Firefighters run across US to remember 9/11 victims

A team of thirty-two firefighters from the United States and Australia are currently running across the U.S. to pay tribute to those who lost their lives in the 9/11 terrorist attacks nearly nine years ago. (Photo by Chris Carter)
A team of thirty-two firefighters from the United States and Australia are currently running across the U.S. to pay tribute to those who lost their lives in the 9/11 terrorist attacks nine years ago. The Tour of Duty runners began their 4,620 mile, 31 day cross-country trek on August 12 at the Santa Monica Pier in Los Angeles. They will conclude their run at Ground Zero on the morning of September 11 – the ninth anniversary of the attacks.

The firefighters run 24 hours a day, splitting the workload between shifts. Each of the three shifts runs six hours at a time, which leaves barely enough time for meals and rest. In order to leave work for the event, Anthony Healey, a spokesman for the Tour tells The US Report that each of the firefighters had to cover their own shifts, through vacation or trading time with other firefighters.

The Australian runners hail from various departments in Australia while American firefighters came from New York City (FDNY), Las Vegas, Chicago and New Orleans, with one police officer from the Port Authority in New York City. James Dowdell, a third-generation FDNY firefighter, lost his father when the World Trade Center collapsed.

Every mile of the firefighters' trip is dedicated to one of the 2,976 people who lost their lives in the attack. Micah Reyes of North Las Vegas Fire Department said that “the runners pause each day at 8:46am” – the time of the first World Trade Center attack – to read the names of the fallen 9/11 victims to which the team will dedicate that particular day's run.

I had the opportunity to participate in the Tour of Duty on one leg of Monday's journey alongside several members of the Cape Girardeau, Mo. Fire and Police Departments. Even though we came from several different departments spanning two continents, there was an instant bond with the Tour runners.

Although they had already come over two thousand miles, enduring 100-plus degree temperatures, high humidity, and rattlesnakes, the runners didn't appear to be even slightly fazed. And once we began running with them, I could see that running to remember fallen Americans – and the 343 fallen firefighters – was enough to keep us going for miles. Fire engines and police cars escorted us through town as crowds cheered and passers-by honked in support.

Following the run, several Tour runners stopped in at the fire station for a hot meal provided by the Cape firefighters as another shift took over the running. The team is currently scheduled to reach Chicago by Wednesday.

(By Chris Carter/Sept. 1, 2010)