It's from a entry of Wikipedia:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Brian_Clark_(9/11_attacks_survivor)
It says:
As Clark and DiFrancesco entered the floor, Clark turned around to look at his coworkers still in the stairwell and watched as they had decided to go up the stairs to the roof instead of down. The group would all go on to lose their lives that day as access to the roof was locked. There were also no plans for helicopter rescues from the roof as the NYPD deemed it to unsafe to attempt.
I am wondering what does would
mean here. Is that a past form of will
or a subjunctives indicating that those people didn't do that.
Thanks