BY ED NORTHEN
A decade after 911
I listen
To audio tapes
Of Fire operations
In the South Tower
Take note of
The command structure
Problems to overcome
The development
Of a strategic plan
To make it happen
I hear
The breathless voices
Of firefighters
Who when elevators failed
Climb 78 floors
Carrying their equipment
To locate fire
Which they communicate
They could extinguish
With two additional hose lines
Then a proliferation of requests
A Truck Crew radios
They are trapped in an elevator
Trying to cut
Through the wall
To get out
Another requests
More resources needed
To rescue
Hundreds of people
Whose egress is blocked
And again another
An Engine Co.
Gives notifications
Of injured
And dead
Civilians
And Firefighters
After a partial collapse
A resolve is heard
In the voices
To continue the mission
Fulfill the tasks
Rescue people
Put out the fire
The assurance
It would be done
Accomplished
Press on
Ignore
The inner conversation
Of weary feet
Exhausted bodies
Fear
The realization
This is not routine
But epic
Time to fulfill the oath taken
To serve
Sacrifice your life
To save another
A silent prayer is said
Even by the non-religious
For strength
Courage
Safety
The ability
To finish the job
Return to the station
To home
To wives
Children
To loved ones
The tape ends
With the roar
Of Collapse
And the silent voices
Of my Brothers and Sisters