I have obtained a copy of the live footage broadcast by UPN 9 News, WWOR-TV, on 9/11, and it reveals that Michael Hess, along with Barry Jennings, seem to have been out of the building much earlier than NIST stated in their June 2004 Progress Report. In NIST's report, it places the two individuals' rescue between 12:10 and 12:15, but as can be seen in the video, which I have not the means to upload right now, places he and Mr. Jennings out by around 11:30, because he is speaking live on the news (via telephone with a reporter), at 11:34. The video starts at 10:37, and Michael Hess appears 57 minutes into it. The interviewing reporter, Frank Ucciardo, appears several seconds before. We can further estimate how long Michael Hess had been out of the building by reasoning that he was interviewed "on Broadway about a block from city hall", which puts him near the intersection of Broadway and Chambers Street. On Yahoo maps, the shortest route from what used to be the north face of WTC 7 on Barclay to that intersection is four-tenths of a mile. It seems reasonable to assume that it took no less than five minutes (and probably significantly longer) for Mr. Hess to get to where he was interviewed, assuming he went straight there and practically ran. That is certainly debatable, of course, but I believe five minutes to travel to the location is an exceptionally conservative estimate.

What does all of this mean?

It gives EVIDENCE, but of course does not prove, that the explosions felt by Michael Hess and Barry Jennings very well could NOT have been caused by the collapse of the North Tower. The North Tower collapsed at 10:28. In the interview, Mr. Hess states twice that he had spent the last "hour and a half" trapped in 7 World Trade Center. He says "hour and a half" twice.

The following was in response to, “Mr. Hess, you were trapped in, I believe, 7 World Trade Center. Go ahead, sir.”:

"Yes, I was. I was up in the emergency management center on the twenty-third floor, and when all the power went out in the building, uh, another gentleman and I walked down to the eighth floor where there was an explosion and we were trapped on the eighth floor with smoke, thick smoke, all around us, for about an hour and a half. But the New York Fire Department, as terrific as they are, just came and got us out."

The following was in response to the question, “Where is the mayor located now?”:

“I don’t know, myself, as I said- I was trapped in 7 World Trade Center for the last hour and a half.”

This places the explosion, if Mr. Hess' estimate is at all accurate, around 10:00, significantly before the North Tower collapse. Mr. Hess would have had to have overestimated by at least 28 minutes (and probably longer, considering we are being extraordinarily conservative by saying he got at 11:30), in order for the "explosion" to have been caused by the North Tower collapse. Furthermore, if one is to accept NIST's version of the rescue, which places he and Mr. Jennings being found and leaving the tower between 12:10 and 12:15, then he would have had to have understimated the amount of time he was in there by about 12 minutes. This sounds much more reasonable, but the video, as hard evidence, contradicts any notion this may be possible, demonstrating that he was out by at least 11:30. We can then see, though, how NIST may have gotten their time, that is, if they were operating on the premise that the explosion was caused by the North Tower collapse, and that he and Mr. Jennings were in there for about an hour and a half. I have previously filed a Freedom of Information Act request for the interviews done with Barry Jennings and Michael Hess, as cited in NCSTAR 1-8.

As more analysis is done, and other evidence gathered, I will post more. Please critique any errors, whether they be logical or mathematical. Please remember- this is not a proof of anything, only evidence.

For reference:

http://wtc.nist.gov/NISTNCSTAR1-8.pdf (See pages 109, 110- Barry Jennings' and Michael Hess' interviews are cited together as footnote 380, "WTC 7 Interviews 2041604 and 1041704, spring 2004". These are the interviews for which I have filed a FOIA request)

http://wtc.nist.gov/progress_report_june04/appendixl.pdf (See page L-18 for the 12:10 and 12:15 references)

Both of these are also cited on cooperative research's website when one searches "Barry Jennings".