When you click on links to various merchants on this site and make a purchase, this can result in this site earning a commission. Affiliate programs and affiliations include, but are not limited to, the eBay Partner Network.
I retired from the Syracuse Fire Department in 2013 after a 40-year career. On September 11, 2001 I had just come off the night shift as the Captain of Truck Company 3, and as I got home that morning I sat down at the computer in the family room to catch up on some e-mails. The phone rang, and it was the youngest of my three sons calling from college - which was pretty rare at that time of morning. He asked me if I had the TV on, and I said I did not. He said "Turn it on, Dad. Just turn it on. Any channel." Sure sounded strange, but I did, just in time to see the second plane hit the World Trade Center. Over the next hour or so, I watched the endless replays, news analysis, and eventual collapse of the towers. No doubt in my mind at that moment that our nation was under attack by terrorists. The phone rang again, and it was the Duty Deputy Chief requesting me to return to duty, along with the rest of the company Captains. We were anticipating that we would be receiving a request from the FDNY, which we soon did. We assumed we would be staffing FDNY stations, as it was quickly and tragically apparent to any firefighter watching the attack unfold that hundreds of FDNY personnel would not be coming back. We knew where they would have been, and what they would have been doing. We would have done the same. As it turned out, our Syracuse personnel were directed to report directly to Ground Zero to assist in recovery of our fallen brothers. Our Chief of fire asked our 504-man department for volunteers to go. He received 504 replies in the affirmative. There are no words to describe the sights, the sounds, and above all the smells. Many days were spent "working the pile". I have never been prouder of my brother firefighters. Over the next 12 years of my career, as I continued to advance through the ranks, none of us ever forgot what it was like in those days immediately following the tragedy. The entire fire service learned some important lessons that have made us all safer - but the reality is that you cannot legislate complete safety into an inherently unsafe profession. We know that. We accept it. When I retired as Deputy Chief of Operations for the Syracuse Fire Department, I could look back on many successes and many good jobs done by brave men and women going in harm's way.
But there are 343 members of the FDNY that I will never forget. Some of them were friends - I had been to their houses, knew their wives, held their children. And the saddest fact of all may be that as of 2024 more of them have since died from complications and cancers from that day than the 343 that perished in the attack. We must not forget them either - and we will not. Our city, as many cities do, holds a 9/11 Memorial Ceremony every year downtown at Firefighter's Park. Rows of us stand in full dress uniform in silence, remembering the fallen. And it still hurts. Some years, I can't go. I want to, but I just can't. I know this a long, rambling post that probably won't mean much to most of you - and that's OK. It means a lot to me, and it helps sometimes to say these things. If nothing else, please remember that the price of liberty is eternal vigilance, and your nation's firefighters and first responders are the thin line between you and chaos. We are proud to serve. We will be there.
September 11 is a date that will be forever seared in my memory. As tragic as the number of souls lost, there could have been SOOO many more lost if not for the bravery of so many fire and police officials. Sadly, I was asking my two youngest grandchildren, just this past Sunday, if they knew about September 11, 2001...they didn't have a clue. Not taught in schools or by their parents...travesty.
Prayers to all who suffered loss on that horrific day
Last edited by leif.anderson93; Sep 11, 2024 at 01:17 PM.
I learned about a Mourning Banner or Mourning Ribbon recently. It’s used with flags that can’t be flown half-staff like those that attach to your home.
Hard to forget even if all planes landed safely and the terrorists were foiled. It's my Dad's (and his Dad's too) birthday.
RIP all innocents who were victims that day, and I especially remember Mark Bavis March 13, 1970 ~ September 11, 2001, Catholic Memorial 1988. Those who met you know that you (and Garnet Bailey too, RIP Ace) resisted your attackers on Flight 175.
I retired from the Syracuse Fire Department in 2013 after a 40-year career. On September 11, 2001 I had just come off the night shift as the Captain of Truck Company 3, and as I got home that morning I sat down at the computer in the family room to catch up on some e-mails. The phone rang, and it was the youngest of my three sons calling from college - which was pretty rare at that time of morning. He asked me if I had the TV on, and I said I did not. He said "Turn it on, Dad. Just turn it on. Any channel." Sure sounded strange, but I did, just in time to see the second plane hit the World Trade Center. Over the next hour or so, I watched the endless replays, news analysis, and eventual collapse of the towers. No doubt in my mind at that moment that our nation was under attack by terrorists. The phone rang again, and it was the Duty Deputy Chief requesting me to return to duty, along with the rest of the company Captains. We were anticipating that we would be receiving a request from the FDNY, which we soon did. We assumed we would be staffing FDNY stations, as it was quickly and tragically apparent to any firefighter watching the attack unfold that hundreds of FDNY personnel would not be coming back. We knew where they would have been, and what they would have been doing. We would have done the same. As it turned out, our Syracuse personnel were directed to report directly to Ground Zero to assist in recovery of our fallen brothers. Our Chief of fire asked our 504-man department for volunteers to go. He received 504 replies in the affirmative. There are no words to describe the sights, the sounds, and above all the smells. Many days were spent "working the pile". I have never been prouder of my brother firefighters. Over the next 12 years of my career, as I continued to advance through the ranks, none of us ever forgot what it was like in those days immediately following the tragedy. The entire fire service learned some important lessons that have made us all safer - but the reality is that you cannot legislate complete safety into an inherently unsafe profession. We know that. We accept it. When I retired as Deputy Chief of Operations for the Syracuse Fire Department, I could look back on many successes and many good jobs done by brave men and women going in harm's way.
But there are 343 members of the FDNY that I will never forget. Some of them were friends - I had been to their houses, knew their wives, held their children. And the saddest fact of all may be that as of 2024 more of them have since died from complications and cancers from that day than the 343 that perished in the attack. We must not forget them either - and we will not. Our city, as many cities do, holds a 9/11 Memorial Ceremony every year downtown at Firefighter's Park. Rows of us stand in full dress uniform in silence, remembering the fallen. And it still hurts. Some years, I can't go. I want to, but I just can't. I know this a long, rambling post that probably won't mean much to most of you - and that's OK. It means a lot to me, and it helps sometimes to say these things. If nothing else, please remember that the price of liberty is eternal vigilance, and your nation's firefighters and first responders are the thin line between you and chaos. We are proud to serve. We will be there.
I retired from the Syracuse Fire Department in 2013 after a 40-year career. On September 11, 2001 I had just come off the night shift as the Captain of Truck Company 3, and as I got home that morning I sat down at the computer in the family room to catch up on some e-mails. The phone rang, and it was the youngest of my three sons calling from college - which was pretty rare at that time of morning. He asked me if I had the TV on, and I said I did not. He said "Turn it on, Dad. Just turn it on. Any channel." Sure sounded strange, but I did, just in time to see the second plane hit the World Trade Center. Over the next hour or so, I watched the endless replays, news analysis, and eventual collapse of the towers. No doubt in my mind at that moment that our nation was under attack by terrorists. The phone rang again, and it was the Duty Deputy Chief requesting me to return to duty, along with the rest of the company Captains. We were anticipating that we would be receiving a request from the FDNY, which we soon did. We assumed we would be staffing FDNY stations, as it was quickly and tragically apparent to any firefighter watching the attack unfold that hundreds of FDNY personnel would not be coming back. We knew where they would have been, and what they would have been doing. We would have done the same. As it turned out, our Syracuse personnel were directed to report directly to Ground Zero to assist in recovery of our fallen brothers. Our Chief of fire asked our 504-man department for volunteers to go. He received 504 replies in the affirmative. There are no words to describe the sights, the sounds, and above all the smells. Many days were spent "working the pile". I have never been prouder of my brother firefighters. Over the next 12 years of my career, as I continued to advance through the ranks, none of us ever forgot what it was like in those days immediately following the tragedy. The entire fire service learned some important lessons that have made us all safer - but the reality is that you cannot legislate complete safety into an inherently unsafe profession. We know that. We accept it. When I retired as Deputy Chief of Operations for the Syracuse Fire Department, I could look back on many successes and many good jobs done by brave men and women going in harm's way.
But there are 343 members of the FDNY that I will never forget. Some of them were friends - I had been to their houses, knew their wives, held their children. And the saddest fact of all may be that as of 2024 more of them have since died from complications and cancers from that day than the 343 that perished in the attack. We must not forget them either - and we will not. Our city, as many cities do, holds a 9/11 Memorial Ceremony every year downtown at Firefighter's Park. Rows of us stand in full dress uniform in silence, remembering the fallen. And it still hurts. Some years, I can't go. I want to, but I just can't. I know this a long, rambling post that probably won't mean much to most of you - and that's OK. It means a lot to me, and it helps sometimes to say these things. If nothing else, please remember that the price of liberty is eternal vigilance, and your nation's firefighters and first responders are the thin line between you and chaos. We are proud to serve. We will be there.
Always.
From the bottom of my heart, thank you for what you did during that awful time.
I missed this thread but I will never forget that day but I too asked my 7 year old about if they talked about it in school. She said no Daddy what are you talking about. Last year I sent some information with her to school on December 7th and got a note back from the teacher did I make a mistake about sending some information about Pearl Harbor. I did the same on October 12th in Remembrance of the USS Cole bombing. Same response...SMH. I lost a lot of friends on those 3 dates...
Designer Imagines A Corvette That Looks More Like a Corvette Than the Corvette
Slideshow: A Jaguar designer's personal project imagines what a modern front-engined Corvette might look like if Chevrolet revisited the golden age of the Stingray.
Never Forget
