NY Waterway ferry captain recounts rescuing thousands during the 9/11 attacks

During a morning shift on September 11, Captain Rick Thornton spotted a plume of smoke from the World Trade Center and soon heard that a plane had struck the North Tower. Recognizing a coordinated attack, he ordered his crew to abandon their scheduled route and head for the waterfront, where dozens of people were leaping into the Hudson River. The Henry Hudson, a NY Waterway ferry with a 399-person capacity, ended up carrying over 500 evacuees, many clutching life jackets, and made twenty trips that day, navigating through dense smog using radar.

While en route, the crew witnessed the South Tower collapse and later rescued Secret Service agents, learning of the Pentagon attack and the president’s safety. After the operation, Thornton kept the American flag that had flown on the deck for two decades before donating it to the 9/11 Memorial & Museum, where it now joins other artifacts from the tragedy.