Customer Reviews

Last Man Down: A Firefighter's Story of Survival and Escape from the World Trade Center

5 star:		(37)
4 star:		(5)
3 star:		(6)
2 star:		(15)
1 star:		(11)

 

 

I had seen Chief Picciotto and heard parts of his amazing story on TV last September but nothing takes the place of reading the details of his 9-11, in his own words.
His description of being in a stairwell on the 35th floor of the North tower when the South tower started to collapse will bring tears to your eyes. The recounting of his controversial decision to evacuate the rescue workers that were still climbing up the stairs of the North tower was compelling and probably saved the lives of hundreds of fire fighters. Reading his description of the collapse of the North tower while he was still on its 7th floor is almost as indescribable as the sounds he was hearing. And then his description of trying to figure out if he was dead or alive ("maybe this is what it feels like to be dead") are just some of the highlights that come to mind. But after all is said and done, it's the "diary" of his entire day, in story form, from the senior FDNY officer in the upper floors of the North tower, that puts you in the tower, with he and his men, in one of the most horrible, unimaginable situations the civilized world has ever experienced.
What made the story even more real for me is that the book covers about 12 hours of Picciotto's day and took me about 12 hours to read, making it appear as a "real time" account of this piece of 9-11 history.

Last Man Down is a clear, nerve-wracking, compelling personal account of one professional's experience on Sept 11. It is story of a midtown Battalion Fire Chief, who leads with courage and experience on that horrible day. What make it great is that it covers the detailed technical aspects of rescue work in high-rise disasters, as well as the personal account of a victim of terrorism, it works on both levels.

The description of the day is clear and so well described, it will help people who were not there to better understand how so many people were saved that day. I know. I was in the North Tower on Sept 11, on the 40th floor when the first plane hit. As I went down the stairs, stairwell A or C, (I'm still not sure which), it was exactly the scene the Picciotto laid out. We did not see firefighters until I was down to the 20's, so I am sure that I saw some of the companies described in the book. Reading the book helped me understand better what they were doing and why. As we were going down, when we saw those men, with all that gear going up those stairs with such persistence, some part of me knew that we would survive. They helped us out of Hell itself.

I knew then what real heroes are, Picciotto and his brothers have set the bar, and they've set it high. I remember that on one of the landings near the teens there was one fire fighter, he was a big guy, 6'3" 250lbs, standing, calm but breathing hard. He was in full turnout gear with oxygen on his back, his helmet cocked back on his head. Our eyes met, he had clear blue eyes and a thick blond moustache. I said good luck and really meant it. And he just nodded clearly confident, knowing he was doing his job, saving people. Picciotto helps us all remember that strength and courage.

His account doesn't pull any punches, or mask things over to romanticize what went on. I respect his criticism of the FDNY, he is taking his celebrity, and using it powerfully. I hope people listen, especially the politicians. You need to give them the tools they need to do the jobs we expect of them. You'll do well to support the rescue workers we must have to live the lives we have chosen.

Read the book. The FDNY deserves it. Picciotto deserves it.

Thanks Pitch. I hope that you've been able to work through the aftermath with the leadership and courage you had on that day. For me the weeks following were much harder than the day itself. I'll see you at the big one.

My brother was one of the first Firefighter's killed on 9/11. Mr. Piccioto incorrectly addresses him as Lieutenant Daniel Suhr. My brother was a Firefighter who loved his job completely & swore he would never become an officer. Also, he incorrectly states that Father Judge died while giving last rites to my brother. Anyone that saw the Naudet video or read Dennis Smith's book could plainly see that Father Judge died just off the lobby of Tower One at the bottom of an escalator. It seems to me that the truth of that day was powerful enough without embellishment. God Bless the FDNY!

Sincerely,

James Suhr

Let me get this right....Picciotto talks an FDNY dispatcher into allowing him to respond and he abandons his own division. Upon arrival at the command post, he ignores command protocal, commandeers the crew from 110 Truck, then abandons them in the stairwell (because he is in such great shape).

He then gives the order for all firefighters to evacuate, lies to several firefighters that he has seen their Lieutenant on floors below and searches each floor as he goes down (last of course).

He becomes trapped in the stairwell and he leads all the firefighters out (of course), although he doesn't wait for any of his "brothers", cause he says in the book that by the time he gets off the pile, the brothers behind him are not even in his sight.

Then the first time he returns to ground zero, in October 2001, he brings a writer with him (Mr Paisner). WOW. $$$$$$

Recent NY newspaper stories quote firefighters who "doubt" his story and say he overexaggerated. Picciotto himself is quoted as saying that maybe he "assumed" some things happened, which he says occurred (in the book) .

And for this he is a bestselling author? Give me a break!!!

I have the utmost respect for FDNY and their firefighters. I was friends with several of those who died. Picciotto is a hero because he has served the people of New York for all those years, however, this account he tells tarnishes all that.

Save your money or buy Dennis Smith's book "Report From Ground Zero" and get a story that is ALL true, told by those with the morals and ethics to be truthful and accurate, of which Picciotto's account is neither.

Signed: A 27 year veteran firefighter.

Richard Picciotto's story is so horrific that I found it in places almost unbearable and almost put the book down. However, I decided if this man could live through this awful day and write about it, I could finish his story. This is the account of Chief Picciotto and other New York Firefigters' heroic rescue of many people in the north tower of the World Trade Center, then the tower falling around them, their being trapped for 3 or 4 hours in a tiny space, not knowing if they would ever get out, and thank God, their ultimate escape to safety.

The book is very well done and is full of painstaking details. For example, we learn that the sky was totally clear that awful day; otherwise the misguided monsters would not have been able to fly into the tower. As Picciotto and other firefighters are clearing the tower, he comes across on a twenty-seventh floor "a well-dressed broker-type hunched over at his desk, typing crazily on his keyboard. . . at first I thought I was seeing things." (Can you believe this?) There is also the account of the rescue of a group of disabled people who had somehow gathered on the same floor. When Chief Piccioto first sees them, he doesn't realize that they are disabled. "And as they moved toward me, I thought I was seeing things. There were people in wheelchairs, people on crutches, people moving with the aid of walkers and canes, people hardly moving at all. There were people old enough to have been my grandparents--and they moved with the kind of hurry you usually find in tortoises." When the tower falls and Chief Piccioto stops moving, he is in a small space in total darkness. "I thought I was dead. Really, I actually wondered if this was what it felt like to be dead. Think about it: It was pitch dark. There was no sound, no movement, no nothing." For me this is one of the most touching passages in the entire book.

So we have yet another account of one decent man of many responding with valor and courage in an impossible situation. This is as good as anything I've read about the awful events of September 11.

During the Summer of 2002, I read Richard Picciotto's book "Last Man Down." While I can appreciate what this man must have went through during the horrible collapse of the WTC, I felt like I was being shovelled a lot of ... His constant reference to his rank and how important he is really turned me off. I have been a firefighter for 18 years myself and I felt the tone he used in writing this book was condescending to the lower ranking firefighters. Recently in "Fire Engineering" online, there was an article about how the crew of FDNY Ladder 6 has spoken up about BC Picciotto exaggerating his role of that day of 9/11/2001. In reading the book, I personally couldn't get past BC Picciotto's insecurities with his position as BC or with himself. By his own accounts, he was the "First Man Down." The true heroes of this story were the captain and crew of Ladder 6.
While the book is an interesting read, you really need to sift through the BS to appreciate the story. Good job Ladder 6!!!

I am a little surprised by the negative reviews of this book--perhaps some reviewers don't personally know any firefighters--and that is the point of this book: an inside look at how one firefighter(albeit a chief) experienced and survived the attack and collapse of the World Trade Center.

As a BC, Picciotto, had a company of men under his command who were looking to him for direction and literally commands. Firefighting is a military-style profession where you take orders and do what you're told by superiors. Firefighters are full of "bravado" at what ever level--it comes with the territory. Work hard, play hard, brag hard...that's real stuff.

The best part about this book is the "voice" of Picciotto coming through the writing. His description of the sound of the collapsing tower mixed with his feelings of the certainty of death were very well written. His last thoughts were on his family--that is a part of the job most don't want to talk about. You gain a sense of the confusion, the disbelief, and the frustrations present that day in NYC on 9/11. You are inside his head and thoughts the entire time--it is an excellent book to gain a different/purposefully personal perspective on what that day was like. It is clear this book is about one man's experience, not an entire city or department's experience. I am certain that all New Yorkers and firefighters have their own stories of bravery and despair and hope. Talk to one...they are extraordinary people. Waiting for Odysseus

I just finished reading Chief Picciotto's book "Last Man Down" and I couldn't wait to give it to a friend to read so we could talk about it. The story is compelling. It's like a live fairy tale. Incredible to believe it could happen, and even more so that 13 people could live to tell the story. I've been to a lot of the museums and exhibitions of 9/11 pictures and videos. I watched the Robert DeNiro TV movie. This book is a more vivid and moving story of the 9/11 devastation than anything else I have seen or heard.

It is obvious from his style of writing that Richard Picciotto is a no nonsense, plain speaking, man. He is someone used to being in charge. Though rough, his style communicates honest emotion and no "poetic license". At many points I found myself looking for more guidance from his contributor, Daniel Pisner. Finally I realized that it is just not the style of Richard Picciotto to be edited. He is a person used to defining the world from his own perspective since this is the vantage point most familiar to him. This is the kind of person he is and I imagine has always been. "Last Man Down," gives an insiders view of the collapse of WTC I. Picciotto's graphic descriptions of the raw terror of the moment the tower came down are riviting. The book does leave the reader wanting more though. I especially would like to read an account by the "civillian" rescued by then trapped with Picciotto and his men.

I don't want to take anything away from this man's accomplishments, which were heroic...
but if he talks like he writes, it must have been hell to be buried in the rubble with him.