Kevin Cosgrove
| Kevin Cosgrove | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Born |
Kevin Michael Cosgrove January 6, 1955 Long Island, New York, U.S. |
| Died |
September 11, 2001 (aged 46) South Tower, World Trade Center New York, New York City, U.S. |
| Cause of death | Collapse of the South Tower |
| Resting place | St. Patrick Catholic Cemetery, Huntington, New York |
| Residence | West Islip, New York, U.S. |
| Occupation | Vice President of the Aon Corporation |
| Religion | Catholic |
| Spouse(s) | Wendy Cosgrove |
| Children | 3 |
Kevin Michael Cosgrove (January 6, 1955 – September 11, 2001) was an American business executive in the insurance industry who was a victim of the 9/11 attacks on the World Trade Center.
Kevin Cosgrove is notable because of the recording of the 9-1-1 call he made during his final moments which ended with him crying out from inside the South Tower as it collapsed. The recording was used during the prosecution of Zacarias Moussaoui, the only criminal trials to result from the attacks. His final cry as the South Tower of the World Trade Center collapsed made international headlines.[1][2]
Personal life
Cosgrove and his family lived in West Islip, New York.[3][4]
September 11 attacks
Cosgrove was a Vice President of Claims for Aon Corporation. According to the 9-1-1 recording played during the trial of Zacarias Moussaoui, Cosgrove was located in the northwest corner of the 105th floor in Two World Trade Center (the South Tower), overlooking the World Financial Center.[5]
Cosgrove told 9-1-1 dispatchers he was calling from Jonathan Ostrau's office and had two other individuals with him. One he mentions by name, Doug Cherry. Cosgrove says to the operator on the phone, "My wife thinks I'm all right, I called and said I was leaving the building and that I was fine, and then bang!" while 2 World Trade Center was burning. Then, a 9-1-1 operator called him. He answered "Hello. We're looking in ... we're overlooking the Financial Center. Three of us. Two broken windows. Oh God! Oh!!--" Cosgrove's words ended as the South Tower collapsed.[5]
Aftermath and legacy
Cosgrove's remains were found in the rubble. He was buried on September 22, 2001 at St. Patrick Catholic Cemetery in Huntington, New York.[6] At his death he left his wife, Wendy Cosgrove, a schoolteacher, and the mother of their three children.[4][7]
Wendy Cosgrove testified during the punishment phase of Moussaoui's trial, in which prosecutors sought the death penalty for Moussaoui. Cosgrove testified about her husband's last moments, when he was trapped on the South Tower's 105th floor, and jurors heard an audio tape of Kevin Cosgrove's 9-1-1 phone call in which he told a dispatcher, "We're not ready to die."[4][8] Wendy Cosgrove also testified that their oldest son, who was 12 on the day of the attacks, suffered a decline in his academic performance, and had developed anger and self-destructive habits, as well as trouble with the law, while their middle child, who was 9 during the attacks, exhibited self-mutilation, for which she has undergone therapy.[4]
At the National 9/11 Memorial, Cosgrove is memorialized at the South Pool, on Panel S-60.[3]
References
- ↑ "Jury hears 9/11 victim's scream". BBC News. 11 April 2006.
- ↑ David Stout and Neil A. Lewis (April 11, 2006). "Moussaoui Testimony Focuses on Tales of Loss". The New York Times.
- 1 2 Kevin Michael Cosgrove. Memorial Guide: National 9/11 Memorial. Retrieved October 28, 2011.
- 1 2 3 4 "Grim 9/11 evidence shown to Moussaoui jurors". Associated Press/MSNBC. April 11, 2006.
- 1 2 Kiehl, Stephen (September 10, 2006). "'I think we're getting hijacked'". The Baltimore Sun.
- ↑ "Kevin Cosgrove - Remembering Sept. 11, 2001 - Ten Years Later". Long Island Newsday. Retrieved May 28, 2012.
- ↑ Stout, David; Lewis, Neil A. (April 11, 2006). "Moussaoui Testimony Focuses on Tales of Loss". The New York Times.
- ↑ "Prosecution Rests in Moussaoui Trial". PBS NewsHour. April 12, 2006.
External links
Media related to Kevin Cosgrove at Wikimedia Commons
Kevin Cosgrove at Find a Grave