 22 years later, this still evokes such a visceral and gut wrenching response when he tells the story. Thank you for posting this, and thank you, Ron, for continuing to share such a clearly painful memory. Sometimes it feels like that awful day has been forgotten. God bless.
Thank you for listening and for remaining curious about Ron’s future. He’s an excellent person.
many of us will never forget. Most people who were so close to the impacts and the results never got to tell their stories. Of those the lucky ones died instantly without knowing what happened.
It was Terror that we know about; but it’s still unimaginable.
Mr. Ron……your horrendous experience on 9/11 was well told during this interview.
But what I will remember & cherish the most is your smile & your joy at the end. You can’t imagine how grateful I am that you survived and can still find ways to love life. You are an inspiration! Bless you & your family forever.
I remember Ron"s story. It's so good to see he's alive and well. Stay safe and keep smiling.
Ron was saved by a man with the red bandana….out of the 18 people that survived in the south tower above the impact zone, at least 10 or more of them people were saved by him. His story is incredible.
That voice that called Ron when he was coming down on the 82nd floor, was the man with the red bandana.
Off the record, I later asked Ron about the man with the red bandana and he said that he never crossed paths with him, at least visually. The story of Welles Crowther is incredible. An absolute hero.
th-cam.com/video/X2FvRXZim7E/w-d-xo.htmlsi=s0KSY9h0Al-UA_dA
Wells! I was sad to find out his dads passed away! I hope they have reunited 🥺
Welles
Thanks for talking to him. His heroine experience stayed with me thru the years of 9/11 anniversaries. Im so glad he's doing ok😊
Mr. Ron - I want to thank you from the depths of my soul for your bravery in continuing to share your story. You help us clearly see how the murderous attack on 9/11 profoundly impacted you and continues to do so, both the profound as well as the miracles of your recovery journey. I hear your humanity - the depths of your pain and the inspiration to overcome with positive thoughts, words, & actions. Your sharing helps me understand & renews my faith that I too can overcome past traumas. This is your gift that keeps on giving with every human that hears your shares. The value you bring to humanity is immeasurable, as there are countless humans who struggle with trauma, and you show us that we can truly live and recover so long as we we keep moving forward one moment as a time, one day at a time. With all that said, i want to again thank you and let you know you are appreciated, in particular for your bravery on speaking these painful truths. I, for one, am so blessed by your sharing and i thank God for you that you lived. You are blessed, and, you are blessing us on and on. This is a miraculous gift - thank you
You couldn't have gone back and saved anyone. You said yourself that you had no air yourself. Big, huge hug. My God, what you have been through. 💔❤️
Plus, running down three sets of stairs on fire, and the subsequent burns...no way would he have been able to go back and help anyone through that, since both the heat and the burning were only increasing.
Such an inspiring man. Thank you for this interview. I watched interviews with Ron DiFrancesco years ago and am still in awe of his strength. I do believe that the voice that called him was Divine intervention. I hope and pray that the rest of his life is blessed and that somehow joy will sometime triumph over the survivor’s guilt with which he still lives. He reminds me that it’s possible to move forward even after devastating events. Sending ❤❤❤to him and all survivors and their families.
I have been looking for an interview with Ron for years. I read about his story a few years and wanted to learn more. Thanks for this interview and to Ron for doing it.
Wow, thanks Trent and Karissa for bringing Ron and his story forward. Unbelievable, sobering and uplifting.
Thanks for listening!
I have been watching alot of YT videos on various aspects of that day and immediately after . i am amazed that given what it was like in there that so many made it out and so incredibly happy so many did. I just wish so many more had made it out before the buildings fell.
Thanks for sharing..it is very much appreciated by me.
I remember hearing Ron’s story years ago. I was 15 when 9/11 happened, and the after effects have shaped my entire adult life. I have such respect and admiration for him. God bless you Ron! I hope you live a very long happy life, filled with joy and everything you love to do ❤️🙏🏼 thank you for sharing his story!
Thank you for the nice comment and message to Ron!
Thank you for such an amazing podcast. Thank you to Ron for sharing - what a wonderful man.
Thank you for listening. Ron is amazing!
Incredible story. Glad I found this podcast.
Thanks for listening and for giving us a chance!
@@zoldxzimmer im was with KW for around 8 years
Very cool!!
Everyone always starts with “ it was a beautiful day with clear blue skies “ but very soon the tone changes. It was a day none of us will forget. It can’t be forgotten. We pay tribute by listening to these stories and to remember those who died
As a Torontonian, I’ll forgive him for being from Hamilton. Ron tells his story very well; compelling and heartfelt. I’m mind-blown that you met him by chance in the way that you did.
It is interesting having a personal PTSD trauma from just before then and trying to envision that but it being a public, known to the world trauma. It would just be another level, I think.
It was a wild day for all of us: up in Toronto I watched plane after plane after plane that had been diverted circle and circle to land at our airport. My own trauma forced me to leave a job I loved but that day I called in as they were very close to our tower and, who knew, maybe it could be hit too.
Interesting fact, on the drive TO the airport about 15 minutes before meeting Ron, I met a gentlemen from Nigeria by the name of Efe He was our driver. We were making small talk about how hot it is in Austin, TX in August and he said to me with his heavy accent 'I was a victim of a shooting many years ago and I will never forget the moment I was laying on the pavement waiting for help thinking about my family and WOW this pavement is HOT!' He skipped over the story so quickly and I stopped him immediately and said, "What do you mean you were a victim of a shooting?'
Here is his story: www.kxan.com/news/texas/one-year-later-pflugerville-man-who-survived-odessa-mass-shooting-thanks-his-rescuers/
The next day my mother went in for her first round of Chemo. It was like these two people were placed in front of me to recalibrate my perspective.
@@zoldxzimmer no kidding…that is really something! Efe’s story is incredible too. On the one hand I have been witness to violence (amongst others but the most shocking personally was a stabbing just outside a McDs I was in; more-so as I only heard a scuffle and chalked it up to teenagers. I only began to catch on when I saw a little girl standing near me watching something behind me that made me turn around to see a young man bleeding out. Her dad was helping him so I pulled her into a booth with two other older teens and I used my skill set from working with kids to calm/distract her. Only after I exited the now taped-off crime scene did I realize the extent of what happened. I was also grateful-very-that I live where guns are better regulated as I would 100% have been a sitting duck had it been a gun instead).
So, I do believe in “nudges” to ground us, be they people to remind us or us being their fulfilled need in that moment.
I hope your mother is doing okay through chemo: I’ll keep her and your family in my thoughts.
Yeah I found out the news after my politics class at Ryerson University and we had gone up to our programs department and the secretary was staring at a tiny tv in her office and crying. It was my only class so i tried to leave but at that point the subways were crowded - they were afraid the CN tower was next. It took me 7 hours to get to my Grandma's place, my parents live much further in Markham - and my Mom told me to stay at my Grandma's in East York because we could be next. My Mom was crying so much that day. I was stuck in the subway so I never saw the towers collapse. I watch them all now
I have a very similar story to you, I was in a Mc Donald’s on Younge Street, across the road from Zanzibar when there was a shooting outside. I don’t think the person died but really don’t know, the news didn’t cover it after the initial shooting. I didn’t see or hear the shooting but it was weird, I saw a girl run into the restaurant and run back out again and I thought, just before she turned to run out,”there’s been a shooting.”
We weren’t allowed to leave the restaurant for hours. When we did it was through the back door. I wasn’t really taking too much notice but periodically there was a beeping noise. I eventually learned what it was. The police were interviewing everyone in the restaurant before they left and when the back door opened for them to leave an alarm would sound. Every time I hear that sound it takes me right bank to that night. Apparently all Mc Donald’s have the same alarm on their back door! It’s the only place I hear it.
Makes me cry & I rarely cry
Yep. Pretty much impossible to not.
God bless you Ron. I’m so glad you made it out.
I have C-PTSD and I instantly knew from the first second he started talking that this guy lives in hell in his head. I wouldn't wish this kind of non stop agony on my worst enemy.
I do too, i know how tough it is
I remember Ron's story well. Glad to see he's doing okay and telling his story.
He’s such a great guy. Thanks for checking in
Bless you, Ron, for sharing your story.
We recently got to spend and evening with Ron in Las Vegas for a work function and it was so much fun to see him! He is doing well!
Enjoying this but I have my volume cranked up full & can barely hear some of the interviewers' questions & comments.
Thanks for letting us know.
Ron’s story is interlinked (and it has to be said: completely downplayed here) with Brian Clark’s (who saved Stanley Praimnath) which he refers to at 08:50. Brian tells this story in tremendous and articulate detail (see Brian Clark 9/11). Both Brian and Ron are also on a 2002 documentary on You Tube (9/11: A Tale of Two Towers).
Ron’s survival is arguably the greatest escape story from 9/11.
Yes, I would have to agree that he downplays it. It is clearly a very difficult thing for him to talk about and I really wanted to be sensitive to this. We really wanted to make sure we let him tell his story and not go deeper to potentially stir up more darkness from that period of time in his life. Brian and Stanley's story is also just incredible. I do find it so interesting how similar and yet how different Brian and Ron's experiences are. Thanks for listening!
Yes I agree with your thoughts and have just watched Tale of Two Towers - Ron understandably very affected then after his harrowing escape. The fact he went back up to 91 floor and then found his way back down again through smoke and fire - unbelievable! Good to see him looking much more recovered. Bless his heart❤
@@zoldxzimmer Yes, I noticed your sensitive and empathetic technique and was so appreciative. You allowed him to talk freely and lead the discussion, which was wonderful to behold. I also noticed and appreciated how you both ended the session...about your children and hockey, two things that tie back to the present and demonstrate ongoing healing, forward movement and a continued interest in present life (not an easy thing to do when one has experienced overwhelming traumatic situations, with residual results---both external/internal and visible/invisible). Kudos to all on thos discussion!
@@stephaniek1076your nice comments made my day! Thanks again!
I just watched Brian Clarks story and i got the impression that Ron died that day with the others that went back up the stairs
He said in other interviews that the "voice" must have been an angel guiding him to safety...amazing miracle, so inspiring, very sad and sending love to Ron and his family.❤
That forceful voice was an Angel telling him to get up and get out, he was spared
We agree :)
Such a wonderful human being!
THE best of the best!
it's completely insane that people in the 2nd tower stayed in it after seeing and confirming that a fking plane hit the other building... i'd be out so fast, they must be in shock or just dumb- sorry to say. I know they couldn't have known, but to see people jumping out and a plane hitting i'm done for the day.... that's ridiculous people stayed, and i'm just angry that people died because they told them it's safe, just so frustrating to hear these stories of not exiting!!! hate it :(
I wonder why people were told to stay in their offices?
Most everyone inside the World Trade Center’s two towers and five other buildings on the property didn’t know a plane hit the North Tower, nor did anyone working inside any buildings in downtown New York. And after the bomb exploded in the garage of the WTC in 1993, the greater threat to people’s safety was people leaving the safety of the building to the dangers and chaos unfolding outside the building. Hindsight is always 20/20, and even after the first plane hit, it was thought to be an isolated accident, such as other aircraft accidents in Manhattan in years past. The second plane hit just 15 minutes after the first one, so it was only after that short window of time that it became obvious that this was a terrorist attack and not an accident. But even then, to all those on the inside of the WTC, they still didn’t know what was happening. There were no smart phones; there was no instant alert systems or news alerts. People on the inside were figuratively and in some cases literally in the dark on what was going on. People at home watching on tv or who were outside on the streets knew more of what was going on than all those souls stranded in the buildings. It was a different time, a different world on 9/10. 9/11 changed everyone’s life on this planet. The world has and never will be the same as it was on 9/10/2001 😢
So, he took the express elevator and it still took three minutes to get to his office?! Wow. The elevators I’m sure must be the really fast ones so it is a good representation of how high the towers were!
Crazy, right? I don't know if I could handle that!
Ask him more about the voice he heard in the tower directing him the certain way. Sounds like divine direction.
Someone said it was the guy in the red bandanna. I haven’t heard his story and I don’t know if the commenter was just guessing who it was.
It seems pretty obvious though, if it wasn’t for that voice, Ron wouldn’t be here now.
I'm wondering what happens when your contact lenses melt onto your eyes... He seems to be able to see, but what happened there?
I actually had some questions around this as well but just never got to them. Maybe I’ll shoot Ron a text and let you know his response.
Yes...I was wondering if he could actually see his wife when he woke up three days later (I think they said).
I knew he was Italian Canadian but very cool he’s from Hamilton/what they also call close by “Tony’s Creek” lol
I truly mean this to be constructive so please don’t take it the wrong way but it seems your style of asking questions puts words into peoples mouths and I don’t think it leads to the most constructive conversation.
Appreciate the feedback! We’re certainly not professionals, just doing our best to share people’s stories and provide a platform. Always learning and we will get better so come back when you feel like checking on us :)
You let him tell his story so I thought it was good. I thought good questions. You are young and curious and there is nothing wrong with asking questions but not during his story. Just my thoughts! I'm not brave enough to be on camera for my channel so you're doing great!
Thanks so much! Interviewing and asking great questions is a learned skill, no doubt. Appreciate your compliments and your time in listening to the story
I found myself saying, during the podcast, that they were great questions---thoughtfully and sensitively phrased. And noticing, because I often feel as if an interviewer's curiosity or zeal to get the story eclipses empathy and sensitivity to the interviewee. Well done!
I am genuinely curious to the specifics of the commenter's perspective.
@@stephaniek1076I appreciate your nice compliments. Thanks for stopping by to listen to Ron’s story.
What happened to mike?? And what was his last name?
1st time ive geard soneone say WHAT I SAID on Sept 11, 2001. I sat there 6 months pregnant, school bus driver. Watched the news fir days. WAITING to see ppl overwhelming emergency rooms. They were empty. Everyone was dead.
I didn't understand, couldnt connect dots.
I had few kids on my bus that evening. Patents came to schools and grabbed children.
Im in Virginia.
To this day. I think of yhe enpry ERs.
Finishing video now ❤🤍 💙
@Mitzi1221 I was a nurse @ St. Vincent's Hospital (nearest trauma center, 2nd closest hospital to the WTC) on 9/11. I was having a CAT scan on the Upper East Side of Manhattan & called into work to gauge the situation I would be walking into. My asst. head nurse said, "Don't rush, it's only bodies." Everyone that arrived @ our ER was DOA or barely injured, almost nothing in between. As an RN who was born here, it was the worst day of my life, to know there was hardly anyone to save, although my ER got 720 patients that day. The worst injured went to NY Downtown, a 300-bed hospital 3 blocks from the WTC. Burn patients were taken to NY Hospital, & Jacobi Hospital in the Bronx, as they had burn centers.
I'm suprised he didn't mention Brian Clark
He probably was leaving Brian to tell his story .
Or richard fern