Wichita remembers 9/11 with stair climb, beam display

WICHITA, Kan. (KSNW) — With Sept. 11 next week, firefighters paid tribute to those firefighters lost in the 9/11 attack on the World Trade Center in 2001 with a stair climb in downtown Wichita.

The firefighters who participated walked flights of stairs at the Epic Center in downtown Wichita. Because the Epic Center is only 23 stories, the firefighters walked up 20 flights of stairs five times and then once to the tenth floor to reach the 110.

Stewart Firebaugh, the director of the Wichita 9/11 Memorial Stair Climb, said the event has been held since 2015. Forty fire departments from Kansas, Missouri, and Oklahoma participated, intending never to forget the lives of firefighters who were lost.

“The goal today is to climb 110 flights in full gear … the goal today is to make sure they go and they never actually forget the memory of those 343 firefighters. Over time, people start to forget stuff, but this is something in our nation’s history that we can never forget.”

Firebaugh said the ages of the firefighters ranged from 18 years old to 68 years old.

Also at the event was an exhibit with beams from the two World Trade Center beams. They were transported to the Epic Center by the Wichita Police Department, Wichita Fire Department, Kansas Patriot Guard, Sedgwick County, and the Fire & Iron Motorcycle.

Following the climb, the exhibit was moved to the Kansas Firefighters Museum and Memorial , 1300 S. Broadway, where it will be displayed every Saturday through November. It is open to the public, with special hours on Wednesday morning, Sept. 11, for a special Patriots Day ceremony.

Special tours for groups of 10 or more can be arranged any day of the week by contacting the museum at 316-264-5990 or emailing kansasfirefightersmuseum@gmail.com .

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