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FDNY Officials: Firefighters Who Made 1 WTC Rescue Are Always Training
November 15, 2014 10:28 AM
Both window washers safely pulled inside 1WTC after firefighters cut through the glass. (Credit: Alex Silverman/WCBS 880)
As WCBS 880’s Peter Haskell reported, the firefighters involved in the rescue of window washers Juan Lopez and Juan Lizama when their scaffold failed and left them dangling, are part of an elite unit.
“They’re trained and conditioned in scaffold; in the high-angle type of incidents. They’re trained in building collapse and search. They’re trained for trench rescue; how rescue companies train scuba divers,” said Special Operations Chief William Seelig.
Operations Chief John Sudnik said the elite firefighters are constantly drilling.
“We have one planned for the Memorial Museum in a couple of weeks, and going forward over the next couple of years, we’ll have one in One World Trade Center,” Sudnik said.
The window washers were trapped when a cable suddenly developed slack around 12:45 p.m. Wednesday.
Lizama, 41, of West New York, New Jersey; and Juan Lopez, 43, of the Bronx, were working on the south side of the building when one of the platform’s four cables abruptly gave way, Fire Commissioner Daniel Nigro said.
It took firefighters 30 minutes using a diamond-tipped saw to cut through triple-paned glass on the 68th floor and pull the workers through.
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