Scott Davidson’s Bravery On 9/11
Pete Davidson/InstagramPete and Scott Davidson in March 1995, just a year after Scott joined the New York City Fire Department.
Scott Davidson was made most famous by the visibility of his son, former Saturday Night Live cast member and stand-up comedian Pete Davidson. But New York City firefighters have remembered Scott Davidson for far more than that, as their 33-year-old colleague died in the Sept. 11 attacks while saving hundreds of lives.
Born on Jan. 4, 1968, in Brooklyn, New York, Scott Davidson was incredibly athletic. An all-star in little league baseball, he was named Most Valuable Player in high school — and Male Athlete of the Year at the College of Staten Island. After he graduated with a bachelor’s in history in 1990, Davidson dreamt of becoming a firefighter.
Four months after his wife gave birth to their son on Nov. 16, 1993, Davidson passed his exam. He called firefighting the “greatest job in America.” Stationed at Ladder Company 118 in Brooklyn Heights, he was on shift when the first plane flew into the World Trade Center’s North Tower at 8:46 a.m. on Sept. 11, 2001.
When the second plane struck the South Tower at 9:03 a.m., Davidson and five of his peers raced across the Brooklyn Bridge. Scott Davdison’s father, Steven Davidson, recalled that “they parked their rig at West and Vesey Streets, then vanished into the thick, cloudy smoke and soot.” While all six men died that day, none perished in vain.
Tasked to help evacuate the Marriott World Trade Center Hotel ensconced by Towers 1 and 2, Davidson and his men saved an estimated 200 people before the North Tower collapsed at 10:28 a.m. The Sept. 11 attacks resulted in the deaths of 2,977 people in New York, Pennsylvania, and Washington, D.C.
“Scott’s acts of heroism are not surprising,” wrote the National Fallen Firefighters Foundation. “He was a brave and fearless man and a devout patriot. He was a friend to many, and will be sorely missed by us all.”
