This is one of the most striking photographs of the September 11, 2001 attacks. A man falls headfirst down the North Tower of the World Trade Center, his body almost perfectly aligned with the vertical lines of the facade. Taken by American photographer Richard Drew at 9:41:15 a.m. , the image became known as "The Falling Man ." But do you know who this man is? 25 years after the attacks, his identity has still not been definitively established.
As New York commemorates the 25th anniversary of the attacks, following the tribute of 2,977 drones representing the 2,977 victims , the story behind this photograph also tells of one of the most difficult aspects of that day to look at: the fate of the people trapped on the upper floors of the towers.
Richard Drew photographs people falling from the North Tower
On September 11, 2001, Richard Drew, a photographer for the Associated Press , was initially assigned to cover an event unrelated to the World Trade Center. When he learned that a plane had hit a tower, he went to Lower Manhattan.
At 8:46 a.m., American Airlines Flight 11 struck the North Tower. At 9:03 a.m., United Airlines Flight 175 hit the South Tower. The South Tower collapsed at 9:59 a.m., followed by the North Tower at 10:28 a.m.
On the street, Richard Drew was photographing the burning towers when he noticed the reactions of people around him. Men and women were falling from the World Trade Center. The photographer then pointed his telephoto lens at the upper floors and took several series of pictures. Among them was the one that would become world-famous.
At 9:41:15, he photographed "the falling man"
The photograph was taken at precisely 9:41:15 AM . A man appears with his head facing the ground. One of his legs is straight, the other slightly bent. His clothing is light on his upper body and dark on his lower body.
The body's position is most striking for its verticality. For a fraction of a second, the man appears almost parallel to the lines of the World Trade Center's facade. Richard Drew actually took a series of photographs of his fall. In the other shots, the body's position changes. It is this particular image that would endure. The photograph soon became known as The Falling Man.
A photo that quickly became almost impossible to publish.
The image was published in the press after the attacks, but it caused profound unease. It directly showed the final moments of a man whose death was inevitable.
The photograph is gradually disappearing from many American media outlets. Its extremely disturbing nature, as well as the reactions of readers, make its publication particularly delicate. Journalist Tom Junod would explain years later that the image had been practically banned from newsrooms after its initial release.
This creates a paradox: one of the most famous photographs of 9/11 is also one of those that the American public has seen the least.
But another question begins to arise: who is this man?
First lead: Norberto Hernandez
An initial investigation led to Norberto Hernandez , an employee of Windows on the World, the famous restaurant located on the 106th and 107th floors of the North Tower.
Norberto Hernandez works as a pastry chef. Some members of his family initially think they recognize his silhouette in the photograph. But the identification doesn't stand up to closer examination.
His clothing, his physique, and several other details raise doubts. His wife and daughters, in particular, reject the idea that it could be him. The Hernandez lead is thus largely dismissed. The man photographed by Richard Drew remains unidentified.
Jonathan Briley, the most serious hypothesis
Two years after the attacks, another lead emerged with the investigation by journalist Tom Junod published in 2003. It led to Jonathan Briley , aged 43.
He also works at Windows on the World. A sound engineer, he was in the North Tower on the morning of the attacks. Several features match the man visible in the photographs: his height, his build, his mustache, his goatee, and some of his clothing.
One detail stands out in particular. Jonathan Briley owned an orange T-shirt that he wore regularly. In some images from the series directed by Richard Drew, a garment of this color appears to be visible beneath the light-colored jacket or shirt of the "falling man." His brother Timothy also recognizes another element: the black shoes.
Jonathan Briley's body has been found
Unlike many victims of the World Trade Center, Jonathan Briley's body was recovered after the attacks.
It was his brother Timothy who participated in his identification. He recognized him in particular thanks to his black high-top shoes , similar to those seen on "the falling man".
These similarities have made Jonathan Briley the most frequently cited candidate to identify the man in the photograph . But they do not constitute proof.
No photographic analysis, no direct testimony and no material evidence has been able to definitively prove that Jonathan Briley is indeed the man photographed by Richard Drew.
So, who really is "the man who falls"?
The answer remains frustrating: we don't know. Jonathan Briley is a serious possibility. Norberto Hernandez has also been considered. But 25 years after 9/11, the identity of "the falling man" officially remains unknown. Richard Drew himself points out that no one has ever been able to definitively determine who appears in his famous photograph.
The photograph now transcends the identity of the person it depicts. It also symbolizes all those who found themselves trapped above the impact zones and fires.
Richard Drew also drew a parallel between "the man who falls" and the figure of the "unknown soldier" : a man without a certain identity who, despite himself, became the symbol of many others…
