With great respect, the Firefighter Throwdown would like to acknowledge the efforts of Chris Cerci, our Mens Masters winner in Dallas, for his brave role in assisting with 9/11 rescue efforts. Read his story below: 13 years ago today, I never imagined what was about to happen in the next 24 hours. We all thought this country was untouchable. We were wrong. The next morning when this tragedy began to unfold, I remember sitting on my bed just watching the TV in disbelief. When the towers fell, one after the other, it was as if time stood still. The department I work for recalled all firefighters for precaution. As we began reporting and continued to watch 9/11 unfold on TV, Jimmy and I decided we were making the trip to NYC. We didnt know what we would do, but we were going. Whether helping at a firehouse or assisting in rescue ops we were going. It was not without some resistance from others but we went. As we drove across the George Washington Bridge, the magnitude of this act began to sink in. We arrived at a firehouse in Greenwich Village which housed E24-L5-B2. As we walked up to the apron, their engine was sitting outside smashed and covered in dust and debris. One firefighter stood outside with a look on his face Ill never forget. We walked up to him and introduced ourselves and said were here to help in any way we can. He thanked us for coming and instructed us to drop our gear and get breakfast inside. The introduction was a little awkward as we stated our names to him, Jimmy Young specifically. Later I learned the house had lost 11 members and our charge was to look for them at their last know location. As I walked into the garage, I passed a memorial of three firefighters killed at a separate incident years prior. The names, Jimmy Young, Chris Seidenberg and John Drennan. I got chills reading these names but then understood the connection. As we continued to meet firefighters, our first order was to go to the Catholic parish one block over to retrieve tables and chairs for grieving family members who will be in the firehouse. We went with a few others and the priest opened the door. This particular priest was Father Kieran Monohan, the former Headmaster of Serra Catholic High School 20 years prior and the man who handed Jimmy Young his high school diploma. Jimmy had not seen him since. It was at that point I knew we were supposed to be there. After some conversation, we returned to the firehouse and prepared to head down to what was then known as the Pile. Before going I made a phone call to my now wife Laurie. It was almost impossible to talk holding back the tears as I told her I loved her, but deep down inside there was a part of me that believed I may not return home. A port authority bus pulled up in front of the firehouse and we boarded. The bus was carrying firefighters from other houses. You could hear a pin drop. The looks on their faces were all the same. We made our way to the attacked area, approximately 6 blocks, and it was a ghost town covered in white dust and ash. We arrived at the drop off point and our Captain, Anthony Varialle, stood up and addressed us like we were a military platoon. He Instructed the men to stay in formation and follow orders. We marched from the drop off point to one of the financial buildings in order to finally gain entry into Ground Zero. I remember looking into cafes and coffee shops as we marched down the halls, money on tables, food sitting on plates, purses, belongings, etc., just sitting there as if people had just vanished. This was the eeriest thing I had ever seen. After walking a couple hundred yards, we came to the Ground Zero entry point. What we saw can not be explained in words. Id never really believed death had a smell, but that day changed my mind. The 11 firefighters from E24-L5-B2 were last known to be in a stairwell of the South Tower. Thats where our efforts would concentrate. We began making our way to that area, climbing stories above, and stories below, the street. I remember like yesterday climbing under, climbing over and sliding down the very recognizable steel beams that constructed the towers. Seeing them still burning 3-4 stories under ground. We searched as long as we could that day but never located the firefighters. They were located soon after. These are some pics from this experience. God Bless America. Ladder 5 Lt. Mike Warchola Lt. Vincent Giamonna Lou Arena Andy Brunn Greg Saucedo Paul Keating Tommy Hannafin John Santore Battalion 2 BC. William McGovern BC. Richard Prunty FF. Fautino Apostol, JR
Posted on: Thu, 11 Sep 2014 11:33:10 +0000
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