“I am just going to go down, see what is happening, and come back up,” is what then 29 year old Mike Dunn told his coworkers just moments before the South Tower was struck by United Airlines flight 175 at approximately 9:03 a.m. on Sept. 11, 2001.

Still 23 years later, Dunn, a Downers Grove resident, finds himself affected by this tragedy, as do many other Americans.

Dunn, a Boston resident at the time of the attacks, worked for a management consultant group, which operated on floors 88-94 in the World Trade Center’s South Tower. Dunn would commute to New York by air every Monday, and fly home that following Thursday. He followed this regimen for nine straight months.

On this particular Tuesday, Dunn had arrived to his cubicle on the 92nd floor a little earlier than usual to prepare for a weekly issues meeting beginning at 8:30 a.m. The meeting did not get very far, as just about 15 minutes in, the fire exit around the corner was filled with absolute commotion and confusion. Word had quickly spread that there was a fire in the building, despite no fire alarms sounding.

Dunn remembers “A smell of smoke” and watching “8.5X11 papers blowing everywhere outside.” It was later learned that this was all a result of the American Airlines flight 11 crashing into the North Tower at approximately 8:46 a.m.

Upon arrival to the 78th floor sky lobby, it had been announced that a plane had struck the North Tower, and there was no immediate danger, except to those outside. The workers were instructed to sit tight and remain calm, as they were under the impression that it was an accidental strike from a small commercial plane.

Meanwhile, in Downers Grove, second period at DGS was just beginning. Social Studies teacher, Tracy Culcasi, recalls the principal coming on to the loud speaker.

“[He was] making an announcement to the school, telling us that a plane had hit one of the towers in the World Trade Center… and they were still getting information about what had happened,” Culcasi said. Students and the rest of America could not fully comprehend what they were witnessing.

Back in New York, Dunn had grown tired of standing around, and also anxious for updates–due to him forgetting his cell phone– he decided to take a trip down to the ground floor: a decision which saved his life.

“As soon as I got off the elevator, that is when I realized it was a lot more serious,” Dunn said.

Back in Boston, Dunn’s wife, Sarah Dunn was at home with their two-month-old son Colin watching this event unfold in real time.

“I first heard about the attacks when I was watching the news that morning. Live coverage of the attacks interrupted all regular TV programming,” Sarah Dunn said. She was unable to get in contact with him for two hours.

Meanwhile, back on the ground floor, Mike Dunn was greeted by numerous security guards directing him toward the underground mall between the North and South Towers. He had caught a glimpse of Liberty Street in front of the tower, and noticed a vehicle on fire.

“Before I could even turn around, that is when the plane hit the South Tower,” Mike Dunn said.

Mike Dunn was surrounded by destruction. He gazed out into the street that was once bright and bustling, now filled with flaming debris and bellowing smoke. In the lobby of the towers, the lights cut out and the ceilings began to crumble. Mike Dunn, accompanied by the security guards, sprinted to the nearest wall, and turned their backs on the decomposing building in hopes of a catching the last bit of safety left.

Those in the lobby retreated to the underground mall between buildings. Mike Dunn joined a mob of people rushing through the mall in order to find an escape out of the destruction. A broken escalator leading up to the street level was the solution.

“Once you got out onto the street, it was like total pandemonium…I did have this sense that once I was outside, I felt kind of safe,” Mike Dunn said.

All sense of security was soon destroyed as the South Tower caved in.

“At one point I heard all this screaming, and everybody kind of froze, and you could see the South Tower–from where the plane hit and everything above it– started falling…that is when the South Tower collapsed,” Mike Dunn said.

Mike Dunn and other frightened bystanders, raced down the streets of lower Manhattan until the smoke cloud above them cleared. Simultaneously, the North Tower collapsed as he was fleeing.

All the while, Culcasi explains the DGS social studies department “had classes watching television… so we could learn about what was happening in real time.”

At the same time, Mike Dunn was trying to navigate the chaos around him.

“You would turn around and see the one tower there, which was very strange, and at another point you would turn and that tower was gone too…it was crazy,” he said.

Mike Dunn was in understandable shock and disbelief.

“Things were happening so fast… I was not really piecing things together…I was under the sense that I would still see the people I was working with…that they would make it out,” he said.

Among those who were present at the weekly issues meeting, Mike Dunn was the only employee who escaped alive.

Mike Dunn had never suspected this event as a terrorist attack, until he was later informed about the plane that hit the Pentagon, realizing they were all connected.

Culcasi had similar thoughts.

“It was very shocking — the idea that a terrorist attack of such a big proportion could happen in the United States.”

The days following the attacks, Mike Dunn returned home to his family in Boston and back to work, in search for a sense of normalcy. Realizing that a fresh start was needed, within a year the Dunns had moved to Chicago.

As time went on, Mike Dunn’s viewpoint of the event evolved.

“For a long time, I didn’t like to think anything positive came from it,” he said.

Mike Dunn explains he has gained a deeper level of appreciation for his family and the little things in life. He also believes that this experience has made him a calmer parent and person in frightening situations.

Mike Dunn now a Downers Grove resident of 16 years, has three children that have attended and or currently attend DGS. His daughter, a junior, Audrey Dunn believes her father’s experience on 9/11 has led her parents to “Definitely be more cautious… and take more precaution” with their family growing up.

Mike Dunn states he still finds himself thinking about this fateful day, and the long lasting impact it has instilled within him forever.

Sarah Dunn believes, “The most lasting impact is how thankful we are for our family and the moments we share…our hearts are always heavy when we remember those that were lost, and we do our best to honor their memory by appreciating all that we have.”