From the archives: Three 9/11 heroes: Mark Grillo, police officer

Originally published in The Chronicle on Aug. 23, 2002 BY VICTORIA LAROSA (VICKI BOTTA) GOSHEN — Of the three Goshen firefighters who survived the collapse of the World Trade Center, Mark Grillo is the youngest. At age 24, he is much younger than either Jay Jonas or John McLaughlin, and single. He feels somewhat less affected by the tragedy than most of his fellow police officers and firefighters who bore witness to the events of Sept. 11. As the first anniversary looms, Grillo reflects that, although he has changed quite a bit from the happy-go-lucky guy he was before 9/11, he is eager to get on with his life. His nightmares have stopped, and he no longer shudders when a plane flies overhead or when the shopping mall he’s in seems to tremble underneath him. He continues to be an active member of Goshen’s Dikeman Hose Company. He has noticed, however, that he has less patience and can on occasion be more abrupt with people than he used to be. At the time of the tragedy, Grillo was a two-year member of the New York City Police Department’s 42nd precinct and had already seen people who had been shot, robbed, and raped. But, he said, recalling how people jumped from the North Tower, “This took the cake.” He and his department were called to go in as soon as the second plane hit the South Tower, and arrived about a half-hour before it collapsed. He was assigned to go into Building 4 with eight other officers and a lieutenant to find “the big guys who were killed were under the South Tower when it collapsed.” They found about 50 people in an area that was “pitch black” and started to lead them out, all the while breathing in dust and pulverized debris. Grillo heard voices calling the way out. The officers held hands to stay together. He was looking for a federal agent who was trapped between two of the smaller buildings when he saw that the North Tower was collapsing on him. He got “blown airborne” and hit Building 7 before falling to the ground. He ducked his head into a wheelwell until the collapse was over. When he was finally able to move, Grillo accidentally stepped on a New York City firefighter who was still alive. He helped the firefighter up, and together they led each other to safety. At Beekman Hospital he received stitches on his head, legs, and left elbow, where an artery was cut, and was treated for broken ribs. Since that horrific experience, Grillo said not a day goes by that he does not think about it. “They are still burying brothers,” he said. Funerals are still being held for officers and firefighters who have not been found, whose families are finally accepting the fact they are gone and are only now having memorials for them. Grillo has attended memorials as far away as California, where he suffered a burst appendix that needed emergency surgery. The people of Ocean City, Maryland, gave him the keys to their city, and in Cleveland he visited schoolchildren, showing them his uniform still soiled with dried blood, and framed. Each student wrote him a thank you letter for coming to share his story. Although he has attended memorials for many of the victims, he chose to work on the day of the final memorial at Ground Zero. He said he preferred to watch it on TV, even though his co-workers offered to cover for him. Regarding his plans for the first anniversary of 9/11, Grillo said if he is scheduled to work again, he will, despite offers to cover for him. He is anxious to immerse himself in his new career and look to the future. Rather than go through counseling with people who, he said, cannot possibly relate to what he has been through, he finds comfort and support being with the people he works with — even though, he lightly adds, they treat him like the new kid in the department. Grillo just graduated from the New York City Fire Academy, where he enrolled back in January. He had always wanted to be a firefighter, he said, and the events of 9/11 did not change that desire. Grillo said he does not go to bars anymore, and he wonders when, or if, he will stop feeling tired all the time. Although he is still asked to travel and speak to others about the tragedy, he does not feel he can afford to take time off from his new career. Before the tragedy, Grillo said, he would think about going skydiving or traveling to a certain place at some point in his life. But now he makes a point of following through. In fact, at the time of this interview, he planned to go skydiving within a few day’s time at a friend’s skydiving bachelor party. He is quick to add that while he is more spontaneous now, he is not a “partier” — just more inclined to actually do what he wants to accomplish in his life.