Donald Trump Recounts 9/11 Rescue Claim At White House Event, Sparks Debate

US President says firefighters pulled him to safety after attacks; claim disputed by rescue officials

US President Donald Trump has recounted a claim that two firefighters pulled him to safety from a location near an unstable building after the September 11, 2001, attacks, reviving debate over his account of events following the tragedy.

Speaking at a White House event on Tuesday to honour emergency personnel killed during the attacks, Trump said two firefighters had helped him escape as he feared a building could collapse, AFP reports.

“And I'll never forget,” Trump said, “we thought it was coming down on top of us, and two firemen, big strong guys -- and I'm not the smallest guy in the world -- they grabbed me under the arm, said, 'Got to get out of here!'” Trump said.

The remarks appeared to add to a long-running account Trump has shared over the years about his actions after the attacks, in which he has portrayed himself as helping workers at Ground Zero. However, US media reports have said rescue officials present at the time disputed parts of his account.

The comments also came amid criticism over Trump not being in New York as president for the 25th anniversary commemorations of the attacks, which killed 2,977 people.

Trump to attend Pentagon ceremony instead

Instead of visiting the site where Al-Qaeda hijackers crashed planes into the World Trade Center towers, Trump will pay tribute on Friday at the Pentagon in Washington.

Trump and the White House have denied reports that he chose the Pentagon because he was not allowed to deliver a speech at the 9/11 memorial in New York.

“This is more Corrupt News, I've been to New York many times over the years, and no one ever speaks, it's a 'solemn ceremony!'” Trump said on his Truth Social network last week.

However, his absence from New York will place him away from the main focus of the commemorative events.

Vice-President JD Vance and Trump’s four living predecessors, Democrats Joe Biden, Barack Obama and Bill Clinton, along with Republican George W Bush, who was president during the attacks, are expected to attend the Ground Zero ceremony.

Trump is also scheduled to travel to Ireland later on Friday to attend the Irish Open golf tournament at his family’s golf course.

Trump’s 9/11 account has faced scrutiny

Trump has previously said that he visited Ground Zero two days after the attacks and sent 100 workers to assist recovery efforts. CNN and The New York Times reported that people present at the site disputed his account.

At Tuesday’s White House event, held at the Ellipse where a steel beam recovered from the World Trade Center’s South Tower was displayed, Trump gave another account of his actions on the day of the attacks.

He said it had been a “beautiful morning” before he saw a television news alert and looked out of his window, where he saw “things that I never want to see again”.

Trump said he was overseeing a building project at the time and “took the whole crew down there right after this happened”.

A popular right-wing X account called Johnny Maga, which US media reports said is run by a White House staffer, supported Trump’s account.

“It’s a shame people are politicising a 9/11 memorial,” the account said on Tuesday.

Trump honours 9/11 firefighter’s family

During the event, Trump presented the highest US civilian honour to the family of volunteer firefighter Welles Crowther, who died while helping people escape from the South Tower.

Crowther, an equities trader, became known as the “man in the red bandana” after survivors described a man wearing a red bandana over his nose and mouth who helped guide people out of the building.

“The Man in the Red Bandana. He's become more famous than me, I don't like it,” Trump said with a chuckle.

Published on: Wednesday, September 09, 2026, 11:21 PM IST