This year marks the 25th Anniversary of the 9/11 terrorist attacks, in which at least 206 people with ties to Massachusetts perished. The first flights to be hijacked took off from Boston Logan International Airport. Madeline “Amy” Sweeney, a flight attendant on American Airlines Flight 11, displayed extraordinary cool under extreme pressure during the hijacking. The Massachusetts 9/11 Fund Blog is profiling the Sweeney Award recipients for the past quarter century every week leading up to the naming of the 2026 Honoree(s) at the 25th Anniversary Commemoration on September 11th.

Man breaks window, pulls woman from submerged car in Grafton

On a frigid December night in 2019, Chris Etre, the owner of a demolition and excavation company, was driving in Grafton, MA, when he saw a car slide on black ice and go off the road. The vehicle went down an embankment and into the Quinsigamond River.

The driver was able to get out of the car, but a passenger, Esha Patel, 19, was trapped as the car went underwater. Etre, 48, stopped and went to the river’s edge, where he saw the car in the water. He returned to his truck to get a large wrench, then went back to the river and ran along the bank to where the car had drifted downstream.

Etre swam about 30 feet to the car. All but the rear of the car was submerged. Etre initially broke out the rear, driver’s-side window but was unable to remove Patel. He then climbed onto the roof. Etre used the wrench to break the rear windshield, then pulled the glass from it with his hands. He grasped Patel by the arms and assisted her out of the vehicle onto the trunk.

Patel then swam a short distance to the bank, where others helped her from the water, and Etre followed. Patel was taken to a hospital but wasn’t injured. Etre was cold after the rescue and sustained lacerations to his hand.

"It is an honor to be awarded the Madeline Amy Sweeney Award for civilian bravery on September 11, 2020,” Etre said. “I want to thank the entire Sweeney family for their support. Their efforts to honor Amy and her heroic efforts to prevent more lives lost on September 11th are amazing. May she rest in peace for eternity and the family have comfort with the memories they have. I don't believe my actions were as honorable but I am humbled to be chosen for this award."

Next week: Grandmother helps save man from drowning at Dunn State Park

Madeline “Amy” Sweeney Award for Civilian Bravery (2020)

Madeline “Amy” Sweeney Award for Civilian Bravery (2021)

Madeline “Amy” Sweeney Award for Civilian Bravery (2019)