First Responders Remember Those Lost on September 11

Photo courtesy of Keenan James Britt.

By Keenan James Britt 

A first responder 9/11 memorial ceremony was held the morning of Saturday, September 11, in Valdez at Fire Station 1. The ceremony marked the solemn occasion of the twentieth anniversary of the attacks of September 11, 2001. 

It was a cool morning in Valdez, though the rising sun dispersed the thick fog that had settled around the town. First responders from the Valdez Fire Department, Valdez Police Department, and U.S. Coast Guard assembled for the ceremony, along with several dozen members of the public. A display of small American flags were posted in the fire station lawn in remembrance of the lives lost on 9/11. 

The ceremony began promptly at 8:46 a.m., the exact time when the north tower of the World Trade Center was struck on 9/11. First responders were called to attention, and the American flag was lowered to half-mast. A speaker from the Valdez Fire Department addressed the public and first responders on the significance of the tradition of sounding a bell 20 times:

“Long before telephones and radios, fire departments used the telegraph to communicate. When the handle was pulled on the once-familiar red fire alarm boxes found on nearly every street corner of America, a special code was transmitted to every fire station.

When a firefighter died in the line of duty, the fire alarm office would tap out a special signal. That signal was five measured dashes, then a pause, then five measured dashes, another pause, then five more dashes, then five. This became universally known as the ‘Tolling of the Bell.’”

All were silent as a bell was tolled 20 times (four sets of five) in honor of the firefighters and other first responders who gave their lives on 9/11. After another moment of silence and reflection, the assembled first responders and public were dismissed.