While on a late afternoon walk around the Virginia Highlands Park in Arlington, VA, I came across this simple memorial dedicated to the firefighters of Arlington County who were among the first responders to the Pentagon on the morning of 9-11-01 (the link takes you to an excellent chronicle of the events at the Pentagon).
Arlington County Fire 9-11 Memorial
Units were already in the vicinity when the plane struck. They were responding to an alarm in nearby Rosslyn. One cannot be certain if the precious minutes gained by the close proximity of the units saved lives. I would like to think they did.
The girder from the World Trade Center was presented in a ceremony at Fire Station #5 held back in August 2010 (number 5 is the closest county station to the Pentagon).
The story of the bravery and professionalism of the county firefighters is sometimes overshadowed by the heroic reaction of the FDNY at the World Trade Towers. Let’s not forget what they did. Certainly, the FDNY remembered.
Paul Hatfield
Suzanne Lauer
