Several World Trade Center Survivors Recover
in the Burn Center at Saint Barnabas

Five victims of the World Trade Center attack on September 11 spent time recovering at The Burn Center at Saint Barnabas. All of the survivors were burned by flash fires that traveled down elevator shafts and engulfed the lobby of the North Tower after the first plane hit. The five individuals were all treated and eventually released, and three of the victims agreed to be interviewed by various local and national media.

Long Island resident Kenneth Summers, 51, a technical support analyst for Empire Blue Cross and Blue Shield, was pushing through a revolving door of the World Trade Center when the lobby in front of him ignited. The blast hurled him backward through glass and deposited him outside. Mr. Summers, who underwent a number of skin graft operations on his arms and fingers, was helped to safety by a stranger and transported by ferry to Jersey City and then to Saint Barnabas.

Brandon Smith, 39, was trapped in a revolving door minutes after the airline crash. A fireball that came down an elevator shaft exploded into the lobby and scalded the Mountain Lakes resident. Mr. Smith’s condition was initially perilous—he was on a respirator for a week for smoke inhalation damage—and he underwent numerous skin graft operations to repair his hands and ears. Upon his release, Mr. Smith told his story to an audience of fourth and fifth graders at Cedar Grove School as a way to thank the students who had written get-well cards for the five World Trade Center victims at Saint Barnabas.

Bloomfield resident Virginia DiChiara, 44, was one of a few survivors from the bond brokerage firm Cantor Fitzgerald. Only four Cantor Fitzgerald employees who were at work on September 11 survived because they were elsewhere in the building at the time. Ms. DiChiara was inside an elevator bound for the 101st floor and had just reached the 78th floor when an explosion rocked the building. When the elevator doors opened, Ms. DiChiara ran through a curtain of blue flame to get to the hallway beyond. She was the only person to escape from the elevator and was then carried to safety by a colleague.

Burn surgeon Michael Marano, M.D., reports that the long-term prognosis for the five individuals is good, although their recovery involves months of physical and occupational therapy.