On that fateful Tuesday, sales director 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 his unflappable Labrador Retriever 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.

A Positive Story in a Tragedy

In the weeks following, Hingson said, “I was taking calls from Larry King, from Regis and Kelly, and from Bryant Gumbel. They were looking for something positive that came out of the tragedy.”

Before long, the blind man and his sweet-faced dog were celebrities. “Invariably, I’ll be in an airport and someone will say, ‘I know you — 9/11, the guy with the dog, right?’ ” Hingson told AKC Family Dog in 2004. “It was a defining moment, in one way or another, for everyone in the world.”

After 9/11, Hingson returned to his native California to work for Guide Dogs for the Blind, the organization that trained Roselle, and he has written several books about his loyal companion.

Hingson being interviewed at the 2002 AKC National Championship

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.

Watch Roselle and Hingson on Larry King