Trump Honors ‘The Man In The Red Bandana’ With Medal Of Freedom
President Donald Trump on Tuesday honored Welles Crowther, a 9/11 hero who died in the terrorist attacks 25 years ago and later became known as “The Man in the Red Bandana,” with a posthumous Medal of Freedom.
Trump honored Welles and his family during a speech at a Tunnel to Towers’ “Steel Across America” event in Washington, D.C. Since May, the non-profit has transported a 21-foot, 16,900-pound steel beam from the World Trade Center’s South Tower to mark the 25th anniversary of 9/11 and honor fallen first responders and military veterans. (RELATED: ‘Most Of Us Will Be Very Upset’: Many 9/11 Families Not Too Thrilled About Mamdani Attendance At Memorial Ceremony)
“Today we also remember another hero of 9/11. After the plane hit the South Tower, a group of people on the 78th floor were trapped with broken bones, charred skin, and eyes and lungs filled with black smoke. Death was all about them. They were sure they were going to die. Then suddenly a rescuer appeared. They call him the man in the red bandana. Have you heard that term? The man in the red bandana has become more famous than me. I don’t like it. Very unhappy. But he’s become much more famous than me,” Trump joked.
The president went on to recount Welles’ heroic actions that saved 18 people.
“When he heard cries for help on the 78th floor, he began extinguishing the fires, blocking the exit, directing survivors who could walk—of which there weren’t that many. He helped them out physically. They literally pulled him out toward the only working stairwell and carried those who couldn’t walk. And he just did things that people said were not even imaginable because they knew they were dead. They said, ‘We’re goners.’ One guy was screaming, ‘We’re goners! We’re goners!’ He didn’t know those he helped, but he willingly made all of these trips up and down, up and down, up and down, over and over again, saving life after life,” Trump said.
He also explained the story behind Welles’s famous red bandana.
“Welles’ father, also a firefighter, a great firefighter, had given him that bandana as a very special tribute when he was a boy. He probably knew something about his son. When asked why he always kept it, Welles replied, ‘With this red bandana, I’m going to change the world. I’m going to change the world with this bandana.’ Little did he know, on September 11th Welles saved many, many people before losing his own life in the South Tower lobby. When the building came down, he was in the lobby, and that building came down, thousands of tons of steel,” Trump said.
Read more Lindsay Clancy’s Lawyer Asks Trump For A Pardon
Welles’s mother, Alison, and sister, Paige, accepted the medal at the ceremony Tuesday.
“Thank you so very much, Mr. President, for this enormous honor that you bestowed upon my son, Welles, in remembrance of his selfless actions on September 11th,” Alison said in a brief speech. “This means the world to me, my daughters Paige and Honor, and our entire family. This will be treasured for generations to come.”
She also thanked those who helped bring the Medal of Freedom proposal to Trump, including Republican New York Rep. Mike Lawler, and praised Tunnel to Towers founder Frank Siller.
Post Comment