The 9/11 plane crash and the Twin Towers collapse are among the biggest tragedies in history. Many people lost their lives that day, and a lot of resources went into helping the people who survived and needed shelter. One of these personnel was none other than Steve Buscemi, who is best known for his work in ‘Fargo,’ ‘Con Air,’ ‘Reservoir Dogs,’ ‘The Big Lebowski,’ and many others.
Steve Buscemi was once a firefighter before he became an actor
Steve Buscemi used to work as a New York City firefighter with Engine Company 55 in Little Italy from 1980 to 1984 before he started pursuing a full-time acting career. He took the FDNY civil service exam when he turned 18 years old and served as a firefighter for four years before leaving to focus on film and television.This experience helped the star return to the profession when the 9/11 tragedy struck, and thousands of people in the city were affected.
Steve Buscemi returned to firefighting to help during the 9/11 incident
Buscemi was once a firefighter when he was 18 years old. During the 9/11 tragedy, the actor went back to his old job and joined the bucket crew that would go through the rubble of the Twin Towers to find survivors.
The ‘Con Air’ star returned to firefighting, along with the same firehouse where he had served for around four years, to assist during the tragedy. TIME magazine reported the news and revealed that the actor worked 12-hour-shifts at the time to help other firefighters and rescue operatives in securing the area and saving people who may have been caught in the rubble.He worked along the “bucket brigade,” the crew that was tasked with digging through pulverized concrete and heavy debris to locate missing firefighters and civilians. His firehouse lost five firefighters in the tragedy. At the time, he was approached by the media on multiple occasions for interviews and photo ops at the scene; however, the star continued to decline and did not entertain any such requests at the time.
Steve Buscemi advocated for first responders at the 9/11 tragedy
In 2013, after deferring any requests for an interview or an op for the work he did in 2001, Buscemi started working towards raising awareness about the struggles that first responders faced after the 9/11 tragedy. He worked on the documentary ‘A Good Job: Stories of the FDNY,’ which explored the history, culture, and mental health challenges of New York firefighters.Other than this, the ‘Fargo’ actor also wrote an essay in 2014 in which he highlighted the ongoing health crisis among 9/11 first responders caused by airborne toxins at Ground Zero, advocating for long-term health coverage for survivors and cleanup crews.
Steve Buscemi talks about the 9/11 tragedy
In 2021, the actor featured on one of the episodes of the ‘WTF with Marc Maron’ podcast, where he revisited his time working at Ground Zero and how the incident remains with him years later.
Steve Buscemi has always advocated for mental health issues and depression that many first responders faced after the 9/11 tragedy. He also shared that he himself also has depression and PTSD from the incident. (YouTube)
He shared, “I was driven into the site that day, walked around for hours, and then found my company, found Engine 55 working there, and asked them if I could join them. It was just so devastating.” He further opened up about the health issues the first responders and other people faced in the following years.He added, “I don’t know if anything could have stopped any of the first responders and the volunteers who were there to do this enormous job. But it would have been good to at least know of the dangers going in…You could just feel it, like that it was not safe. And you would hear people say, ‘You know, I’ll bet we’re going to die from this in 20 years.'”The actor also shared that he and countless others suffered from depression and PTSD long after they left Ground Zero. He mentioned, “I was only there for like five days, but when I stopped going and sort of tried to just live my life again, it was really, really hard. I was depressed. I was anxious. I couldn’t make a simple decision.”Since the 9/11 tragedy, Buscemi has actively worked towards dedicating his time to raising awareness about mental health and depression that many of the first responders faced.
