FILE NO WORLD TRADE CENTER TASK FORCE INTERVIEW BATTALION CHIEF JOHN SUDNIK INTERVIEW DATE NOVEMBER 2001 TRANSCRIBED BY LAURIE COLLINS

Transcription

1 FILE NO WORLD TRADE CENTER TASK FORCE INTERVIEW BATTALION CHIEF JOHN SUDNIK INTERVIEW DATE NOVEMBER 2001 TRANSCRIBED BY LAURIE COLLINS

2 MR KRUG WERE DOING AN INTERVIEW WITH BATTALION CHIEF JOHN SUDNIK ON NOVEMBER 7TH 2001 AT APPROXIMATELY 1900 HOURS REGARDING THE WORLD TRADE CENTER ON SEPTEMBER 11TH 2001 CHIEF IF YOU CAN JUST TELL ME WHAT YOUR ACTIONS WERE AND HOW YOU RESPONDED YOU WANT ME TO GO IN ORDER OF THIS WENT HOWEVER YOU GOT THERE AND WHERE YOU RESPONDED FROM HEADQUARTERS SEVENTH FLOOR HEADQUARTERS RESPONDED FROM THE IN CHIEF NIGROS CAR GUESS WE FOLLOWED CHIEF GANCIS CAR CHIEF NIGRO WAS IN CHIEF GANCIS CAR WE STOPPED THE CAR PROBABLY ON FULTON STREET AND GUESS WHATS THAT TRINITY CHURCH RIGHT THAT AREA THERE MAYBE IT WAS BROADWAY WE WALKED UP TO VESEY BELIEVE THE BEST CAN REMEMBER AND WALKED OVER TO WHERE THE COMMAND POST WAS BEING SET UP WHICH WAS OPPOSITE ONE WORLD TRADE CENTER DIRECTLY IN FRONT OF GUESS THATS THE REAR OF OR THE SIDE OF TWO WORLD FINANCIAL CENTER

3 AT THE COURUUARID POST WA OPERATING WITH CHIEF NIGRO CHIEF GANCI WAS TRYING TO HELP OUT IN WHATEVER MANNER COULD CHIEF NIGRO GAVE ME AN ORDER TO GO BACK TO HIS CAR FIND HIS DRIVER AND TO BRING HIS TURNOUT GEAR FOR HIM DID THAT AND WENT BACK THE WAY CAME DOWN VESEY STREET GUESS WAS AROUND TWO THIRDS OF THE WAY THERE AND ENDED UP RUNNING INTO HIS DRIVER WHO HAD HIS TURNOUT GEAR AT THAT POINT THATS WHEN THE SECOND PLANE HIT HEARD THE NOISE OF THE PLANE COMING IN AND HEARD THE EXPLOSION LOOKED UP AND FELT THE HEAT FROM THE FIRE BALL AND EVERYTHING LIKE THAT MADE IT BACK TO THE COMMAND POST AND WAS JUST OPERATING AT THE COMMAND POST AT THAT TIME WE HAD TWO PLANES ONE INTO EACH TOWER AND UNITS REPORTING IN WAS HELPING OUT AT SOME POINT WAS WORKING ALONG WITH CHIEF DOWNEY HE WAS GIVING ME ORDERS TO STAGE UNITS IN THE DRIVEWAY AREA BEHIND THE COMMAND POST WAS TRYING TO GET ACCOUNTABILITY OF HOW MANY UNITS WE HAD ON THE SCENE RESPONDED TO AN ORDER FROM CHIEF DOWNEY TO GET FIVE TRUCK

4 GOITPAR1IE TO REPORT TO HINT ARID GUE LIE GAVE THEM AN ORDER TO GO TO TOWER TWO DONT KNOW WHICH ONES THOSE WERE IT WAS KIND OF CRAZY AT THAT POINT THE BEST CAN REMEMBER WE WERE JUST OPERATING THERE TRYING TO HELP OUT AND DO THE BEST WE COULD THEN WE HEARD LOUD EXPLOSION OR WHAT SOUNDED LIKE LOUD EXPLOSION AND LOOKED UP AND SAW TOWER TWO START COMING DOWN CRAZY SO AFTER TOWER TWO STARTED COMING DOWN EVERYBODY REALLY PRETTY MUCH TOOK BEELINE INTO THE GARAGE AREA WHERE WE WERE OPERATING ANYBODY WHO WAS OPERATING NEAR THAT COMMAND POST OR AT THE COMMAND POST MOST GOT OUT DIDNT SEE WHERE EVERYBODY WENT BUT KNOW LOT OF GUYS TOOK COVER DOWN BELOW BECAUSE KNOW DID UNDERNEATH THAT GARAGE AREA GOT ABOUT 15 FEET INTO THE GARAGE AREA AND THERE WAS CUTOUT WAS ANTICIPATING LOT OF DEBRIS COMING INTO THE GARAGE AREA AND JUST WANTED TO TRY TO GET OUT OF THE WAY KNOW LOT OF GUYS HAD GOTTEN IN THERE BEFORE DID THERE WERE UNITS PROBABLY ALREADY STAGED IN THERE

5 SO UTMPED INTO THE CUTOUT ARID WAITED THERE THERE WERE TWO PEOPLE NEXT TO ME DONT KNOW WHO THEY WERE IT JUST WENT BLACK JUST HUNG OUT THERE UNTIL THE NOISE STOPPED SAID TO MYSELF TOTALLY EXPECTED TO BE BLOCKED IN THERE BY DEBRIS OR TRAPPED IN THERE FOUND DIDNT HAVE ANY TURNOUT GEAR WITH ME DIDNT HAVE MASK OR ANYTHING ON ME SO JUST FIGURED THE BEST THING HAD TO GET OUT OF THERE AT SOME POINT BECAUSE COULDNT BREATHE SO JUST WAITED UNTIL THE NOISE STOPPED AND JUST SAID ALL RIGHT IM GOING TO TRY TO GO OUT THE WAY CAME HEARD LOT OF VOICES TOWARDS THE REAR OF THE GARAGE AREA ASSUMED AT THAT POINT THAT THEY WERE LOOKING FOR DOOR SO WENT OUT THE WAY CAME THERE WAS SOME DEBRIS THAT WAS ABLE TO GET OVER BEFORE KNEW IT WAS WALKING UP THE RAMP AGAIN KIND OF ASSUMED WAS OUTSIDE AND KEPT WALKING AND WALKED INTO TREE THAT WAS IT GOT OUT THERE THERE WAS NOTHING IT WAS TOTAL SILENCE NO SIGN MEAN YOU COULDNT

6 EE ANYTHING BUTT THERE WA RIO IGN1 OR ANYTHING BEING AROUND THERE OF WHAT WAS LEFT OF THE COMMAND POST HEARD SOME VOICES GUESS TO MY LEFT WHICH WAS NORTH SO FIGURED WOULD TRY TO FIND OUT WHO THAT WAS AT THAT POINT IF IT WAS SOMEBODY WAS WORKING WITH AT THAT TIME KEPT WALKING OFF AND THE DUST GOT LITTLE BIT LIGHTER AS KEPT WALKING EVENTUALLY WALKED OUT OF WHAT WAS THE HEAVIEST PART OF THE CLOUD THERE WERE COUPLE WERE THERE GUYS KEPT COMING OF FIREMEN THAT OUT OF THE CLOUD THE WAY CAME FEW GUYS THEN SAW THE MAJORITY OF THE GUYS WHO GUESS WERE AT THE COMMAND POST REMEMBER SEEING GANCIS DRIVER STEVE MOSIELLO MIKE DONOVAN WHO RESPONDED DOWN TO THE COMMAND POST WITH ME IN CHIEF NIGROS CAR SAW COUPLE OF GUYS FROM THE COMMISSIONERS OFFICE FROM THE EIGHTH FLOOR SAW BELIEVE IT WAS FITZPATRICK THINK SAW FRANK GRIBBON AT SOME POINT THATS ALL RECOGNIZED SOMEBODY GAVE ME BOTTLE OF WATER ACTUALLY IT WAS BOTTLE OF SELTZER WAS ABLE TO WASH THE STUFF OUT OF MY EYES OUT OF MY

7 THROAT OUT OF MY R1O ENDED UP THROWING UP COUPLE OF TIMES WAS JUST TRYING TO GRAB GUYS AND JUST WAIT AROUND UNTIL THE GUYS WAS WORKING WITH CAME BACK OUT OR WHATEVER TRY TO REGROUP GET SOME GUYS TOGETHER AND START MAYBE GOING BACK AND MAKING SEARCH TRYING TO GET SOME COMMAND STAFF BACK TOGETHER WAS TELLING GUYS THE FIREMEN THAT WERE COMING OUT OF THE OFFICES THAT WERE WALKING OUT OF THE CARS OR OUT OF THE BUILDING GUESS THE BUILDING THAT THEY WERE WALKING OUT OF GUESS WAS TWO WORLD FINANCIAL THEY ENDED UP GOING THROUGH THE BACK OF THE GARAGE AND GOING THROUGH STAIRWAY AND OUT ONTO TO VESEY STREET WAS TRYING TO GET THEM TO STAGE UP ON THE NEXT BLOCK NORTH AND THATS WHEN THE SECOND BUILDING CAME DOWN THERE WAS LITTLE BIT OF DASH TO GET AWAY FROM THAT ONE TOO BECAUSE DIDNT HAVE RADIO ENDED UP TRYING TO STAY NEAR COUPLE FIREMEN GUYS WITH TURNOUT GEAR GUYS WHO SEEMED LIKE THEY WERE THEY SEEMED OKAY BUT THEY WERE SHOOK UP WE ENDED UP WALKING UP AROUND PROBABLY

8 ALONG THE RIVER UP COUPLE B1OCK DONT KNOW WHAT STREET WE ENDED UP COMING BACK AROUND BUT KNOW THERE WAS FENCE AN ORANGE FENCE ALONG THE RIVER HERE SO WE ENDED UP COMING UP BACK AROUND THIS WAY NORTH COUPLE BLOCKS AND BACK EAST THEY WANTED TO GET BACK TO THEY WERE ANXIOUS TO GET BACK TO THE QUARTERS OF TRUCK THEY GOT BACK TO TRUCK CAME BACK TO THE SCENE TO TRY TO FIND OUT WHERE THE COMMAND POST WAS SOMEBODY SAID IT WAS SET UP ON WEST BROADWAY AND VESEY STREET BELIEVE SO WALKED BACK DOWN THAT WAY AT THAT POINT THERE WAS NOBODY FROM THE COMMAND POST THAT COULD RECOGNIZE THAT WAS WORKING WITH AT THE COMMAND POST DONT KNOW HOW MUCH LATER THIS WAS OR HOW LONG IT TOOK ME TO GET BACK OVER THERE WOULD ASSUME IT WAS PROBABLY ANYWHERE FROM HALF AN HOUR TO 45 MINUTES BY THE TIME MADE IT BACK AROUND DOWN TO WHERE THE NEW COMMAND POST WAS SET UP AT THAT POINT CHIEF HARING FROM THE 8TH DIVISION WAS IN CHARGE OF THE COMMAND POST HUNG AROUND THAT COMMAND POST WAITING TO SEE IF RAN INTO CHIEF NIGRO OR CHIEF GANCI

9 OR CHIEF DOERICY NOBODY KNEW WHERE ANY OF THEM WERE JUST HUNG AROUND THERE AND TRIED TO HELP OUT THE HEST COULD WITH WHATEVER COULD EXPERIENCE THATS ABOUT IT IT WAS AN AWFUL MR KRUG ALL RIGHT THANKS CHIEF