When the first plane hit the North Tower on that crystal-clear Tuesday morning, Bolivar Arellano wasn't even supposed to be at the World Trade Center. He was covering a routine political event. But like any veteran photojournalist with the New York Post, instinct took over. He ditched the assignment and ran toward the smoke.
You've probably seen the photos without knowing his name. Bolivar Arellano 9/11 photography captured the raw, unfiltered visceral horror of the day in a way few others did. He didn't just stand at a safe distance with a long lens. He went in. Deep in.
The images he produced—of firemen marching to their deaths and people making the impossible choice to jump—remain some of the most haunting artifacts in the Library of Congress. Honestly, his story is as much about survival as it is about the lens.
What Really Happened to Bolivar Arellano on 9/11
Arellano arrived at Ground Zero shortly after the first impact. He watched the second plane, United Airlines Flight 175, slice into the South Tower with his own eyes. While the world watched on TV, he was breathing the jet fuel and the concrete dust.
He saw the worst of it. The "jumpers." He later recounted seeing thirteen people fall from the burning upper floors. It’s the kind of thing that doesn't just leave your mind. Ever.
When the South Tower began its terrifying descent, Arellano was right there. He wasn't behind a barricade; he was essentially underneath it. The collapse blew him off his feet, knocking him unconscious. When he finally came to, he was buried under what felt like ten pounds of gray ash.
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His right leg was a mess. A deep, jagged gash had torn open his knee.
Another photographer, Matthew McDermott, actually caught a photo of Arellano standing in the debris-strewn street, his pants torn, his leg bleeding, looking dazed. It’s a meta-moment: the photographer becoming the subject of the tragedy he was trying to document. He needed immediate hospitalization, but the physical scars were just the beginning.
The Photos That Defined the Tragedy
Arellano’s work that day wasn't just about the "big" shots of collapsing steel. It was about the people.
One of his most famous (and heartbreaking) photographs is titled "Their Last Picture Alive." It shows thirteen firefighters from Ladder 7 and Ladder 118 walking toward the South Tower. Ten minutes later, the building came down. None of those men survived.
Because he was a senior photographer for the New York Post, his images had a massive platform. But Arellano wanted more than just a front-page credit. He wanted a record.
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The Bolivar Arellano Gallery
By December 2001, he had opened a small exhibit space in New York. He called it the Bolivar Arellano Gallery. He didn't just show his own work; he curated 250 images from twenty different local photographers.
Many of these photos were "too raw" for the mainstream papers at the time. They showed the gruesome reality that editors were hesitant to print. Arellano felt that the public needed to see them to understand the scale of the loss. The Library of Congress later acquired 126 of these images, calling them some of the best photojournalism in the city’s history.
The Long-Term Toll of the Lens
We talk a lot about the first responders, but we rarely talk about the journalists who stayed behind when everyone else was running north. Arellano paid a high price for those shots.
- Physical Health: He developed a chronic, dry "9/11 cough" that followed him for decades.
- Mental Health: He admitted years later that he suffered from severe emotional stress and "mental anguish."
- Respiratory Issues: He lived with a constant fear of choking, a direct result of the toxic dust he inhaled while unconscious near the towers.
He eventually received a settlement from the Victim Compensation Fund, but the money couldn't fix the damage. He retired from journalism in the mid-2000s, but he never really left the story behind. He spent years hosting annual photo exhibits to raise money for 9/11 charities.
Why His Perspective Matters Today
Basically, Bolivar Arellano represents a brand of "old school" journalism that is becoming increasingly rare. He wasn't there for the "clout" or a viral tweet. He was there because it was his job to bear witness.
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Even before 2001, he was no stranger to danger. He had covered student massacres in Ecuador and civil wars in El Salvador. He was even abducted by the Contras in Nicaragua for three days. But he always said that nothing—nothing—compared to the sunny Tuesday morning in lower Manhattan.
If you’re looking to understand the human side of the tragedy, don't just look at the satellite images. Look at the faces in Arellano’s photos. They tell the story of a city that was broken, but also a city that was incredibly brave.
How to Honor This History
If you want to delve deeper into this specific perspective of the 9/11 attacks, there are a few concrete things you can do:
- Search the Library of Congress Archives: You can find the "Bolivar Arellano Collection" online. It’s a digital repository of the "Ground Zero" exhibit. It’s heavy stuff, so be prepared.
- Read His Book: He released a book titled September 11th: Through the Eyes of Photographer Bolivar Arellano. It’s one of the few accounts that pairs the imagery with the photographer's personal, moment-to-moment narrative.
- Support 9/11 Health Initiatives: Many of the photographers and journalists who covered the events are still battling the same respiratory issues Arellano faced. Organizations like the World Trade Center Health Program continue to provide essential care for these forgotten survivors.
The story of Bolivar Arellano 9/11 isn't just about a guy with a camera. It’s about what happens when a human being chooses to stay and watch when the world is literally falling down around them. It’s a testament to the power of the image—and the heavy cost of capturing it.