Interview20201 h 26 min640×360

Louis oral history interview conducted by Laurel Gumpert, September 4, 2020

Gumpert, Laurel

History

At the Library of Congress

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About

On the morning of 9/11, Louis and his fellow NYPD officers arrived at the World Trade Center, where they encountered a surreal scene with paper and debris gently floating down from the towers. Louis and his partner entered a nearby building and climbed the stairs to the rooftop to examine one of the planes that had crashed. After confirming that it posed no immediate threat, they glanced down and saw the massive dust cloud approaching them from the collapsing South Tower. They quickly took cover on the rooftop. The building shook as the dust cloud enveloped them. It sounded like a freight train and lasted for about a minute. Eventually, they regrouped with their fellow officers and spent the day searching for their missing colleagues. They worked tirelessly to prevent looting and spent the night opening streets and moving cars out of the way. It was the longest day of his life. Despite losing colleagues, Louis continued working long hours searching through debris. They were often called upon to identify the smell of death when searching for bodies in the rubble. Their efforts took a physical toll on responders, including Louis's lung problems and injuries sustained during the recovery efforts. Louis stresses that the police force, like the fire department, responded heroically to the attacks, with officers going above and beyond the call of duty to help those in need.

Archive
Library of Congress, in Library of Congress
Licence or status
Rights statement at the Library of Congress, as the Library of Congress states it.
Credit
Library of Congress
Language
English
Country
United States
Who can watch
The archive gives no rating. Invisible Network shows it to Teens profiles and older, judged from its collection and subjects. How films are placed