A Day That Began the Night Before
Scott Strauss’ story begins on the night of September 10, 2001. Working a late shift, he left his post the next morning, ready to head home and catch some long-overdue sleep. It was a milestone day for his family—his two young boys were starting school full-time. As he commuted home on the train, a radio broadcast changed the course of his day, and his life. A plane had hit the World Trade Center. By the time he saw the second plane strike on television, Scott, a seasoned member of the Emergency Service Unit since 1987, knew immediately that the city was under attack. Without hesitation, he headed back to work, fully aware that it was up to them to defend the city.
At Ground Zero
Scott and his team arrived just as the South Tower had finished collapsing. Survivors were limping out of the devastation, covered in dust and blood, some carrying others who couldn’t walk. Among the chaos, Scott encountered a man with a flashlight pointing to a small hole in the rubble, calling out for help. Two police officers were trapped inside.
Despite warnings from the fire department about the imminent danger of collapsing buildings and uncontrollable fires, Scott and his partner, Patty McGee, made the conscious decision to stay. Leaving those trapped officers behind was not an option. Navigating through the wreckage, they faced harrowing conditions—squeezing through tight spaces, maneuvering around burning hot beams, and crawling deeper into the unstable pile of rubble.
A Promise Kept
As they worked their way down to the trapped officer, Will Jimeno, the situation grew increasingly perilous. Buildings 4 and 5 began collapsing around them, but Will’s desperate plea—”You’re not leaving me, are you?”—kept them going. Despite their own fear and exhaustion, Scott and his team refused to leave, clawing through the rubble with their bare hands to free him. They managed to save Will and his partner, John McLoughlin. These two officers were among the very few survivors pulled out of the rubble alive that day.
A Medal of Honor
Scott and his partner were later awarded the NYPD’s Medal of Honor for their bravery. But in Scott’s eyes, he was simply doing his job. The loss was heavy—14 members of the Emergency Service Unit, 9 other police officers, and 343 firefighters were killed that day. Despite the devastation, Scott recalls moments of unity amid the tragedy. As they made their way back to the pile during recovery efforts, citizens lined the streets with signs of gratitude, cheering and calling them heroes.
A Nation United
Reflecting on the day, Scott remembers how, in the face of unimaginable horror, the country came together. Civilians helped one another down the stairs of the Towers, strangers became allies, and everyone focused on saving the person next to them. For Scott Strauss, September 11 was not just a day of loss but also a testament to courage, unity, and the resilience of the human spirit.
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