INL firefighters honor the 343 fallen first responders of Sept. 11 attacks 25 years later
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IDAHO FALLS — On the 25th anniversary of the deadliest terrorist attack in U.S. history, firefighters at Idaho National Laboratory spent the morning remembering and honoring the fallen first responders.
INL Fire Chief Jennifer Porter spoke with EastIdahoNews.com about the impacts of the 9/11 attacks in New York City two and a half decades later, and described how her crews continue to pay homage to those who were lost, and those who continue to deal with the aftermath today.
“We gathered at 7:59 a.m. to ring a bell and start 343 seconds of silence in remembrance of 343 New York firefighters who died that day,” says Porter.
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7:59 a.m. MDT represents the exact minute that the south tower collapsed, killing part of the 2,977 people who died in the terrorist attacks in which two passenger planes were hijacked and flew into the iconic World Trade Center buildings. The north tower collapsed shortly after at 8:28 a.m. MDT.
Porter says after the moment of silence, she conducted a message from the chief to her crews over the radio, so all firefighters, security forces, and leadership could hear her speak about the importance of their job and the legacy left behind by the first responders who gave their lives on Sept. 11, 2001.
Firefighters then recited the “Firefighter’s Prayer” in unison.
“When I am called to duty, God, wherever flames may rage,
Give me strength to save a life, whatever be its age.
Help me to embrace a little child before it’s too late,
Or save an older person from the horror of that fate.
Enable me to be alert to hear the weakest shout,
and quickly and efficiently to put the fire out.
I want to fill my calling and to give the best in me,
to guard my neighbor and protect his property.
And if, according to your will, I have to lose my life,
Bless with your protecting hand my loving family from strife.”
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After the prayer, the honor guard raised the United States of America’s flag, before the crowd of firefighters recited the Pledge of Allegiance.
Next was the stair climb.
“We invited anybody who wanted to go climb in remembrance to come out to our training tower in bunker gear, or with packs, or even just in regular clothes,” says Porter. “We take a list of names, there’s five names on each sheet, and we climb a flight of stairs for each name until all of the names have been climbed for.”
Firefighters ring a bell for every firefighter who died in the attacks. This year, the crews added more names to pay respects and honor other fallen first responders who passed in the line of duty during the past year.
“It’s an honor to be able to remember them, and it’s meaningful for our team to remember after the tragic events of 9/11 that there was so much unity, and everybody came together and worked together,” said Porter. “I tried to impress on them to move forward with that same kind of concept of unity across our first responder team at INL.”
Porter says she finds immense importance in carrying on the traditions of remembrance on the anniversary of the terrorist attacks, especially as the anniversaries grow longer, and younger generations begin to feel more removed from the history.
“Our new firefighters may not even have been born yet when this occurred 25 years ago,” says Porter. “Bring in not only those people from 25 years ago, but bringing in our current years, some people knew those people, and I think just taking that minute and realizing why we’re climbing these steps. … I think it helps to know that, hopefully, nothing like this ever happens to anybody or to any of our firefighters, but if it did, that we are remembering them and carrying that forward.”
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Having been a fire services professional since 2004, Porter says even though she wasn’t yet a part of a fire crew during 9/11, she remembers every moment of that day as if it were yesterday.
“I was living in Lemhi County, up in the hills, and I had just had my second daughter,” says Porter. “She was about to turn 1, and I just remember thinking, ‘The world is going to change as I’ve known it for my little girls.'”
Watching the fire crews participate in such an intimate and emotional tradition during her first year as chief, Porter says, is a good moment to refresh in her mind the importance of the job she and her team come to work to do every day.
“It’s always a very humbling experience, and I’m very proud of our team,” says Porter. “It’s emotional in the sense that my job is to keep them safe, so that they can go home to their loved ones. This is remembering that that doesn’t always happen, and that they still step up and take that call.”