We reflect on the haunting events of September 11th through a deeply personal and historic lens. Verizon employee Kevin Killian joins us to detail his journey on that fate-filled morning, traveling from Philadelphia to Midtown Manhattan just hours before American Airlines Flight 11 hit the North Tower. He recounts the surreal visual of the second plane striking the South Tower, the immediate collapse of local communication infrastructure, and the harrowing decision to walk straight into Ground Zero to salvage vital national infrastructure.
We examine the monumental effort required to get American economic operations back on its feet following the destruction of switching hubs near the World Trade Center. Killian details his team's mission to recover critical data tapes and hardware from damaged high-rises—carrying irreplaceable stock exchange network management systems out of partially demolished buildings in plastic trash bags. We listen back to President George W. Bush’s iconic bullhorn speech at Ground Zero, an event Killian witnessed in person just feet away from the rescue crews.
Sep 11, 2026
