"I just remember looking up. And thinking how bad was it; the best option is to jump" - Joe Casaliggi, Engine 7, Battalion 1. [1]

 

This was a response from a firefighter inside the lobby of the North Tower who heard loud explosions above the canopy above the direction of where firefighters were setting up a command post. From a firefighters point of view, the crashing noises were described as "body bombs" as bodies were falling at a speed rate of 413 meters from somewhere around the 95th floor downwards on "pexiglass windows"  while other jumpers directly landed on the pavement on the WTC plaza.

 

A student videotaping a documentary on her first year at NYU had captured the North Tower just moments after both she and her college friend woke up at their college dormitory on the morning of September 11,2001. Caroline Dries, at first, admitted she was in a state of denial of seen people diving from the top section of Tower 1  while filming the smouldering highrise; her view finder captured 9/11 jumpers falling. She then became fully aware she had witnessed people falling out from the tower. [2]

 

In the first quarter 2002, Firehouse Magazine conducted a series of interviews with some members of FDNY elite. One of these rescue workers interviewed was veteran firefighter Joseph Pfeiffer. When asked about jumpers, the battalion chief responded as he remembered what he saw on September 11,2001, "I don't know if all the windows, but a substantial amount were. And then what we heard was the jumpers actually hitting the canopy, which was where the battalion car was parked.

It must be some sort of plexiglass because (jumpers)they didn't go through, but it made a very, very loud sound." - firefighter chief Joseph Pfeiffer, Engine 7, Battalion 1.  Firehouse Magazine Interview; April 2002. [3]

 

The fire engine which Pfeiffer was riding was parked under a awning on West Street.

 

To make this short and not trying to sound morbid, the bodies of these jumpers upon impact were blown to pieces like soft gelatin.

 

Firefighters and PAPD officers had to literally swipe up the body parts like mopping a floor and placing parts of the bodies into black rubber bags.

 

From a talk with a medical expert, I was told if these jumpers would of survived it would of been "zero." Obviously. They had no more than about 2 seconds of survival rate.

Even if the jumpers were trying to land in a airborne glide.

 

The only two streets that these 911 jumpers would of landed was on West Street, if they were facing on the northwest side of Tower 1.  From the south tower-Tower 2, jumpers from the south end could of landed on Liberty Street, which is located behind the WTC complex.

 

Bodies had not (emphasis mine) landed on Vesey Street; this would of been impossible due to the fact bodies landed very hard after plunging nearly straight dowards. As in the case of the 9/11 jumpers, bodies hitting the plaza were blown to pieces and could not hit Vesey. The north side of Tower 1 was hit by AA Flight 11 leaving an enormous gap allowing any jumpers to land on the plaza, with a slim possibility to land on WTC 6 standing between WTC 1 and Vesey. There were rumors of jumpers landing on West Vesey Street which is not true in any case.

 

Also on a seperate interview, firefighter Steve Modica tells us that bodies did not land on Vesey Street: "We actually saw bodies, but they weren't landing on Vesey Street. They were landing up in the plaza level. That's where mostly you could see them coming down, but we didn't see any fall directly in front of us. We heard a lot of crashing sounds, which I assume was the jumpers. The frequency was it was very rapid. It wasn�t what you would think of a normal fire situation, where you have a jumper and then it was quiet for awhile and then another jumper. This was quite frequent." -  Firefighter Steve Modica, Special Operations Command(SOC)   Firehouse Magazine Interview; April 2002. [4]

 

It is also a obvious fact, that a person falling out of a 110 story skyscraper would of died of a massive heart attack; this was from lack of sufficent oxygen. Jumpers falling at such a high velocity speed lost a suffice amount of air, that they were gasping for oxygen. They knew they would not survive. At least to say it was the only option than to incinerate at somewhere between the 94th to 98th floor burning inside a oven so to speak.

 

Just in the very first minutes after AA flight 11 making a direct hit into Tower 1, people were seen jumping. At first, the fall was not as much intended due to the fact the 911 jumpers had found an easy acess to the wide gap that was opened up when the plane ripped through the tower. Then, others followed because of the intense heat caused from ignited jet fuel. Co-authors Jim Dwyer and Kevin Flynn in their book 102 Minutes:The Untold Story Of The Fight To Survive Inside The Twin Towers  tells us, "The first people had been seen falling from the north tower at 8:48 or 8:49, two or three minutes after the crash of Flight 11, men and women at the seat of the inferno of jet fuel. The early plunges were less deliberate, more reflective, like a person recoiling from a hot stove. To get away from the heat, they did not have to fight their way through fire and flame. The side of the building had been ripped open. Alone or holding hands, they climbed onto widowsills, the only refuge from heat and smoke. "[5]

 

A photo taken by Richard Drew shows what is known as The Fallen Man falling face down at a rate of 150 miles per hour. This disturbing photo is found at the September 8,2009 edition of the famous men's magzine Esquire. [6]

 

The heart needs to depend on both blood and oxygen for the muscles to flutter in order to keep the lungs as well the brain to function. Lack of air thereof causes the heart to cease.

 

In basic, these people endured physical pain before they even hit the ground. How could they not.

 

Final moments of life awaited inside a thick black smoke, oxygen deprived, left a choice for these jumpers in desperation was the only best option-to jump to their death. Sad to say this, if any had been left with procrastination of the hesitation of not jumping, they would die either by smoke asphxiation, or death by severe trauma injuries when both of these Manhattan skycrapers collapsed on September 11,2001. As BBQ Joe Casaliggi had said on 9/11, "the best option was to jump."

 

 © 2009 sleepparalysis/obe.

 

Footnote sources:

 

[1] - Jules and Gedeon Naudet documentary 9/11.

[2] - Documentary 102 Minutes presented by The History Channel.

[3] & [4] - Firehouse Magazine; 9-11-01 WTC: This Is Their Story April 2002.

[5] - 102 Minutes:The Fight Untold Story Of The Fight To Survive Inside The Twin Towers by Jim Dwyer and Kevin Flynn. pgs 136-137.
[6] - The Fallen Man by Tom Junod. Photo originally appeared in the September 2003 issue.