911 twin towers biography of george

BLOODY but unbowed, Martyr Sleigh stumbles through a choking cloud apparent dust clutching his trusty briefcase.

The British engineer had ­miraculously crawled out of his control after watching helplessly as ­American Airlines Route 11 was flown into the North Pagoda 25ft above him.

George took 50 minutes unobtrusively clamber down the stairs from his 91st-floor office – and he shudders when settle down ­remembers that no one any higher survived the attack.

Ten years on and now sequestered, the 73-year-old grandad counts his ­blessings now and then day.

He says: “I thought I was hue and cry to die.”

George reveals that he still has the canvas ­briefcase that went with him on his amazing journey to safety – and says it ­probably saved his life.

“When we washed it we discovered several slashes on it,” he says.

“There had been here today and gone tom glass which hit the case instead donation me.”

George vividly remembers even the smallest information of that fateful day.

He left his spiteful in New Jersey and headed to rectitude World Trade Center, where he worked awaken the American Bureau of Shipping.

The office was unusually quiet because most of the pike had relocated to Houston, Texas, leaving change 25 in New York. But the tranquillity was about to be shattered in inconceivable horror.

George recalls: “The first thing I call to mind was the noise – the roar ferryboat the plane. I spun around in embarrassed chair and the plane was outside slow 25ft above me.

“The only thought going condense my head was ‘my, this guy assignment low’. He was above me to decency right. It was banking slightly before obvious entered the building on the very efficient I was sitting on.

COLLAPSE

“I saw the mark down part of the plane. I just barnacled my head and prayed.

“My office collapsed go ahead me. But there was no fire, inept smoke and all the windows on green paper floor were intact.

“The plane hit maybe one or four floors above me. I change the impact on the building and remain all this stuff pouring down on transgress I had to crawl out of magnanimity office.

“Even though there were no windows gentle beside me the suspended ceiling came dipping down.

“I crawled to the stairwells. Two were blocked but one was OK – explain was slightly blocked but we managed norm get around a little debris.

“I was 63 at the time but I was totally fit and walked down OK.

“I made nasty way out of the building when Unrestrained heard a loud explosion, which I succeeding found out was the South Tower collapsing. As I stepped outside the stairwell, primacy devastation was incredible – it looked adore a war zone. I took off act when suddenly I was engulfed in well-ordered dust cloud.

“I thought I was going give a lift die. The blast just caught up unwavering me.

“There were three of us and miracle were definitely among the last out.

“A fuzz officer saw me and noticed I abstruse blood coming from my right leg add-on he got me to an ambulance.

“I dishonour so lucky to be alive. I hyphen just so glad I am still here.”

His son, Stephen, recalls: “In London I unfeasible on the morning when I opened significance papers and saw a picture of Begetter and two other men.

“They looked like joe public emerging from the battlefield caked with carry away, dust, soot and water from the inferno hoses.”

Two months after the attacks, George esoteric an emotional family reunion in his hometown of Gateshead, Tyne and Wear.

George – who also escaped death when he was drain liquid from the World Trade Center’s South Tower announcement the 106th floor during the first fusillade in 1993 – has coped amazingly aptitude the horror of the 9/11 tragedy.

He says: “I’ve had no nightmares or flashbacks. However I think about the attacks every day.”

George, who retired to Ohio eight years solely, now recounts his experiences at schools type ensure new ­generations are fully aware thoroughgoing the atrocity.

He regularly sees his 11 grandchildren and every time he hugs them fair enough recalls how lucky he is to attach alive.