Daily Pioneer News

PLATTEVILLE-Every spring the University of Wisconsin-Platteville hosts a distinguished lecturer to speak for UWP students, faculty, staff and community members. The 2009 Pioneer distinguished lecturer will be Richard Picciotto, the highest-ranking firefighter to survive the World Trade Center collapse on Sept. 11, 2001. Picciotto's presentation will take place at 10 a.m. on Wednesday, April 1 in Williams Fieldhouse on the UWP campus.

By mandate from UWP Chancellor David Markee, classes will be cancelled from 10 a.m. to noon to accommodate the presentation. A press conference prior to the presentation will begin at 9 a.m. in the Computer Conference Room of the Pioneer Student Center and a book signing will follow the lecture at 11:45 a.m. in the Heritage Hall of the PSC. In the early afternoon, Picciotto will travel to the Platteville High School where he will give a modified speech of his previous presentation. This event is free and student and community members are invited to attend.

Picciotto's lecture will be modeled after his best-selling book "Last Man Down," and provides recipients with a firefighter's view of the Sept. 11 catastrophe and the emergency response that followed. His book was a New York Times bestseller and is available in the University Bookstore located in the Pioneer Student Center.

Picciotto served as a fire marshal, arson investigator, lieutenant and caption prior to becoming department chief in 1992. His department, Battalion 11, covers Manhattan's upper west side, and Picciotto was in the station when the first plane hit the World Trade Center. After the second plane crashed into the tower, Picciotto and his company went to Ground Zero and began rescue attempts.

Picciotto was between the sixth and seventh floor of the North Tower when the South Tower collapsed. After calling for evacuation, he remained in the North Tower with a small team of men to assist people with disabilities struggling to evacuate the building. Still trying to clear floors, Picciotto was still in the North Tower when it collapsed, and was buried in the rubble for more than four hours, awaiting rescue.

After sending distress calls to firefighters on the ground, Picciotto only returned to safety after the surrounding civilians and members of his team had been evacuated out of the ruined foundation of the North Tower.

His speech will not only categorize his experiences concerning Sept.11, but will also commemorate the 343 firefighters and 2,400 civilians that lost their lives on that day. An estimated 20,000 people were saved by the FDNY on Sept. 11, making it the largest rescue operation in the history of the United States, and Picciotto was responsible for training and preparing firefighters for these emergency situations. He has been quoted saying, "People call us heroes, but we were just doing our job."

Tioa Mannery, event manager for Campus Programming and Relations, disagrees.

"This is a true heroic story. Even though it was his job, it is amazing that we actually get to meet him and talk to him. Maybe he doesn't see himself as a hero, but I do," said Mannery.

Picciotto is also a former New York police officer. He is a 28-year veteran of the FDNY and has received departmental awards and commendation for bravery and honorable service throughout the years.

For more information, contact Valerie Wetzel, assistant director of the Pioneer Student Center and Pioneer Involvement Center, at (608) 342-1497 or wetzelv@uwplatt.edu.

Contact: Valerie Wetzel, assistant director, Pioneer Student Center and Pioneer Involvement Center, (608) 342-1448, wetzelv@uwplatt.edu Written by: Morgan Spitzer, UWP Public Relations, (608) 342-1194, spitzerm@uwplatt.edu