Jason Thomas (born ) is a

United States Marine The United States Marine Corps (USMC), also referred to as the United States Marines, is the maritime land force service branch of the United States Armed Forces responsible for conducting expeditionary and amphibious operations through combi ...

who located and rescued people in the aftermath of

collapse of the World Trade Center The collapse of the World Trade Center occurred during the terrorist attacks of September 11, 2001, after the Twin Towers were struck by two hijacked commercial airliners. One World Trade Center (WTC 1, or the North Tower) was hit at 8:46&nb ...

New York City New York, often called New York City or NYC, is the most populous city in the United States. With a 2020 population of 8,804,190 distributed over , New York City is also the most densely populated major city in the Un ...

after the

September 11 attacks The September 11 attacks, commonly known as 9/11, were four coordinated suicide terrorist attacks carried out by al-Qaeda against the United States on Tuesday, September 11, 2001. That morning, nineteen terrorists hijacked four commer ...

in 2001. With fellow U.S. Marine

David Karnes David Kemp Karnes (December 12, 1948 – October 25, 2020) was an American politician, businessman, and attorney. He was a United States Senator from Nebraska from 1987 to 1989, and was president and chief executive officer of The Fairmon ...

, he helped find a pair of

Port Authority Police The Port Authority of New York and New Jersey Police Department, or Port Authority Police Department (PAPD), is a law enforcement agency in New York and New Jersey, the duties of which are to protect and to enforce state and city laws at all th ...

officers buried in the rubble of the

World Trade Center World Trade Centers are sites recognized by the World Trade Centers Association. World Trade Center may refer to: Buildings * List of World Trade Centers * World Trade Center (2001–present), a building complex that includes five skyscrapers, a ...

Career

2001: September 11 attacks

On September 11, 2001, Thomas was dropping his daughter off at the home of his mother on Long Island when she told him planes had struck the towers. The 27-year-old Thomas, having left active duty in August 2001, quickly put on his Marine uniform (camouflage utilities), sped to Manhattan, and had just parked his car when the North Tower of the World Trade Center collapsed. Thomas told the

Associated Press The Associated Press (AP) is an American non-profit news agency headquartered in New York City. Founded in 1846, it operates as a cooperative, unincorporated association. It produces news reports that are distributed to its members, U.S. ne ...

: Thomas ran into another Marine veteran, Staff Sgt.

. Thomas presented a plan for a search-and-rescue mission of the area, and he and Karnes tried to enlist other marines and soldiers on site to help. When they were told the mission was too dangerous, they decided to go by themselves. "I found a couple guys, but it wasn't enough, to them, to start a search and rescue," he said. "I remember myself and Karnes saying, 'We're going to start the search and rescue with or without you, because someone needs us.'" Carrying an infantryman's shovel, the two climbed the debris, calling out, "Is anyone down there? United States Marines!" They met an operating engineer, who had a flashlight, and crawled down into the hole where the 2 police officers were trapped. The engineer climbed out, and brought back two

Port Authority Police Department The Port Authority of New York and New Jersey Police Department, or Port Authority Police Department (PAPD), is a law enforcement agency in New York and New Jersey, the duties of which are to protect and to enforce state and city laws at all t ...

officers. Thomas said he returned to Ground Zero every day to pitch in, before attempting to put the events behind him. He did not even tell his five children about his rescues. He had identified himself to Karnes and others only as "Sergeant Thomas". Thomas is now serving in the United States Air Force as a medical technician since 2006. Thomas was portrayed in Oliver Stone's feature film ''

'' by

William Mapother William Reibert Mapother Jr. (; born April 17, 1965) is an American actor, known for his role as Ethan Rom on the television series ''Lost'' and starring in the film '' In the Bedroom''. He is also known for the film ''Another Earth''. Personal ...

. This portrayal by a white actor generated controversy, and the producers stated that they were unaware that the real Thomas was black until they had already started filming. On February 11, 2007, '' Extreme Makeover: Home Edition'' aired a special two-hour episode about Thomas and his family. Following the attacks, Thomas and his wife had moved their four children from New York to

Whitehall, Ohio Whitehall is a city in the U.S state of Ohio, located 6.6 miles (10.6 km) east of the state capital of Columbus in Franklin County. Whitehall had a population of 20,127 in the 2020 census. Founded in 1947, Whitehall is a growing suburb ...

. The house they bought began to deteriorate and the show intervened to help them. On September 2, 2013,

Channel 4 Channel 4 is a British free-to-air public broadcast television network operated by the state-owned Channel Four Television Corporation. It began its transmission on 2 November 1982 and was established to provide a fourth television service ...

in the UK broadcast ''The Lost Hero of 9/11'', which detailed Thomas' involvement in the rescue operation following the collapse of the towers.

After 9/11

As of 2018, Thomas was living in Whitehall, Ohio with his wife Kirsti and their children. He works as an officer for the Ohio Supreme Court as well as being a Technical Sergeant in the United States Air Force.

References

External links

* * *Heroes Helping Humanity
The non-profit organization founded by Jason Thomas
{{DEFAULTSORT:Thomas, Jason 1974 births Living people People associated with the September 11 attacks United States Marines African-American United States Navy personnel United States Marine Corps personnel of the War in Afghanistan (2001–2021) United States Marine Corps personnel of the Iraq War United States Air Force airmen African-American United States Air Force personnel