09/11/2024
Meet Roselle, the Labrador who helped her blind partner escape the World Trade Center on that fateful Tuesday.
Michael Hingson, blind since birth, arrived for work on the 78th floor of the World Trade Center’s Tower One. Hingson’s guide dog, Roselle, settled into her usual post beneath the desk. At 8:45 a.m., a hijacked jetliner crashed into the tower 18 floors above Hingson. After calling his wife, Karen, and making sure his staff was evacuated, Hingson and Roselle began the hellish descent of 78 flights of stairs.
Spiraling down the emergency stairs, working methodically through smoke, debris, and fleeing office workers, they made it to the lobby. By the time they reached the sidewalk, Tower Two had been struck and was collapsing. “It sounded like a metal and concrete waterfall,” Hingson said. They ran for shelter down a subway entrance. They emerged from underground as Tower One fell, raining down ash and debris. Roselle led Hingson some 40 blocks to a friend’s apartment and safety.
Roselle was the recipient of the Award for Canine Excellence (ACE) in the service dog category in 2002. She died in June of 2011, at age 14, with Michael and Karen Hingson by her side.
Published on September 13, 2023, American Kennel Club journal by Bud Boccone
