Synopses & Reviews
What would make someone rush into a towering inferno and dash up stairs toward danger against a flow of human beings running in the opposite direction? Only someone who's been there can tell us.
In this first book-length account of the rescue efforts at the World Trade Center, retired New York City firefighter Dennis Smith gives a remarkable eyewitness account of perhaps the most heroic and desperate collaborative disaster effort in recent history. Smith arrived on the scene shortly after the attacks on September 11 and stayed for weeks. He stretched hoses, picked up bodies, and talked with police, firefighters, and emergency workers who had rushed downtown to confront a spectacle no rescue worker had ever faced before.
In Report from Ground Zero, Smith gives us the stories of some of the 343 firefighters who were reported missing or dead, including; Captain Pat Brown from Ladder Company 3, who was a personal friend; a father and son; the department's beloved chaplain; commanders; rookies; and entire companies that were lost. Smith pays tribute to the dozens of police and emergency workers who dies, as well as those who undertook an urgent search and rescue mission and, finally, the grim and daunting task of massive clean up.
Smith's rare blend of superb writing skills and up-close firefighting experience drop us into the psyche of a firefighter, which sheds light on what would make someone rush into a flaming building: it's called heroism.
About the Author
ERIC CONGER has voiced over 150 fiction and nonfiction audiobooks. A graduate of Wesleyan University and the University of Paris, he also works as a writer and playwright (The Eclectic Society. He lives in Weehawken, New Jersey, with his wife, Gayle, and two children.DENNIS SMITH is a retired New York City firefighter. He stayed in the Fire Department an additional 19 years after the success of his first book, Report from Engine Co. 82. He is the author of 11 books including three other bestsellers about firefighting. Smith founded Firehouse Magazine and has become an outstanding spokesman for firefighters nationwide.BETH MCDONALD is a sought-after narrator and voice talent who has narrated many bestsellers. An audition coach and acting teacher as well as a working actress, the Juilliard graduate has appeared across the country in regional theatre and on Broadway. Her television credits include recurring roles on All My Children and As the World Turns. She appeared in Mona Lisa Smile and several independent feature films.DON LESLIE has appeared on and off Broadway as well as in over fifteen feature films and various episodic television shows. He is an accomplished audiobook narrator and also voices commercials, on-air narrations, and movie trailers.