# Excerpts of Michael R. Prate Sr. oral history interview conducted by Julie Broihier, July 16, 2010

Michael was an NYPD homicide detective on 9/11, working in Brooklyn. Upon hearing of the attack, Michael went to the top of a building and saw the North Tower on fire. Due to the breakdown in communications, Michael reported to a command center set up in downtown Brooklyn. His job was to direct traffic to allow emergency vehicles to travel. He then worked at the World Trade Center site cleaning on the bucket brigade, and later worked at the Staten Island Landfill identifying human remains and personal items in WTC debris. He recalls the friends and colleagues he lost and his experiences with grief and trauma.

- Kind: Interview
- Year: 2010
- Runtime: 15 min
- By: Prate, Michael R.
- Genres: History
- Archive: [Library of Congress](https://www.loc.gov/item/afc2015048_024_Vignette/)
- Licence or status: Rights statement at the Library of Congress (as the archive states it)
- Credit: Library of Congress
- Who can watch: Teens profiles and older (the archive gives no rating; placed by Invisible Network from its collection and subjects)

[Watch now](https://invisiblenetwork.ai/watch/archive/loc/afc2015048_024_Vignette?play=1)