An Analysis of the Recognition and Response Behaviours of Evacuees of WTC1 on 9/11

The terrorist attack on the World Trade Centre (WTC) in New York 2001 resulted in one of the largest full-scale evacuations of high rise buildings in modern times. The survivors’ evacuation experiences provide valuable insights into the factors which influence egress in a rapidly changing high-rise building environment. Primary factors contributing to deaths from any fire is the delay in warning the occupants and the extended time lapses before escape movement actually commences. The primary focus of this paper is in relation to the recognition and response phases of a sample of 126 occupants of WTC1 on 9/11. It includes analysis of the cues received by evacuees and their subsequent response activities. The inter-relationships between these and other potential influencing factors including perception of risk, location within WTC1, prior evacuation experience (1993 evacuation) and individuals’ roles and responsibilities are also explored. The results indicate that occupants performed many different activities, with evidence of differences in the activities of occupants on the upper, middle and lower floor clusters. The results also indicate a link between risk perception and the likelihood of performing certain activities, e.g., collecting belongings.