The Man in the Red Bandana: The 9/11 hero who saved 12+ people

We prepare to mark 25 years since the 9 11 terror attacks. Fox five is looking back at the day that changed our city and the world forever. And it also changed the lives of loved ones left behind by those who perished. And that includes one woman whose son kept running back towards danger in the south tower, leading people to safety until the burning building fell. Fox five Sharon Crowley has the legacy of the man in the red bandana. I would say to him, Wells, I love you so much. Such a beautiful soul and his loss is still painful today. And I said, I would say, Well, I love you so much and I will do anything always to step up to carry on your legacy to carry on your example because I see how I see how it it inspires other people. Allison Crowther lost her 24 year old son Wells on 9 11. He worked in finance on the 104th floor of the South Tower. 25 years later, she remembers that morning like it was yesterday. She was at work when a secretary told her she missed a phone call from her son. She said, Allison Wells just called. He wanted you to know that he's okay. And I said, Well, well, why wouldn't he be okay? I was planning to go to a golf outing that day. Why? Why wouldn't he be okay? Minutes later, Allison would learn Wells was not okay. Instead of escaping danger during the terror attacks on the World Trade Center on 9 11, her son began climbing back up the smoky stairwell to help rescue people on higher floors. He's credited with saving more than a dozen people, including carrying one woman to safety on his back. He put a woman over shoulder, carried them down to clear air, which they estimated was about the 71st floor. And she's put the woman down, said, You have to keep going. I've got to go back up and help more people. Allison might never have known about her son's heroism had it not been for a red bandana he wore around his face. Wells got his first bandana from his dad when he was a kid, with the fatherly advice to always carry one in case things get messy. They kept a red bandana at his desk at Sander O'Neill. And one day, one of his co workers came up and says, Well, what is it with that red bandana? Why do you always have that red bandana? And Wells picked it up and he held it up and he said, With this red bandana, I'm going to change the world. And and I think he's doing that now. On 9 11, Wells covered his face with a red bandana as he put his own safety aside, walking up into the South Tower to help bring others to safety. Allison learned of her son's bravery after she read newspaper accounts from survivors who talked about being helped by a man who had his face covered with a red bandana. He was just, um, fearless, really fearless. I never saw him afraid of anything when he was just a teenager. Well, it's trained and became a volunteer firefighter here, following in his father's footsteps. His mother and firefighters who knew him then believe the skills that he learned helped him save lives on 9 11. What he was trained to do. Empire Hook and Ladder Company, number one in Upper Nyack, New York, still honors Wells with a red bandana on the dashboard of the fire truck. His picture hangs in the firehouse. Every time I walk in the firehouse, I say hello to everybody because I believe they're still here with us. In the 25 years since 9 11, Wells, a story of courage has been written about in a book and portrayed in a documentary. Just recently, President Trump posthumously awarded Wells the Presidential Medal of Freedom. To me, it's such a beautiful thing that even 25 years later, Wells is light still shines brightly. Wells. His father died a few years ago, but his sisters and mother are still working to cement his legacy. There's a foundation in Wells's name, so future generations will always remember the bravery and selflessness of the man in the red bandana.