Sometimes disobeying an order can also save thousands of lives.
Rick Rescorla was a Vietnam veteran and Morgan Stanley’s head of security in the South Tower of the World Trade Center. When the first plane struck the North Tower, the initial instructions were to remain inside the building, but he decided to do the opposite and ordered an immediate evacuation.
For years, he had insisted on holding emergency drills, even when some employees were annoyed at having to repeat them. That morning, that preparation made all the difference. With a megaphone in hand, he guided people toward the stairwells and tried to keep them calm as they descended floor by floor.
Thanks to his decision and those drills, around 2.700 Morgan Stanley employees managed to get out alive.
But Rick did not leave with them. He went back inside to look for those who were still inside. Shortly beforehand, he had spoken with his wife, Susan, aware that he might never see her again.
He was last seen climbing the stairs of the South Tower shortly before it collapsed. He never got out, and his remains were never found.
Thousands made it home that day because he decided to stay until the end.