911拯救千人生命的平民英雄

译者 zhanghc110

He's been called a "prophet" for being so ready for the attacks, "the Man Who Predicted 9/11" in a History Channel special, and a true American hero by countless others.

历史频道特别节目称他是“预言了911”的人，他曾主张为防范恐怖袭击做准备而被人们称作“先知”，他是无数人心中真正的美国英雄。

As tragic as the morning of Sept. 11, 2001, was, the sky-blue day still held unexpected miracles, and Richard "Rick" Rescorla was at the center of one of the greatest -- the evacuation of financial-services behemoth Morgan Stanley. 

在悲剧发生的2001年9月11日，那个上演着种种奇迹的上午，瑞克·瑞思考勒（Richard "Rick" Rescorla）成了焦点——他成功疏散了大型金融机构摩根士丹利的千名员工。

Rescorla , a 62-year-old retired and decorated U.S. Army colonel, had focused on security at the World Trade Center for years. Prior to the bombing of the World Trade Center in 1993, and while he was working in security for Dean Witter, he had approached the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey about security vulnerabilities in the WTC's garage. He was told to focus only on his companies' floors, according to biographer James Stewart. He did that. But, along with Dan Hill, a military buddy of his, he didn't stop thinking about security weaknesses and terrorism.

瑞思考勒，这位62岁退休的授勋陆军上校，多年前就开始关注世界贸易中心的安保问题。早在1993年世贸底细停车场爆炸案前，在添慧公司安全部门工作的他就向纽约新泽西港务局提出，世贸中心的停车场存在安全漏洞。但据传记作家詹姆士·斯图尔特（James Stewart）记载，他被要求只管好自己公司的事务。他的意见被忽视了。但是，他和他的老战友单·希尔并没有停止对安全缺陷和反恐措施的思考。

After a company merger in 1997, Rescorla became director of security at Morgan Stanley, where he maintained vigilant attention to the firm's -- and the building's -- safety. Despite disruption at the busy brokerage firm, he insisted on holding twice-yearly evacuation drills by the stairwell for the firm's 22 floors in the south tower.

1997年添慧和摩根士丹利合并后，瑞思考勒成为摩根士丹利的安全部主任，他仍旧对公司以及整个世贸大厦建筑物的安全保持高度的警觉。尽管他在繁忙的金融经纪公司倍受质疑，但他坚持要南楼22层的公司员工每年两次在楼梯井进行疏散演习。

The result: On Sept. 11, 2001, his team was ready.

结果是，2001年9月11日，他的同事们对袭击有了充足的准备。

Despite having received official instructions to stay put after the 8:46 a.m. crash next door, Rescorla told Morgan Stanley staffers to follow his evacuation plan, and he sent them two by two, as they had practiced, down the many flights of stairs. His decision and his preparation made all the difference. Although 13 employees -- including Rescorla -- perished, more than 2,500 employees left the tower alive. That's where the word "miracle" comes in. It's also where the word "hero" comes in.

在上午8:46邻楼受到撞击后，尽管收到了官方指令，要求他们留在原处不动。瑞思考勒要求摩根士丹利员工执行他的疏散计划，像之前演习的那样，两人一组分批从楼梯向下跑。他的决策和他之前的演练在救援中起到了举足轻重的作用。虽然包括瑞思考勒在内的13名员工遇难，但超过2500名雇员活着离开了双子塔。这成了“奇迹”，而他成了“英雄”。

According to "The New Yorker," Rescorla used his cell phone to call Hill to get updates on news footage as he directed employees by bullhorn. He was "calm and collected, never raising his voice." Then Hill heard him break into song," the article notes. He also called his wife, Susan. "If something should happen to me, I want you to know I've never been happier," he said.

据《纽约人》报道，瑞思考勒曾用手机打电话给希尔获取新闻消息并用扩音器指导员工疏散。他“沉着冷静，从不提高嗓门”。后来希尔听到他唱起了歌。瑞思考勒打电话给妻子苏珊，他说： “ 如果意外发生，我想让你知道我不曾更快乐过。”

A fuzzy photo of Rescorla speaking into the bullhorn exists online. He was last seen on the 10th floor -- heading upstairs.

有一张瑞思考勒用扩音器喊话的模糊照片被传到网上。而他本人最后一次被人看见是在第10楼，正往上冲。

To two young adults, Rescorla was simply known as Dad. His daughter, Kim, now 33, was in law school at Seton Hall University in Newark, New Jersey, at the time. She and her brother, Trevor, now 35, were living with their mom, Rescorla's first wife, Betsy, in Morristown, New Jersey, when the attacks occurred.

瑞思考勒有两个孩子。他的女儿金姆现在33岁，当时是新泽西州纽瓦克霍尔大学法学院的学生。袭击发生时她和现年35岁的哥哥特雷佛，以及瑞思考勒的第一任太太贝琪住在新泽西的莫里斯镇。

They were not surprised that he died in the line of duty. Trevor says, "I knew he would be the last person out, because it was his command. As long as there were people in there, he would try to get them out."

对于他在自己岗位上殉职，他们并不吃惊。特雷佛说：“我知道他可能是最后一个人出来的人，因为这是他的命令。只要有人在那里，他会尽全力救出他们。”

"It was part of who my father was. He stayed to help evacuate the building in 1993 and would not have done anything different that day," Kim says.

“这就是我的父亲。他的所做与他在1993年袭击中的救援并无二致。”他说。

Richard "Rick" Rescorla's military service has been memorialized widely -- a photo of him in battle was the cover of the 1992 book "'We Were Soldiers Once … and Young,"' and Fort Benning, Georgia, displays a statue of him.  He fought in a major battle in 1965 in Vietnam at Ia Drang, a Communist stronghold and a major supply route. He led his company in securing a defense perimeter, and after enduring waves of assault, kept his men's spirits up by leading them in singing military songs through the night.

瑞克·瑞思考勒当兵时的战绩已是广为流传——从军时期的照片是1992年出版的书《我们曾是战士》的封面，乔治亚州的本宁堡还有他的雕像。1965年他曾参与越南德朗河谷战役，摧毁了一个越南共军据点和一个主供给线。他和他的部队成功防守过边线。在对抗了数波攻击之后，他曾带手下人彻夜唱起军歌来振作精神。

But the title of a 2002 biography and opera debuting this weekend in San Francisco that details Rescorla's sacrifice on Sept. 11 may best define him: "Heart of a Soldier."

正如2002年的那本名为“战士之心” 的传记和于本周末首次在旧金山本上演的详细讲述瑞思考勒911事迹的戏剧所描述那样，瑞思考勒无愧为“战士之心”。

More from Rescorla's daughter, Kim, and son, Trevor

采访瑞思考勒的女儿和儿子

On witnessing and mourning his death:

见证和哀悼瑞思考勒的死亡：

Kim: "We were part of a community of those that had lost loved ones, and although each loss was unique, no loss was more poignant or devastating than any other.

金姆：“我们和那些失去亲人的人们有一样的感受，每一个生命都是独一无二的，但每一个人的离去都一样会令人遭受打击和痛苦。”

"In addition, we were bombarded with images of the collapse of the towers, and I knew, as I watched the towers fall, I was also witnessing the murder of my father."

“此外，我们把双子塔倒塌的影像看了一边又一边，我知道，我看到高楼倒塌时我也在目睹谋杀我父亲的过程。”

Trevor: "Every day there was something that reminded me of my father."

特雷弗：“每一天我都会想起我的父亲。”

On how 9/11 changed them:

911改变了他们什么：

Kim: "[I had been] unaware of anything outside of my family, my friends, and my studies. I became cognizant of the world being a much larger place. Prior to 9/11, I could not conceive that there were people so consumed by hate and desperation that they would be capable and willing to sacrifice themselves to viciously murder people they had never met.

金姆:“我了解到在我的家人，我的朋友，我的研究之外的更多东西。我认识到世界有多么广阔。911之前我不可能想道，有些人怀着满腔憎恨和绝望，甚至甘愿牺牲性命去谋害谋生人。”

"I chose to focus my career in estate planning and estate administration [because] many of those that perished did so without estate-planning documents, causing administrative burdens for their families at a time of emotional turmoil."

“我选择资产管理和遗产规划作为职业，因为他们中许多人在去世时都没有遗产规划的文件记录，给其家人在失去亲人的那段情绪混乱时期，更增加了行政负担。”

Trevor: "I am sure that my father's background has shaped my interest in helping people. He instilled in me a sense that there is a duty to help your fellows and the perspective that we are all only a trick of fate from being in the same position [as someone else].

特雷弗：“我确信我的父亲的经历，塑造了我乐于帮助别人的性格。他灌输给我一种帮助同伴是责任的意识，渗透给我无常命运中我们和其他人一样处在相同位置的看法。”

"He always impressed upon me the need to be my own man and follow my own path, but who he was had, and does have, a significant influence on who I am." (Trevor completed a master's degree in criminal justice from John Jay College of Criminal Justice at the City University of New York.)

“他总是要我牢记我需要做我自己，走我自己的道路，但是他和他的作为，都严重影响了我的人生。”(特雷弗已取得了纽约城市大学约翰杰伊刑事司法学院的犯罪学硕士学位。)