JACKSON, Wyo. — First responders and community members gathered on Town Square on Friday morning to mark a solemn occasion: the annual remembrance ceremony honoring the lives lost to terrorist attacks 25 years ago, on Sept. 11, 2001.
Buckrail photographer Nick Sulzer was on the scene. The event began at 8:30 a.m., with remarks honoring the nearly 3,000 people who were killed that day, among them 343 New York Fire Department firefighters, 37 Port Authority police officers, 23 New York Police Department officers and eight emergency medical services workers.
A sizeable group turned up to reflect on the attacks on the World Trade Center, the Pentagon, and Flight 93, which crashed in Somerset County, Pennsylvania.
Governor Mark Gordon encouraged statewide participation in a nationwide moment of silence early this morning at 6:46 a.m. MDT, marking the moment the first plane struck the towers in New York.
“Twenty-five years ago, our nation faced an unprecedented tragedy, but in our darkest hour, the courage, resilience, and unity of the American spirit shone through,” Gov. Gordon said in a statement. “As Wyoming joins the President in observing Patriot Day, we lower our flags to honor the memory of those we lost, support the families who still carry the grief, and pay tribute to the brave men and women who put themselves in harm’s way to save others. Let us never forget their sacrifice.”
Commemorative events will continue later this afternoon as first responders and the public participate in a memorial hill climb of Snow King Mountain. The 1,500-foot climb is meant to replicate to the experience of walking up 110 stories of the World Trade Center, per Jackson Hole Fire/EMS. Climbers will carry an identification badge honoring a first responder who served on 9/11.
