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Inside the Battle to Save the Pentagon on 9/11
Presidio Press
May 2008
On Sale: May 22, 2008
512 pages ISBN: 0891419055 EAN: 9780891419051 Hardcover
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Non-Fiction
Amid all the stories of tragedy and heroism on September
11, there is one tale that has yet to be told–the gripping
account of ordinary men and women braving the inferno at
the Pentagon to rescue friends and co-workers, save the
nation’s military headquarters, and defend their country. Pentagon firefighters Alan Wallace and Mark Skipper had
just learned the shocking news that planes had struck the
World Trade Center when they saw something equally
inconceivable: a twin-engine jetliner flying straight at
them. It was American Airlines Flight 77, rushing toward
its target. In his Pentagon office, Army major David King
was planning a precautionary evacuation when the room
suddenly erupted in flames. Arlington firefighters Derek
Spector, Brian Roache, and Ron Christman, among the first
responders at the scene, were stunned by the sight that met
them: a huge flaming hole gouged into the Pentagon’s side,
a lawn strewn with smoking debris, and thousands of people,
some badly injured, stumbling away from what would become
one of the most daunting fires in American history. For more than twenty-four hours, Arlington firefighters and
other crews faced some of the most dangerous and unusual
circumstances imaginable. The size and structure of the
Pentagon itself presented unique challenges, compelling
firefighters to devise ingenious tactics and make bold
decisions–until they finally extinguished the fire that
threatened to cripple America’s military infrastructure
just when it was needed most. Granted unprecedented access to the major players in the
valiant response efforts, Patrick Creed and Rick Newman
take us step-by-step through the harrowing minutes, hours,
and days following the crash of American Airlines Flight 77
into the Pentagon’s western façade. Providing fascinating
personal stories of the firefighters and rescuers, a
broader view of how the U.S. national security command
structure was held intact, and a sixteen-page insert of
dramatic photographs, Firefight is a unique testament to
the fortitude and resilience of America.
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