City Center to host 3rd annual 9/11 Memorial Tower Climb
August 26,2024
See full Fort Worth Report article here.
City Center Fort Worth will host the 3rd annual 9/11 Memorial Tower Climb on Saturday, September 14 in downtown Fort Worth. The event will commemorate the lives lost on September 11, 2001, as hundreds of first responders ascend the Bank of America Tower at 301 Commerce Street.
First responders from across Texas can register in advance at citycenterfw.com/memorial-tower-climb. The $50 registration fee will be donated to the National Fallen Firefighters Foundation and the Brotherhood of the Fallen.
Participants from City Center Security, local law enforcement and fire departments will climb the tower’s 36 stories three times, replicating the 110-story climb of the World Trade Center. Each climber will wear a lanyard bearing the photo and name of a first responder who was lost in the line of duty on September 11, 2001.
This year, the event has expanded to include a larger ‘community’ component. The Fort Worth Police Department will bring the dogs from their Critical Incident team. The dogs will be available for participants and supporters to interact with and enjoy, offering a source of comfort and companionship throughout the event.
The Fort Worth Fire Department will have their Fire Safety House onsite for families to experience and even try to get out of a room with ‘smoke’. In addition, the Fort Worth Fire Department will have an ambulance onsite for families to explore inside and ask questions of the EMTs.
Also new this year, City Center will display a 20×20 quilt featuring the American flag comprised of individual photos of those who perished on 9/11. The quilt will be on display in the Bank of America Tower lobby for public viewing from September 9 to September 28.
Check-in begins at 7 am on September 14, and the event will commence at 8:25 am followed by a moment of silence at 8:46 am, marking the time American Airlines Flight 11 struck the North Tower of the World Trade Center. The climb will begin at 8:47 am.
Key moments will include:
9:03 am Moment of Silence – All Pause
South Tower Hit by United Airlines Flight 175
9:37 am Moment of Silence – All Pause
Pentagon hit by American Airlines Flight 77
9:59 am Moment of Silence – All Pause
South Tower Collapses
10:03 am Moment of Silence – All Pause
United Airlines Flight 93 Crashes in Shanksville, PA
10:28 am Moment of Silence – All Pause
North Tower Collapses
Noon First responders finish and the event concludes.
More information, including a link to registration, is available at citycenterfw.com/9-11-memorial-tower-climb/. A memorial video from the 2022 City Center Memorial Tower Climb is here.
Of the 2,977 victims killed in the 2001 attacks, 415 were first responders, including 343 firefighters; 37 Port Authority and New Jersey police officers; 23 New York City police officers; eight private EMTs and paramedics; three New York State Court Officers; one New York Fire Patrol officer and one FBI Special Agent.
Over the course of three hours in 2001, 121 engine companies, 62 ladder companies and 27 fire officers were deployed to the scene. All off-duty firefighters were recalled—the first time the FDNY issued a total recall in more than 30 years.