Rick Rescorla - Saved 2700 Lives on 9/11

Rick Rescorla - born a Brit (in Cornwall) who became an American (and fought in Vietnam) - was worried about the safety of New York City's World Trade Center.  Ever since the 1993 terrorist attack, when a bomb blew up in the building's basement, Rescorla worried that it would happen again.

During the 1993 attack, Rescorla was upset that the building evacuation had gone so poorly.  He vowed such a muddled exodus would never happen again.  Among the first to understand that a new kind of terrorism was targeting innocent office workers, he became the director of security for Morgan Stanley in 1997.

Believing the Trade Center (where Morgan Stanley was headquartered) was a particularly vulnerable terrorist target, Rescorla recommended that his company find different space.  Because of lease obligations, however, that alternative was not possible.  Instead, Rick developed an emergency evacuation plan which he required the Morgan Stanley employees to practice over and over.

Rescorla could just not get out of his head that the Trade Center would be attacked again.

Credits

Clip, from The Man Who Predicted 9/11.