Unsung Heroes: Rescorla and Williams' Selfless Sacrifices

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Richard Rescorla showed heroic qualities in the evacuation of thousands of people during the 9/11 attacks. He was the director of security at Morgan Stanley. Rescorla was a stickler for his building’s safety and held twice-yearly evacuation drills to get people out. When the attacks happened and the tower next to Rescorla’s was hit, he stood up and took action. His plan was to simply instruct people to leave calmly. The plan continued right up until the moment he was killed. Rescorla’s actions were considered instrumental in the successful evacuation of over 2,500 people. John Olson, a Morgan Stanley regional director, saw Rescorla reassuring colleagues in the 10th-floor stairwell. “Rick, you’ve got to get out, too,” Olson told him.
“As soon as I make sure everyone else is out. I have to evacuate my people now,” Rescorla replied. This quote shows his selflessness and fearlessness, by wanting to continue the evacuation. Correspondingly, Arland D. Williams sacrificed his own life to save others, when Air Florida Flight 90 crashes into a frozen river in a middle of a snowstorm. Arnold D. Williams in the “Man in the Water” by Roger Rosenblatt demonstrates qualities of a true hero by being selfless and fearless.
Arnold D. Williams showed selflessness …show more content…

Williams sacrificed their lives for complete strangers. At one point, they knew they were not going to make it out alive, which makes their final act so remarkable and astonishing. Their selfless and fearless act gave other people a second chance to live. Each person was desperate to live, which is why Rescorla's and Williams’s extraordinary acts sends chills throughout a human's body. These two dreadful events were life changing for the survivors. Their point of view about life was changed greatly. Rescorla and Williams made history that day. Two magnificent heroes are gone forever, however, their amazing sacrifice will never be forgotten by the nation. They are the true definition of a

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