Page 15 - Tower Flag News Today : Breaking News, Live Updates & Top Stories | Vimarsana

Firefighter named dan mcwilliams saw out of the corner of his eye an american flag on the back of a boat called "the star of america," he went over, climbed up and took the flag and the pole off and fell in line with a friend of his, george johnson. another firefighter, a third firefighter billy eisengrind. >> the crew that passed away told us right away this was our flag. he told us that same day. he said, you know, by the time he got to the boat they had taken the flag, and he went over to ground zero and saw our flag pole and the flag they raised. >> this is our pole. >> the pole was right ...

You remember under the stadium before the ceremony that you came over and said hey, they would like you to sign the flag and i said i didn't think it was appropriate for me to sign it. >> right. >> that flag. what -- do you -- the interest is where did the flag come from, how did it get on the roosevelt. >> yes, sir, i'm trying to -- i'm trying to remember -- >> i remember governor and mayor giuliani signed it. >> i know it came from the mayor's office and we were -- we were under assumption it was that flag that was in that iconic photo. we weren't real sure but that's what the mayor's office...

>> yeah, yeah, that tower flag. >> you see the rescue boats there. >> and i went down to photograph them loading the wounded firefighter onto one of the boats, and he survived, thankfully. and he contacted me later asking if i could share some of my photographs so that he could try to piece together what happened to him that day, because he didn't remember. >> on my walk, i kept asking people for film. so i went around and then i was at the sailing club where all the boats are docked. that's when i saw this guy who was apparently freelancing for "the new york times." i never got his name. he g...

Been the week that princess diana died. particularly a big historic moment, people not only buy more but keep them. when we saw the three firefighters hoisting the flag at ground zero i said that would be a great image for the "newsweek" cover. i would imagine people saying i'm going to keep this, i'm going to keep this and show my children and grandchildren what happened on this day and how we bounced back. it dwarfed any previous cover of "newsweek" sales, in spite the fact people had seen the image every place else. >> the firefighters have never spoken. they let the picture speak for thems...

Why did the navy ask for the flag to begin with? we're not really sure of why that happened. >> the flag, whether bet see ross knitting a flag or 9/11, it's always a flag because that's what unites us. there is no self-pity in that picture. someone said a plane hit the world trade center, the deputy mayor of washington called and rudy said i want you up here. i jumped in a car and drove straight to new york. i was on the phone most of the way, and i was having trouble hearing rudy, so i pulled over.