The story behind the firefighters' flag-raising at Ground Zero
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What memories does Tom Franklin share about the first moments he heard about the 9/11 attacks?
The photographs of the 9-11 attacks are still seared in our memories 25 years later. There's a picture of a plane smashing into the towers. There's a picture of a firefighter rescuing a man out of the rubble. A picture of a stockbroker covered in ash. But one picture stands out over these years and still resonates with us today. And that's a picture of three firefighters, their faces streaked in sweat, their uniforms dusty. They're raising an American flag over the rubble. I'm Mike Kelly for The Excerpt. Tom Franklin, a photographer at that time with the Bergen Record in New Jersey, took that photograph. And Tom is here with us today to talk about taking that photograph and how it resonates all these years later.
Hi, Tom. It's good to see you again.
We
were colleagues back then. We were actually together here on the site very briefly. We crossed the Hudson River separately, of course. What were you thinking as you walked into that rubble pile that day? Try to take me back to your thoughts as you saw it the first time.
Well, I really have to begin with how the day began for me, which was hearing about a plane crash in the World Trade Center in the office in Hackensack. I attempted to drive into Manhattan, but when the second plane hit, the river crossings were closed. So I drove to Exchange Place in Jersey City. That's
where we met. Yeah, same thing. And
that was the first time I saw you that day. But that scene was incredibly dramatic. Yes. The towers in flames and smoke, the whole sky filled with smoke. And then, of course, one tower fell and then the other tower fell. There were boats bringing the injured to the triage center that they had set up there, all with this incredible backdrop of the World Trade Center no longer there. So I talked my way onto a boat in the early afternoon and I got to Exchange Place, from Exchange Place to what's now called Brookfield. Sure, right. Not
far from where we're sitting. Sure.
So I got off the boat there and I spent the next several hours just wandering what we now call the ground zero area, photographing, you know, search and rescue, looking for survivors. but also trying to capture the broad scope of the debris field, the damage and the unthinkable of those, the idea that those towers were no longer there and they were in this pile of rubble that we were now, I was now photographing and people were looking for survivors. It was almost too much to comprehend. It was really, you know, the word surreal is used a lot, but it was a surreal scene. It was beyond belief that those towers were below our feet.
I remember that day and I felt a certain sense of not just that it was a surreal scene, but I had trouble really trying to imagine the How this even happened. I remember the debris field was something like seven stories high. It was like the thing I've ever seen before. Yeah. Did you feel that same way?
Yeah, absolutely. Well, keep in mind that this was the days before social media, before phones could capture photographs and be shared instantly with the world. So that I did have a flip phone, cell phone back then, but it wasn't working. Right. The relay tower for Nextel, I believe, was on top of the World Trade Center. That's right. So we had no cellular connection. So throughout that day, I really didn't have access to the information that the average person had. I hadn't seen those horrible images on television of the planes crashing into the building. I didn't see any of that. I only saw what was in front of me. And what I saw in front of me was this war zone, this debris field from the Fallen Towers.
and a few search and rescue groups looking for survivors. I didn't see anybody rescued that day, but I was just really in stunned disbelief of the damage and the wreckage and the fact that the towers were no longer there.
Were you scared at all as you were walking in this debris field? I remember being a little apprehensive, frightened.
I wasn't scared for myself. A funny moment that day was an exchange you and I had. Sure. Funny is maybe not the right word, but, you know, a poignant moment where I expressed to you some concern about my brother, who I had worked at 1 Chase Plaza.
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Chapters
5 chapters
1
What memories does Tom Franklin share about the first moments he heard about the 9/11 attacks?
0:07–4:48
2
How did Tom get to Ground Zero and what was his first impression of the debris field?
4:48–8:20
3
What challenges did Tom face while trying to photograph the rescue effort without interfering?
8:20–12:17
4
How did the iconic flag‑raising scene unfold and what split‑second decisions did Tom make to capture it?
12:17–17:07
5
What technical choices (lens, aperture, composition) did Tom use to frame the flag‑raising photo?
17:07–20:07