Suffolk firefighter retraces steps of 9/11 heroes 25 years after watching attacks unfold
Tony Watson had been a firefighter for just four months when he watched the September 11 attacks unfold, he recently went to America to climb 110 storeys
A Suffolk firefighter who had been in the job for just four months when the September 11 attacks took place says witnessing the bravery of emergency crews that day strengthened his determination to remain a firefighter.
Tony Watson, a crew manager at Stowmarket Fire Station, has recently returned from the United States after taking part in a commemorative stair climb ahead of the 25th anniversary of the attacks.
He joined firefighters from the UK, Ireland and the United States in climbing the equivalent of 110 storeys – the height of each of the World Trade Center's Twin Towers.
Reflecting on whether seeing the attacks so early in his career had ever made him reconsider becoming a firefighter, Tony said: “It changed me in the opposite way.”
“It just spurred me on just to try and be better and continue doing the job and be the best I can at being a firefighter.”
‘You could just close your eyes and try to imagine what it was like’
Tony described the climb as physically demanding and deeply emotional.
He said around 1,200 people took part, with firefighters climbing alongside one another as part of the tribute.
“The challenge itself was very, very hard, but it was an extremely emotional time and emotional day,” he said.
“But a trip, definitely a once in a lifetime trip just to meet all of the American firefighters and just walk beside them up and down the 110 flights of stairs.”
During the trip, Tony said the UK and Irish contingent heard from two firefighters who had responded to the attacks and survived.
Listening to people who had experienced the events first-hand brought back memories of watching the attacks on television 25 years earlier.
“You could just close your eyes and imagine, or try to imagine what it was like for them,” he said.
“And then all the flashbacks came back of when I was watching the TV all those years ago.”
Tony said the physical conditions during the climb also made him think about what firefighters responding to the World Trade Center had faced.
The commemorative climb was carried out in temperatures of around 37C and in full firefighting kit.
He said: “When you're walking up and down the stairs in the stadium and you've got the American firefighters coming up the stairs towards you, you can just picture what it was like for them.”
He added that the firefighters responding on September 11 had been climbing towards danger in the Twin Towers in an effort to help those inside.
Remembering Carlos Lillo
Each participant carried the name of a firefighter or emergency responder who lost their life in the attacks.
Tony climbed in memory of Carlos Lillo, a 38-year-old paramedic who Tony said died when the South Tower collapsed.
For Tony, learning about the man whose name he carried made the tribute particularly poignant.
He said Carlos's wife had been working on the 64th floor of the North Tower that morning.
Tony said the couple had married the previous year and that Carlos had promised his wife he would not put himself in danger trying to rescue her.
“That would take immense courage not to run out of the tower that you're in to run to the other tower to try and save your wife,” Tony said.
“That just shows how professional he was on that day, just to continue on with his job to help who he could and then sadly lost his life.”
‘Never take anything for granted’
Tony said the events of September 11 have continued to influence how he approaches his own career.
Asked what the experience had taught him over the subsequent 25 years, he said: “Never take anything for granted really.”
He added: “It just spurs you on just to continually help people and to always put people first, just try and help as many people as you actually can.”
For Tony, completing the climb also reinforced the connection he feels exists between firefighters regardless of where they serve.
He described feeling “full of emotion” during the challenge and said it had made him proud to be a firefighter.
“It just really hit home how selfless every single person that attended 9-11 was, just literally running in,” he said.
“If you see the footage, you see the firefighters just running in and running up the stairs just to try and help people.”
A bond across the Atlantic
Tony said the visiting firefighters were warmly welcomed throughout their time in the United States, including during visits to fire service training facilities.
He said one of the lasting impressions was the sense of pride and community he encountered among American firefighters.
“The immense pride that every single firefighter in America has of being a firefighter, the sense of belonging, the sense of family,” he said.
Tony said he hoped the visit would mark the beginning of a closer relationship between firefighters in the UK and their counterparts in the United States.
He said contact had continued after the challenge and believed the trip could lead to future visits in both directions.
Twenty-five years after watching the attacks at the very beginning of his career, Tony said the experience of commemorating those who died had reinforced the reason he stayed in the profession.
“It changed me in the opposite way,” he said.
“It just spurred me on just to try and be better.”