Thomas E. Franklin / The Bergen Record file Three firemen with flag at Ground Zero
THEN
It is one of the most enduring images from 9/11: three New York firefighters -- Daniel McWilliams, George Johnson and William “Billy” Eisengrein -- hoisting an American flag in the midst of chaos and ruins of the destroyed World Trade Center late on the afternoon of Sept. 11.
The photo, captured by Thomas E. Franklin, a staff photographer for The Record in Bergen County, N.J., was quickly picked up by newspapers, magazines and television networks. Reminiscent of Joe Rosenthal’s iconic image of U.S. troops raising a flag on Iwo Jima during World War II it struck a chord with editors and readers everywhere.
The photo, which was nominated for a Pulitzer Prize and won numerous national photojournalism awards, was used for a special U.S. Postal Service stamp released in March 2002 to raise funds for families of emergency workers killed or permanently disabled as a result of the 9/11 attacks.
NOW
All three of the firefighters featured in the iconic image are still working for the New York Fire Department, according to officials.
Daniel McWilliams, 42, a longtime veteran of the department, is now a lieutenant with Battalion 37 in Brooklyn. On April 15, 2007, according to an online report by Robert Glynn, chief of Battalion 43, he was awarded the Dr. John F. Connell Medal for his “leadership and tenacity” in a “highly successful lifesaving operation.” McWilliams and his family live in Massapequa Park, Long Island.
George Johnson, 43, is a captain with the NYFD and works out of Division 13 in Queens, where he also lives. Bill Eisengrein, 44, is a firefighter at the Rescue 2 unit in Brooklyn. He has been with the NYFD for more than 20 years. The department said it could provide no further information other than the fact of their continued service.