Head claimed to have been inside the South Tower ( WTC 2 ) when United Airlines Flight 175 hit , crawling through smoke and flames on the 78th floor and sustaining severe burns to her arm . If true , this would have made her one of only nineteen people at or above the point of impact to have survived . Head claimed that her fiancé Dave was killed in the North Tower ( WTC 1 ) , though in later tellings of the story , she said that " Dave " was actually her husband . She also claimed that a dying man passed his wedding ring to her so it could be returned to his widow , and that she had been rescued by Welles Crowther , whose heroic actions on that day were widely reported in the media . Head was interviewed in the media , invited to speak at university conferences , and in 2005 , was chosen to lead tours for the Tribute WTC Visitor Center , where she was photographed with New York City Mayor Michael Bloomberg , former Mayor Rudy Giuliani , and former New York Governor George Pataki . Head regularly recounted her claims to Ground Zero tour groups in vivid detail , saying , " I was there at the towers . I 'm a survivor . I 'm going to tell you about that . " She was featured in retrospective 9/11 articles as a representative of the 20,000 surviving victims who escaped the damaged buildings . Richard Zimbler , her successor as president of the World Trade Center Survivors ' Network , said , " There was no reason to doubt her story . She looked the part . She had a badly injured arm that appeared to have burn scars and her story was very , very realistic . " In September 2007 , '' The New York Times '' sought to verify key details of Head 's story as part of an anniversary piece . Head claimed a degree from Harvard University and a graduate business degree from Stanford University , but those institutions had no record of her . She claimed she had been working at Merrill Lynch in the South Tower , but Merrill Lynch had no record of her employment , nor did Merrill Lynch have offices in the World Trade Center at the time of the attacks . Head backed out of three scheduled interviews , and later refused to speak to reporters at all . The '' Times '' then contacted other members of the Survivors ’ Network , and raised questions about the veracity of Head 's story . By the week of September 27 , 2007 , the Network voted to remove her as president and as a director of the group
United Airlines Flight 175
United Airlines Flight 175
Alicia Esteve Head