Al Fuentes

On September 11, 2001, Al Fuentes was acting Battalion Chief for the Marine Division for the New York City Fire Department (FDNY). His office was in Brooklyn, New York, on the Navy Yard by the East River. Fuentes heard commotion outside of his office, where his secretary, Kathleen, sat. She ran into his office and stated that a plane hit the World Trade Center. Shocked, Fuentes walked over to his windows and saw black smoke billowing from the North Tower. As a first responder, his mind was hardwired to think of what he could do to help.

Fuentes was able to get to Fireboat Marine Company Six and hopped onto a boat. They made their way to Lower Manhattan via the East River. En route, Fuentes saw a plane that was flying very low in the sky. He watched as the plane made a 180 degree turn, unsure what was about to happen before his eyes. The plane then increased its velocity, banked its wings, and crashed into the South Tower of the World Trade Center.

After berthing the boat on the Hudson River, Fuentes made his way to the command post. Some time had passed when he heard what he thought were multiple explosions, but he realized they were civilians taking their fate into their own hands and jumping from the Twin Towers; the memory of which has stayed with Fuentes since. Soon after, he looked at the South Tower and saw it begin to buckle. He thought to himself that it was going to collapse. He ran to a dividing wall and put his hands over his head and prayed the Hail Mary to himself in preparation for the collapse. Fuentes recalls the collapse of the building sounding like a freight train that kept getting closer and closer. After about eight seconds, it was over, but Fuentes could hardly breathe. He pulled at his turn-out coat to get some air and realized that he survived.

Fuentes was able to crawl his way out and found a doorway leading outside to Vesey Street. After making his way to West Street, he met up with Battalion Chief Brian O’Flaherty, who was a mentor to Fuentes while he was serving Rescue 1. Years later, Brian O’Flaherty passed away from a 9/11-related illness. Already worn out, Fuentes could not run again when the North Tower began to collapse. He took a few steps, bent down, put his hands over his head again, and prayed the Hail Mary to himself once more as he endured the collapse. Fuentes then blacked out.

Fuentes was found and extricated two hours later by off-duty firefighters. He was carried to the West Side Highway where the fire boat was still docked. The injuries Fuentes sustained included the collapse of his left lung, burns to both of his lungs from gas inhalation, five broken ribs, a skull fracture, and numerous broken bones.

Survivor’s guilt is something that Fuentes struggles with to this day. Fuentes recalls and will never forget the brotherhood that responded to 9/11 and the individuals who lost their lives – Ray Downey, Kevin Dowdell, Terry Hatton, Jerry Duffy, Dennis Mojica, Peter Ganci, Charlie Kasper, and Joey Angelini, who died with his son, who he was looking for – among many others. They are on Fuentes’ mind each and every day.

Although the day was catastrophic, not only for first responders but for civilians as well, Fuentes likes to think that it was a fine day for America in that everyone rose to the occasion and helped in some way. Looking back, Fuentes has learned so much about family and friendships and the power in each of them. Each day he wakes with the reminder that he is here to hug and kiss his loved ones.