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9/11 REMEMBRANCE
9/11
Dublin Fire Brigade members remember and REMEMBERED 20 YEARS ON show their support for those killed in the 9/11 attacks
CFO Keeley and US Charge d’Affaires Alexandra McKnight pay their respects
A minute’s silence is held outside Donnybrook fire station to remember fallen colleagues from the 9/11 attacks 20 years ago
Swords firefighters pay tribute to fallen colleagues from 9/11 with the equipment at hand
irefighters and Officers from across Dublin Fire Brigade marked the 20th year since the attacks on the US on 11 September, 2001, with a number of events to pay their respects and show support for the victims and their fellow emergency responders who lost their lives as a result of this terrorist act.
Members were invited to the US Ambassador’s residence in Phoenix Park on 9 September for a solemn ceremony, which opened with renditions of the Irish and American national anthems by tenor Paul Byrom, before CFO Dennis Keeley was joined by US Charge d’Affaires Alexandra McKnight to lay a wreath at the 9/11 Memorial that includes a piece of steel from the World Trade Center.
The number who lost their lives in the attacks included at least 18 Irish citizens and countless Americans of Irish descent. Ms McKnight addressed those gathering to mark the occasion, thanking Dublin Fire Brigade for their support, and saying: “Our bond throughout history’s triumphs and tragedies has been unbroken, and our common roots grow deeper and deeper every year. When history visits America, as it did 20 years ago, the impact here in Ireland is immediate, and so is our solidarity.”
CFO Keeley also spoke, saying: “It’s 20 years since the terrible events of 9/11, and in that time, events may have faded in the memory of some. But for so, so many, the pain of those events is as raw and painful as it was 20 years ago.
“Today’s memorial is a fitting tribute to all the victims and
Fa reminder, if one is needed, of the lives lost and the sacrifices made by so many. We are here to honour and remember those almost 3,000 lives claimed by the attacks. “As the Chief Fire Officer in Dublin Fire Brigade, I am acutely aware of the bond and friendships between our nation’s first responders, statutory and voluntary agencies. The bond seen so often and demonstrated through the wonderful exchange of comradery and friendships, of the fire, police service, paramedics and other responder agencies of our two nations. Friendships that have been built on over generations and with many of whom have Irish connections. “Tragically, that bond further intertwined in the events of 9/11, with the estimated 1,000 people of Irish descent tragically lost in the violent events of the day.” At various fire stations across the city and county, DFB members marked the 20th anniversary in their own individual ways, with a minute of silence and tributes made and shared on social media. On 12 September, the DFB Pipe Band took part in a memorial service with the Kildare emergency services in Donadea Forest Park, honouring FDNY firefighter Sean Tallon, whose father emigrated from the town many years before and who lost his life in the World Trade Center. Sub-Officer Brian Hughes and FF/P Ger Bolger played a moving rendition of Nearer My God to Thee as the crowd remembered all those who passed away that day, including the first responders of New York.
