Children of 9/11 heroes set to join FDNY shortly after 18th anniversary of terror attack
NEW YORK — Nearly 18 years ago, their firefighter fathers were among the first responders killed during the terror attack on 9/11; now they’re following in their dads’ hero footsteps.
The current FDNY Academy class, set to graduate shortly after the anniversary of the attack, includes 15 men and a woman who are the children of fallen 9/11 heroes, an FDNY spokesperson confirmed. Fourteen of the soon-to-be graduates lost family during the Sept. 11, 2001 attack. Two lost their fathers to 9/11 related illnesses.
In all, 2,753 people were killed in the attack. Many others have died from health issues since that day.
Dozens of other children of 9/11 heroes have joined the FDNY and the NYPD. The daughter of a fallen NYPD officer joined the NYPD in 2018. Her father, Officer Ramon Suarez, commandeered a taxi to get to the scene of the terror attack and was last seen running back into the North Tower after he and another officer saved a woman who was unable to walk.
On the 18th anniversary of the Sept. 11 terror attacks, there will be six moments of silence as part of the memorial ceremony.
The public is invited to observe any or all of them.
Here is the list:
- 8:46 a.m. ET: Hijackers crash Flight 11 into the north tower.
- 9:03 a.m.: Hijackers crash United Airlines Flight 175 into the south tower.
- 9:37 a.m.: Hijackers crash American Airlines Flight 77 into the Pentagon.
- 9:59 a.m.: The south tower collapses.
- 10:03 a.m.: Passengers launch a counterattack on hijackers aboard United Airlines Flight 93. The hijackers crash the plane into an empty field near Shanksville, Pa.
- 10:28 a.m.: The north tower collapses.