FDNY Fireboats and the Largest Water Evacuation in History

On this episode of Our American Stories, as Lower Manhattan filled with smoke and chaos on September 11, 2001, escape routes vanished. Bridges and tunnels were shut down, subways halted, and thousands of people were trapped at the edge of the island with no way out. In that moment, the harbor became their only hope. The call went out: “All available boats.” Fireboats, tugboats, ferries, and even private pleasure craft rushed to the seawall. Together, they carried civilians across the Hudson and East Rivers in what became the largest water evacuation in history—greater even than Dunkirk. This is the story of the FDNY fireboats and ordinary mariners who became heroes on one of America’s darkest days.

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