Authorities say a New York police officer who went after a cat stuck in a tree got caught himself and needed a little help getting back down to the ground.
The Fire Department of New York says it happened Monday afternoon in Queens.
A call came in that a man attempting to get a cat out of a tree had gotten stuck. Fire department personnel used a bucket ladder to get the man and the cat down.
The fire department says the man is a police officer.
The FDNY responded with a tower ladder and found the officer and the cat about 30 feet up in the tree.
Neighbor Jeff Yu, 22, said students from the nearby school had just gotten out and lingered to stare at the cat and cop.
“It was kind of comical,” he said. “They seemed to be enjoying themselves. There were no rude comments or anything.”
The officer had lit a flare and set up cones on the ground underneath the tree before going up but onlookers ignored them as they gathered and gawked from the ground, said Yu.
An FDNY EMS worker and a New York City Transit cop got into a scuffle in the back of an ambulance Monday while a 59-year-old woman with chest pains was being treated. It happened during the morning rush at a subway station in Boerum Hill. The medic, identified as Andrew Haley, was briefly arrested.
According to the New York Post, Haley was about to attach leads to the woman for an electrocardiogram as the police officer was asking for information. Because the woman’s breasts would be exposed, the officer was asked to leave and shut the door to the ambulance:
When the cop refused, Haley allegedly shoved him and the two got into an argument, with the cop shouting, “Get your hands off me!” and each calling for a supervisor, the sources said.
Cops cuffed Haley and he was taken to Transit District Precinct 32 nearby, while other EMS workers brought the woman to the hospital.
“The EMT was arrested for obstructing governmental administration. That arrest was voided,” Police Commissioner Ray Kelly said later yesterday.
“Some dispute arose inside the ambulance, the EMT wanted the police officer to leave. The police officer didn’t want to leave. So that is the nature of the dispute.”
One of a couple pictures of an interaction this morning between FDNY’s Ladder 45 and an NYPD car from the 33rd Precinct. It is described as 178th Street & Audubon Avenue with a report of people hanging. How do you think that conversation went?
UPDATE: More pictures from the scene arrived a short time ago.
There is controversy over a video that surfaced today of an NYPD officer shooting a pit bull in the head when the dog lunged at the cop on Monday in the East Village. Bystanders at 14th Street and Second Avenue immediately scream at the officer for shooting the dog and it’s making news in New York today.
Much as I did in my post about the dog in Chile who bravely saved her puppies from a fire, I have to question our priorities and compassion as human beings. My observation has absolutely nothing to do with whether the officer was justified in shooting the dog. I will let you all sort that out.
According to the New York Daily News, the dog belonged to a homeless man, Lech Stankiewicz who was apparently having a seizure on the street. The animal was keeping people away who approached Stankiewicz.
As you watch the video, after the pooch is shot, that I can see in the clip not one person checks on Mr. Stankiewicz, who is on his back with his body on the sidewalk and head in the street. No sign of anyone caring about Stankiewicz in this short version of the video or the longer version at Gothamist.com where there is 9:49 of raw video (now above). Stankiewicz is in sight for about 5:30 of that video before the videographer is moved back from the scene. Not once do I see anyone kneel down and see how Lech Stankiewicz is doing.
Maybe I’m just screwed up in my priorities and the rest of the world is right (I’ve been told that before) but shouldn’t the bystanders and police show slightly more concern over how the human being is doing over the canine (or at least fake it)? Besides his apparent seizure isn’t it all possible a bullet bounced off the street and struck Lech Stankiewicz? Would anyone there had known it if that happened?
At last word the dog is still alive and so, by the way, in case anyone cares, is Lech Stankiewicz. From the Daily News:
Stankiewicz — who sources said was intoxicated — was taken to Bellevue Hospital and treated for minor injuries. He was later cuffed on an arrest warrant for an open container summons, cops.
This is a video that would make Jimmy Justice jealous. Maybe those folks who write traffic tickets in New York can write one for this vehicle. The video is self explanatory but here are some of the details from code3paris on YouTube:
New York City Fire Department Ladder 4 is seen here arriving in their new Ferrara rear-mount to an “All Hands” (Box 712), for a transformer explosion on W. 33rd Street, the back of 330 W. 34th Street.
Also visible in this video is Engine 3 and the new Ferrara of Rescue 1 that had only been in service for about one week.
I am sure many of you recall the video we showed you last September of the attempted rescue of a motorcyclist trapped under a car in Brooklyn when the hydraulic spreaders in the hands of a member of the NYPD Emergency Services Unit didn’t do the trick and the car came crashing down? This occurred while firefighters were attempting to use an air bag to lift the car (click here). Now Bill Carey at BackstepFirefighter.com has come up with a new example of FDNY and ESU sometimes working at cross purposes.
It happened yesterday during a partial scaffolding collapse on East 66th Street in Manhattan. ESU had a police officer rappel off the roof to reach the trapped workers. FDNY handled it in a different way. They opened a window and let the men and the police officer inside the building.
According to WNBC-TV, one of the workers thanked ESU Detective James Coll (interviewed in the stories below) for coming to their aid sending him an email that read, ”You did the most courageous work and I really can’t thank you enough for risking your lives to save us. Thank you again and God bless you.”
Chief Massucci, 48, a 22-year veteran, said firefighters wound up aiding the officer, too. They pulled him in through the same 17th-floor window because he could not climb back up the building’s facade and most likely did not have enough rope to reach the ground, the chief said.
A chaotic scene unfolded outside Middle School 72 in Jamaica, Queens, on Wednesday night as several men who wanted to attend a tutorial workshop for the upcoming FDNY entrance exam were turned away.
These men said it was because they were white. The Workshop was being hosted by the Vulcan Society, a fraternal organization of black firefighters, which apparently only let in people who got a special e-mail.
Many applicants were referred to the Vulcan Society test by Deputy Chief Paul Mannix, who heads a group called “Merit Matters,” which calls for even-handed entry requirements regardless of race.
Image from WCBS-TV.
He said it wasn’t a stunt. “We feel that for your best opportunity to do well on the test the Vulcan’s test is a good test. They hit the nail on the head last time with those unique types of questions,” Mannix said.
Wednesday night’s class was the third in a series of prep exams given by the Vulcan Society. The previous two were integrated. The one Wednesday was the only one from which people were barred from attending.
The New York Post has a story about a confrontation at a tutoring workshop in Queens last night put on by the Vulcan Society for those who are interested in taking the FDNY entrance exam. Police had to be called after tempers flared when a group of about 60 people who are white tried to take part in the workshop and were denied entrance.
A volunteer told the Post's C.J. Sullivan and Dan Mangan that he wanted everyone to get in but they didn't have enough resources to handle the crowd. The volunteer says the decision was not based on race but on who received a confirmation email from the Vulcan Society.
You will recall that the Vulcan Society, backed by the U.S. Justice Department, won a lawsuit recently, when a judge determined the FDNY's hiring practices are discriminatory.
From the Post:
Paul Mannix, a deputy FDNY chief who is president of Merit Matters, which opposes the reforms as a watering-down of standards, said that in two earlier workshops this week, the Vulcan Society admitted whites.
“It’s incredible in this day and age” that whites were barred last night, said Mannix, who called the Vulcans’ explanation “disingenuous.’’
The news from New York indicates that New York's finest are now dealing with the opposite problem that is facing DC's bravest. It's a story that is worth paying attention to whether you are police officer or a firefighter.
As we've covered extensively, a recent order in the Nation's Capital banned on-duty wearing of any firefighter provided outer wear that has the DCFD logo on it. In New York, the city's top cop says you can't wear or use any items that say NYPD while off-duty without getting special permission. Reports indicate this came about after Commissioner Raymond Kelly saw a shirt with the NYPD logo and a controversial quote.
The Patrolmen’s Benevolent Association thinks this is infringing on the constitutional rights of police officers.
Here's coverage from a variety of sources.
From the AP:
Police Commissioner Raymond Kelly has issued an order saying the department must approve clothing branded with the New York Police Department logo before officers can wear it.
Kelly said Wednesday the order is meant to make sure nothing inflammatory or derogatory appears with the logo. There have been instances where clothing says "NYPD" and also states something negative. He says officers are still police, even when they're off duty.
Kelly says the order is common sense, and no employer would allow the brand name of the company or organization to be used without authorization.
Union officials say the directive goes too far. Patrolmen's Benevolent Association President Pat Lynch says telling police officers what they can wear in their private lives is a violation of free speech rights.
Some of taboo shirts’ slogans included the 81st Precinct’s “Bed Stuy do or die’’ and a shirt popular with homicide detectives that says, “Our day begins when your day ends.”
But some shirts have caused offense — such as one worn by some cops in Harlem that dubs the 30th Precinct the “House of Pain.”
Others disliked by brass include one that calls the 32nd Precinct in Hamilton Heights the “Tomb of Gloom.”
According to the new rule, officers are not allowed to wear any sort of clothing or accessories with the department's image on them while off the clock.
Prohibited items include hats, pins, jewelry and clothing.
The ban also applies to non-clothing items like pens, mugs and ceremonial coins.
The order targets "any item of apparel which contains a Department logo or shield, or in any way identifies its wearer with the New York City Police Department unless approved by the Uniform and Equipment Review Committee, prior to being worn by a member of the service, uniformed or civilian, on or off-duty."
Pat Lynch, president of the Patrolmen’s Benevolent Association, said that the order goes too far and threatens officers’ constitutional rights.
“Telling police officers what images or objects he or she can own or wear in their private lives is a clear violation of the officers’ free speech rights,” Lynch said in a statement. “Many private citizens proudly wear NYPD apparel — and police officers can’t? It makes no sense. The PBA believes the order is patently unlawful and we will defend our members’ rights.”
One police source confirmed that the new restrictions came on the heels of Kelly spotting an officer wearing a T-shirt with the NYPD logo and a controversial quote.
Chief Romeo Toro has told the New York Daily News the Aviation Volunteer Fire Department will continue to respond to jobs in and near the Classon Point neighborhood of The Bronx, despite the possibility of arrest. AVFD, which has been around since 1923, has had financial problems in the past and only recently began operating again.
FDNY told Aviation to butt out after a confrontation at a bus accident on the Brunkner Expressway last Thursday. NYPD ended up detaining the chief and one of his lieutenants for 25 minutes.
Despite a very clear letter from FDNY Commissioner Salvatore Cassano Chief Toro told the Daily News, "Yes, we will risk arrest". The chief says he will only listen to an order from the mayor or the Office of Prevention and Control.
“We hereby demand that AVFD immediately cease its operations and discontinue making any representations that AVFD is authorized by the City of New York or the FDNY to provide emergency medical and firefighting services,” he (Cassano) wrote.
The volunteers are “operating without the proper training, equipment and authorizations” and are endangering the public and city firefighters, Cassano added.
“The FDNY has advised its field personnel to prohibit AVFD from operating and to contact law enforcement if necessary,” he wrote.
Back in the early days of STATter911.com I posted a few videos from Jimmy Justice. Jimmy is a man who roams the streets of New York, camera in hand, looking for government vehicles parked illegally. He has a special interest in those blocking fire hydrants. Jimmy is not shy about confronting the government workers, particularly ticket writers and police officers, over these parking issues. In fact, he taunts them.
I know I am biased, but I happen to think leaving your vehicle in front of a fire plug is one of the more selfish acts you can commit. That's why I used to post the videos. Until recently I had thought Jimmy was no longer active. But I was wrong.
A month ago Jimmy Justice showed up on Comedy Central's Colbert Report (below). He got the full Stephen Colbert treatment.
Jimmy's most recent video posted to his YouTube Channel is the one above from two months ago.
So, what do you think about an annoying vigilante with a camera getting in the face of public servants who block hydrants?
Firefighters came to the rescue of two police officers outnumbered in Mariners Harbor today (Tuesday), in a scene so chaotic that New York’s Bravest employed a truck-mounted deluge gun — a water cannon — to fend off the marauding group of teens.
The scene unfolded at about 3:30 p.m. in front of 83 Harbor Rd., where a large group of teenagers had amassed to confront a teenage girl who lives in the residence.
By the time it was over, two officers were sent to Richmond University Medical Center, West Brighton, for treatment, and nine teens ended up under arrest, said Inspector John Denesopolis, the 120th Precinct's commanding officer.
It all started as a group numbering about 50 that started yelling. Someone called 911 and a couple of officers were dispatched.
They were apparently overrun by the crowd and the officers were reportedly knocked down.
It all unfolded on the same block as an engine house. The crew got in their truck and used the cannon to disperse the crowd. Back-up arrived and police reportedly arrested nine teens.
A STATter911.com reader alerted us to this much better video of the attempt to remove a motorcyclist from under a car in Brooklyn on Thursday morning. This is the one where a member of the NYPD's Emergency Services Unit (ESU) tries to lift the car off of 21-year-old Karam Rampersaud using hydraulic spreaders under the rear of the Ford Taurus but the car comes crashing back down. New York officials have told reporters that Rampersaud died because of the original accident and not the mishap with the spreaders.
Here's what I see in this latest clip. (Feel free to correct me if I miss something or use the wrong terminology, particularly when it comes to ESU.).
This video begins more than three minutes before firefighters and police arrive. Engine 225 and Ladder 107 are on the scene first. Two firefighters from the engine walk over to evaluate the scene. One takes a close-up look at the victim and the other appears to set the emergency brake on the car. The officer from Ladder 107 comes up, takes a quick view and speaks to his crew. They appear to immediately begin setting up for air bag operations.
Forty seconds after the arrival of the firefighters an ESU REP (Radio Emergency Patrol) vehicle arrives followed about 15 seconds later by an ESU truck (similar to a heavy rescue squad). Within 50 seconds of their arrival ESU is deploying the spreaders under the rear of the Taurus as the firefighters appear to be continuing to set airbags.
Only a minute after he pulls up on the scene, the ESU officer already has the back raised (far from the four feet witnesses described), but seconds into the lifting the vehicle comes off the spreaders and slams back down. It looks like a bit of a close call for an ESU member on the drivers side of the vehicle placing cribbing (the same officer also appears to have moved aside FDNY equipment placed on that side of the vehicle).
After a bit of commotion the ladder officer appears to talk with two of the ESU officers and airbag operations continue with involvement of both firefighters and police officers.
At 9:45 into the video, about 6:40 after FDNY's arrival, the rescuers begin pulling the victim from under the car.
The incident has many in our comments section talking about the working relationship between FDNY and the police department's ESU. There have been some very public battles through the years.
Below is a NYPD video called Inside the NYPD: Emergency Services Unit.
I have been looking unsuccessfully on the web for a detailed listing of primary responsibilities for ESU and the official working relationship between ESU and FDNY at scenes similar to his one.
UPDATE: A STATter911.com reader has sent along a document (2009 version) outlining the Citywide Incident Management System (CIMS) for New York. It is attached. It lists the "primary agency" for auto extrication as "NYPD/FDNY (First to arrive)".
FDNY is listed alone as the "primary agency" for confined space rescue, elevator incident or emergency, entrapment/impalement, fire and structural collapse.
An ESU REP at a recent fire in Brooklyn. Click above for the video.
Both the FDNY and the NYPD were on the scene of an accident in Brooklyn yesterday that is making headlines in New York. It happened around 8:45 AM
on Loring Avenue and Forbell Street in East New York when 21 year old, Karam Rampersaud, on a motorcyle, was run over by a Ford Taurus and became trapped underneath the vehicle.
From the video it appears an NYPD Emergency Services Unit crew member is handling the lifting of the vehicle when the car suddenly comes back down.
Police and fire officials have been giving indications to reporters that Rampersaud died from the injuries during the original crash.
Listening to this since just before 4:00 pm it sounds like all on board walked off the chopper about 50 feet off shore. Six ambulances were requested. Fire department operations seem to be winding down.
An NYPD helicopter made an emergency landing in Jamaica Bay this afternoon
It was believed that six officer were on the chopper, but fire officials said everyone on board was accounted for and okay.
The helicopter was near Floyd Bennett Field’s NYPD Aviation base when it made the water landing near the base’s pad, witnesses said. Emergency floatation devices were seen activated.
Tire & muffler shop burns: A fire at 6708 Northeast 23rd Street in Oklahoma City on Wednesday. This is one of many videos from around the country added each weekday by WUSA9.com’s Emily Cyr. They all can be found in our video player over here >>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>
More on injured Baltimore firefighter: There is a nice article from his native Montgomery County, Pennsylvania that profiles Jeffrey Novack who was seriously injured in Wednesday night’s fire next to the firehouse in the 3900 block of Liberty Heights Avenue. Firefighter Novack, assigned to Truck 12, was forced to bail out of a third floor apartment after rescuing residents. He is in a medically-induced coma to treat burns and other injuries. Sources indicate the two closest engines were on other runs, and the third was closed due to staffing issues. Here is our previous coverage of the fire, including fireground audio of the mayday. Sources indicate this version of the audio, besides compacting the time by removing dead air, misses some key radio transmissions.
Is this a trend? Baltimore police halt CompStat (or ComStat) meetings: This is the famous crime fighting method started by Jack Maple, who brought it to NYPD from New York’s Transit Police in the early 1990s. Since then, police departments and other government agencies, including fire departments, have adopted it as a way to measure performance. Now comes word that the Baltimore City Police Department, which embraced its version of the statistics based management tool more than a decade ago, has suspended the meetings. There are concerns that it has evolved into nothing more than a weekly finger-pointing beat-down session (the fictional version was shown regularly on The Wire) that requires too much prep time by managers. The Baltimore Sun reports on a New York study that showed more than 100 retired high-ranking officers believe it creates intense pressure to manipulate crime figures. Here’ the story.
All PGFD, all the time: There was a time that some people claimed that was our motto here at STATter911.com. Still, this has been a newsworthy few days in Prince George’s Countyl. Here’s what’s been keeping Mark Brady busy-
Governor makes escape from fire followed by lawmakers: A celebration for new members of the Maryland legislature at an Annapolis, Maryland bar last night came to an end when fire broke out. The Baltimore Sun tells the story that Governor Martin O’Malley’s security detail may have been the first to realize the place was burning. Here’s the article.
Facebook shooting threat by firefighter against politician leads to trouble: We have been telling you about the problems in Clark County, Nevada and how County Commissioner Steve Sisolak is leading the charge to cut OT and compensation for firefighters. Sisolak is also concerned about on-duty MD fund raising. Now comes word of the Facebook posting by City of Las Vegas Firefighter Joy Sager saying she wanted ”to shoot Sisolak in the (groin)”. The mayor has called for justice. Sager, involved in the charity work, has written an apology. Read Sager’s letter. Here’s the story.
The fine print in the grant that will help Flint has some worried: Flint, Michigan is getting a SAFER grant to rehire firefighters recently let go and others. But can the troubled city meet the staffing requirements of the grant? Read the details.
An ounce of prevention is apparently not worth much in this budget cycle: What did that Franklin guy know anyway? It isn’t like he and his most famous saying about fires had to face a massive recession like we have dealt with. The latest budget proposal in Mesa, Arizona calls for the elimination of the entire fire prevention and life-safety education units. Read more.
Citizen says it is just fine to cut fire department minimum staffing: This column in a California newspaper shows the perception firefighters are often up against when it comes to budget cuts. In it, a man named Bob Moss explains why he didn’t sign a petition by Palo Alto firefighters to freeze staffing levels. Here is an excerpt-
Fact: The proposal on the table is to cut the required number of firefighters on engines by no more than one person. There will still be plenty of staff to respond to 911 calls. Cutting the number of people on an engine, say from 4 to 3, will have no impact on 911 response times — it may even be a bit faster as it will take less time for three people to get onto the engine than four.
Code thieves?: Thieves who stole radios and other equipment worth as much as $20,000 from an Edmond, Oklahoma fire truck being serviced also got the map book with the codes that allow access to gated communities. Read the story.
Fired DeKalb County captain reinstated: Tony Motes, one of those fired after a botched response to a house fire that turned fatal, won his appeal. Read what it means.
Fallout over gas company’s union negotiation in Fall River: There is debate in the Massachusetts town over whether the installation of locking devices on critical valve shut offs by New England Gas will impact its reponse to help fire crews with gas shut downs in an emergency. The company is doing this to prevent tampering during union troubles. Here’s the story.
One of the more interesting videos I have seen recently: Have to give Jason Thomas at Firefighter Spot credit for finding this. The photographer springs into action and moves a police car blocking the way as firefighters in Maple Shade, New Jersey pull up to a motel fire on Sunday. In Part 2 you will see where the cops were. Check out the third floor as they break out windows, apparently looking for victims.
A top doc socks it to DC Fire & EMS over child death: It is only two paragraphs long, but Monday’s letter to the editor in the Washington Post from Dr. Joseph Wright packs a wallop. You will want to take a look at the doctor’s credentials in the field of pediatric emergency medicine as it relates to EMS. Dr. Wright not only questions what happened in the recent death of 2-year-old Stephanie Stephens, he is critical of how the system generally provides pediatric pre-hospital care. The DC Fire & EMS Department stands on its record of improvements since Mayor Adrian Fenty’s task force provided an outline for the future of EMS following the 2006 death of former New York Times reporter David Rosenbaum. Dr. Wright looked at Stephens’ death as a “pediatric Rosenbaum”. Click here for our coverage.
Long Island fire chief & FDNY member accused of “vigilante” justice: Hempstead Fire Department Chief Michael Charles. who is a retired NYPD detective, and FDNY’s Brian Schuck from Ladder 111, are accused of stopping and searching a pedestrian at gun point and then letting them go. The men were in the fire SUV. The incident happened after shots rang out near the Hempstead firehouse. Schuck has been suspended without pay. Read and watch the story and here.
Pay attention to this report and you can get rid of STATter911.com: The Cumberland Valley Volunteer Firemen’s Association is trying to put this blog out of business and I am helping them. It is called reputation management and the CVVFA folks put together a special report on how some firefighters are tarnishing the image of the fire service. They even asked me to give them some insight on the awful stories I cover. Forget my role and just read the document. Here it is.
Speaking of reputations – it doesn’t look like Chicago’s mayor is ready to help salvage the fire commissioner’s image: The Chicago Sun-Times is reporting Mayor Richard Daley “conspicuously refused today to give embattled Fire Commissioner John Brooks a vote of confidence”. Brooks, accused of sexual harassment, made this memorable statement to the Sun-Times:
I do not proposition women. I don’t have to. Women usually proposition me. God has blessed me like that.
Los Angeles City Council has second thoughts on cutting ambulance service to save money: The plan is to stop using 10 of the department’s ambulances during night time hours. But after hearing testimony the council is getting cold feet. Here is the story.
Smoking ban for new firefighters rejected: In Wisconsin Rapids, Wisconsin the police and fire commission is bucking the trend and said no to a new tobacco free policy for newly hired firefighters. Check out the story.
Exploding cell phone: It wasn’t even plugged in, according to a family and firefighters in Seffner, Florida. Here’s the story.
Fire chief lays down the law over convicted arsonist/bomber: Read the story from North Haledon, New Jersey about a convicted arsonist/bomber who was participating in fire department activities.
Fire chief lays down the law over accidental fire: Actually that’s this chief’s name, Jonathan Law. He’s the chief of Oklahoma’s Nescatunga Fire Department. Chief Law told the Alva Review/Courier, “I will not stand for such kinds of incidents” after a firefighter accidentally started a small grass fire. Here’s the story.
The Fire Critic has lost his mind: Where The Fire PIO yesterday had one of the more interesting blog postings I have seen in a while, our friend in Roanoke has gone far in the other direction. There will be nothing socially redeeming in Rhett’s Top Ten Best/Funniest Firefighter Dance Videos, but I am sure you will get a few laughs. That also pretty much describes my first encounter with Rhett at the blogger meetup on Friday. Click here to see what I am talking about.
Newly released aerial photos of the World Trade Center terror attack capture the towers’ dramatic collapse, from just after the first fiery plane strike to the apocalyptic dust clouds that spread over lower Manhattan and its harbor.
The images were taken from a police helicopter — the only photographers allowed in the air space near the towers on Sept. 11, 2001. They were obtained by ABC News after it filed a Freedom of Information Act request last year with the National Institute of Standards and Technology, which investigated the collapse.
The chief curator of the planned Sept. 11 museum, which is compiling a digital archive of attack coverage, said the still images are “a phenomenal body of work” that show a new, wide-angle look at the towers’ collapse and the gray dust clouds that shrouded the city afterward.
The photos are “absolutely core to understanding the visual phenomena of what was happening,” said Jan Ramirez, chief curator at the National September 11 Memorial & Museum.
The images of the dust clouds rising as high as some downtown skyscrapers “are some of the most exceptional images in the world, I think, of this event,” Ramirez said.
ABC said the NIST gave the network 2,779 pictures on nine CDs, saying some of the photographs had never been released before.
The network posted 12 photos this week on its Web site, all taken by ex-NYPD Aviation Unit Detective Greg Semendinger, who was first in the air in a search for survivors on the rooftop. He said he and his pilot watched the second plane hit the south tower from the helicopter.
“We didn’t find one single person. It was surreal,” he told The Associated Press on Wednesday. “There was no sound. No sound whatsoever, but the noise of the radio and the helicopter. I just kept taking pictures.”
He took three rolls of film with his Minolta camera, plus 245 digital shots. Semendinger said he gave the digital images to the 9/11 Commission and believes those images were released by the NSIT. In the days after the attack, he e-mailed some of the photos to friends and several were posted on the Internet.
Later, nine of the images were published in a book called “Above Hallowed Ground: A Photographic Record of Sept. 11″ without his consent. The book was a tribute to the officers who were killed that day.
The photos capture the enormous scope of the dust that enveloped the area.
In some images, the tops of the nearby Woolworth Building and other skyscrapers can be seen rising above the billowing dark plume against a clear blue sky. Buildings can hardly be seen at all in one image — just a burst of dust clouds hanging over the serene Hudson River at the southern tip of Manhattan.
A close-up image from earlier in the morning shows orange flames and black smoke rising past the antenna on top of the north tower, the first hit by a hijacked plane.
Ramirez said the museum, which is slated to open in 2012, saw a selection of the photos at police headquarters several years ago.
They are extremely important because the NYPD aviation unit had the clearance to be up in the air in lower Manhattan only “moments after the first tower was hit,” and stayed in the area for the remainder of the day, she said.
Sometime after 10 a.m., she said they were able to “predict that the north tower was going to fall.” It did just before 10:30 a.m.
The museum hopes to get a complete set of the photos.
“We’ve had our sights set on this body of visual evidence for several years,” Ramirez said.
Semendinger retired from the NYPD in 2002 after 35 years, 20 of them in aviation. He said he has thought about publishing his work from those days.
“I almost didn’t realize what I was seeing that day,” he said. “Looking at it now it’s amazing I took those pictures. The images are … stunning.”
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