Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
directive and personally initiated and led the evacuation of Morgan Stan-
ley's 2,700 employees occupying floors 44 through 74 of the South Tower.
He acted so quickly and decisively that most Morgan Stanley employees
had been safely evacuated by the time the second plane hit the South
Tower. All but six of Morgan Stanley's workers survived. Rescorla was one
of the lost six. The last time he was seen, he was walking back into the
stairwell in the South Tower to make sure everyone had gotten out safely.
The critical element in an emergency is decisive action. The cliché “to
ponder is to perish” is never truer than under these circumstances. For-
tunately for the employees of Morgan Stanley Dean Witter, they were led
by a man who knew how to act and lead. In an adjacent eight-story build-
ing, over 800 employees of the U.S. Customs Service worked on the World
Trade Center site. Every one of those individuals made it out safely. A pub-
lication later issued by the Office of Compliance, the enforcement arm
of the Occupational Health and Safety Act of 1970, noted that the fact
that both Morgan Stanley and the Office of Customs had spent a great
deal of time and effort restructuring their evacuation plans after the 1993
bombing attack allowed almost all their employees to escape.
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Each of these
entities had a well-thought-out plan and practiced it. In the final analysis,
the key element was that they also had managers who were decisive leaders
who chose to act and execute the plan. This was not true for many others,
who sat in their offices waiting for someone to tell them what to do. There
is no way of knowing how many people owe their lives to Rick Rescorla.
Whether he saved all 2,700 employees or just one is irrelevant. He took
the right action.
It is up to each one of you to decide right now to act as he did, should
you face a similar situation. Do not wait for someone to get up and lead.
Get up, grab your things, and tell everyone to do the same. Most people
are followers. It only takes one person to galvanize an entire office into
action.
How is the decision to evacuate properly made? The decision to con-
duct a partial or full evacuation is based on the type of the building, the
nature of the emergency, and the number of people present at the time.
For purposes of the Emergency Response Plan, there must be a clear and
unambiguous set of criteria for initiating an evacuation protocol. If a
certain event occurs, then an evacuation is initiated. This must be done
without hesitation, second-guessing, or discussion. Get your people out to
a place of safety. Your emergency plan must cover all contingencies; plan
for evacuation via several alternate routes; and designate assembly areas
