On a day marred by tragedy, an uplifting story of the human spirit emerged on the shores of Manhattan. Along with the coast guard, a group of everyday citizens worked together to accomplish the largest sea evacuation in history. Half a million people were transported in a stretch of nine hours. It was a monumental feat that eclipsed the 339,000 soldiers that were evacuated from Dunkirk during World War II over a span of nine days.

Narrated by Tom Hanks, the moving ten-minute documentary Boatlift, captures the events of that fateful day. It’s a touching video (embedded below) and one that the Sifter highly recommends.
 
BOATLIFT was produced and directed by Eddie Rosenstein of Eyepop Productions. It was executive produced by Stephen Flynn and Sean Burke, and co-directed by Rick Velleu. It was made possible by the generous support of philanthropist Adrienne Arsht, and the film premiered on September 8th at the 9/11 Tenth Anniversary Summit in Washington.