U.S. Marines with Marine Corps Air Station Cherry Point Aircraft Rescue and Fire Fighting, and members of Cherry Point Fire and Emergency Services, climbed 1,980 steps in remembrance of the 343 firefighters who sacrificed their lives helping others at the World Trade Center on Sept. 11, 2001.
The members present climbed a 4-story training tower a total of 37 times to equal 1,980 steps. The 1,980 steps they took represent the 110 flights of stairs that firefighters battled their way up nearly 20 years ago. The group started at 8:46 a.m., the same time that American Airlines flight 11 struck the north tower of the World Trade Center in New York City.
Events similar to this are held and conducted all across the nation to honor the sacrifices of those 343 courageous firefighters who went up, but never came back down. They may be gone, but they will never be forgotten, nor their actions on that monumental date, Sept. 11, 2001.
(U.S. Marine Corps photos by Lance Cpl. Jacob Bertram)