# Mark Tripi oral history interview conducted by Laurel Gumpert, June 22, 2020

On 9/11, Mark was working for the National Park Service at the Fire Island National Seashore, building vessels, repairing boats, and transporting other workers to and from the mainland. When the attacks occurred, two patrol boats were sent to assist and Mark was on one of them. He saw paper and other debris continue to fall from the sky hours after the towers collapsed. Everything was covered with ash. Once they arrived at the Statue of Liberty, Mark and his crew were responsible for providing security. They were unsure what would happen next and wanted to prepare for the worst. Their boat was stocked with weapons. There was a bomb scare that caused him to lose sleep from constant nightmares. Mark spent a week patrolling the Statue of Liberty during the day and sleeping on the boat at night. Since that time, Mark has suffered various health problems, from suicidal thoughts to receiving a pacemaker after his heart stopped. He struggles with PTSD but tries to think more positively and find joy in smaller projects each day. He remembers all the people he worked with during that time and the sense of unity within the country, even though it is different today. He would do it all over again to help the people of this country and protect them from disasters like 9/11.

- Kind: Interview
- Year: 2020
- Runtime: 50 min
- By: Tripi, Mark
- Genres: History
- Archive: [Library of Congress](https://www.loc.gov/item/afc2015048_445/)
- 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_445?play=1)