Four-legged heroes of 9/11
QUESTION
Is the story of a dog called Daisy leading several hundred people to safety from the Twin Towers true? The story goes that James Crane was a blind man, working on the 101st floor of Tower 1 of the World Trade Centre when it was hit in the 9/11 terrorist attack.
After the plane hit 20 stories below, James knew he was doomed and let his guide dog, Daisy, find her own way out. About 30 minutes later, Daisy returned, along with James’s boss, whom Daisy had picked up on floor 112.
Daisy then proceeded to lead hundreds of people out of the smoke-filled building. Not content with that, she returned twice to eventually save upwards of 900 people. New York Mayor Rudy Guilaini rewarded her the Canine Medal of honor of New York.
This tale is complete fiction — which is unfortunate as there were several brave animals who did perform heroic deeds on that day. Daisy’s tale may have been inspired by genuine reports about guide dogs Roselle and Salty who were both awarded the Dickin Medal (the ‘ animal VC’) for their brave actions.
On 9/11, yellow labrador Roselle successfully guided her owner Michael hingson from the 78th floor of the North Tower to safety. hingson, remembering the day, wrote: ‘She saved my life. While everyone ran in panic, Roselle remained totally focused on her job. While debris fell around us, and even hit us, Roselle stayed calm.’
Salty, another yellow lab, guided his owner Omar Rivera to safety from the 71st floor.
Roselle and Salty’s Dickin citations read: ‘For remaining loyally at the side of their blind owners, courageously leading them down more than 70 floors of the World Trade Centre and to a place of safety following the terrorist attack on New York on 11 September 2001.’
New York Police German shepherd dog Appollo also received the medal on behalf of all the Ground Zero Search and Rescue dogs. Appollo and his handler, Peter Davis, arrived at the World Trade Centre 15 minutes after the attack, making Appollo the first search and rescue dog at the site.
Appollo’s citation read: ‘For tireless courage in the service of humanity during the search and rescue operations in New York and Washington on and after 11 September 2001. Faithful to words of command and undaunted by the task, the dogs’ work and unstinting devotion to duty stand as a testament to those lost or injured.’
Carole Thompson, Hartlepool.
QUESTION
When I was a lad, train spotting was a popular pastime. Did it catch on anywhere else in the world? IT’S thought that there are upwards of two million rail enthusiasts or tetsu in Japan — not surprising given their wonderful railway system.
The Japanese word for railway is tetsudou — ‘iron-road’ — and railway enthusiasts are referred to as tetchan (railies) if male or mitchan (roadies) if female. Other terms are nori-tetsu ‘ride-rail’ for those who seek to ride particular trains, or toritetsu ‘take-rail’ for those who seek to take photographs of certain trains.
The number of rail enthusiasts has burgeoned over the past decade. Psychologists believe it is a reaction to a digital world where people feel increasingly disengaged from one another and railways provide a sense of connection to other humans.
Businesses are clearly picking up on this new wave of enthusiasm for railways. In 2010 alone, four new rail-themed stores opened in Tokyo station, including the great Nippon Shokudo, a restaurant based on a railcar modelled on Cassiopea (Japan’s equivalent of the Orient express).
Japanese hotels near stations are trying to attract train spotters with rooms marketed as having a ‘rail view’. Some even contain model railways.
Mr P. Jepson, Bangor-on-Dee, Wrexham. TRAINSPOTTeRS in the U.S. are called Railfans. Steve Barry, managing editor of Railfan & Railroad Magazine, believes there are 250,000 hardcore Railfans and about the same number of casual fans.
Railfans are split between trackside watchers who keep logs of what they see, and the ‘mileage collectors,’ who take as many excursions as they can each year.
Famous American Railfans include vicepresident Joe Biden, Walt Disney (who insisted on having a railway system at his theme park), Gene Autrey, Johnny Cash and Kevin Costner.
Jim McManus, Belfast.
QUESTION
When was the first double decker
bus produced? FURTheR to the earlier answer, the first motorised double-decker bus was built in about 1905 by Vanguard, predecessor to AeC (Associated equipment Company).
This bus, known as the X type, was very unreliable and suffered from constant breakdowns. A year or so later, when Vanguard had morphed into AeC, the famous B-type was produced and over the next few years many B types were built for The London General Omnibus Company (LGOC). These were nearly all doubledeckers with a few single-deckers.
Many hundreds of these double-deckers were commandeered by the War Office for the conveyance of troops in France during World War I, leaving the LGOC with a chronic vehicle shortage.
A small number of B types are preserved, the most famous of which is B43, christened ‘Ole Bill’, on display at the Imperial War Museum in London.
Ray Grande, Basildon, Essex.
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