09/11/2026
Today, on the 25th anniversary of September 11, 2001, the Maysville Fire Department joins our nation in remembering a day that forever changed America and forever changed the fire service.
We remember the nearly 3,000 people who lost their lives that day. We remember the 343 members of the FDNY who made the ultimate sacrifice at the World Trade Center. They entered those towers and climbed toward danger while thousands were trying to escape. They answered the call knowing that others needed their help.
But the sacrifice of September 11 did not end when the towers fell.
In the hours, days, weeks, and months that followed, firefighters, police officers, EMS personnel, construction and trade workers, military members, volunteers, and countless others worked tirelessly at Ground Zero. What began as a rescue operation became an enormous recovery effort.
They searched through mountains of debris hoping to find survivors and, eventually, to bring the fallen home to their families. They worked long shifts in incredibly difficult conditions, surrounded by dust, smoke, debris, and the remains of a place where so many lives had been lost.
For many who served at Ground Zero, September 11 followed them home.
In the years since, thousands of responders, recovery workers, survivors, and others exposed to the disaster have developed cancers, respiratory diseases, and other serious illnesses associated with their exposure. Many have died from 9/11-related illnesses. Families who watched their loved ones leave to help in the aftermath have sometimes endured years of illness before having to say goodbye.
Their sacrifice deserves to be remembered alongside those we lost that morning.
September 11 also changed firefighting forever. Lessons learned from that tragedy strengthened our focus on incident command, communications, interoperability, accountability, building construction, firefighter survival, respiratory protection, cancer prevention, behavioral health, and caring for responders long after an incident is over.
For the fire service, “Never Forget” cannot simply be something we say once a year.
We remember the 343 who answered their final alarm.
We remember every innocent life taken that morning.
We remember those who searched, rescued, recovered, and rebuilt.
We remember those still battling illnesses today.
And we remember those who survived September 11, only to lose their lives years later because they answered the call when their country needed them.
Their courage reminds us what service truly means.
We will remember their names.
We will remember their sacrifice.
We will remember those who carried the burden for years afterward.
And we will continue to honor them through the way we serve our own communities.
In this special edition of Minute with the Mayor, we pause to remem...
