Chatham Honors First Responders, Remembers 9/11 Victims, Families

by Tim Wood

CHATHAM – Sept. 11, 2001 was a watershed moment in American history. It showed the immense courage of first responders and others who rushed into danger to help their fellow citizens and brought the country together at a time of crisis.

But 9/11 is not only about what happened a quarter century ago, Fire Chief Justin Tavano said during a commemoration of the anniversary at the fire station last Friday.

“It’s also about what has happened in the 25 years since,” he said.

“There are survivors who still carry the emotional and physical scars of that day,” he told the audience of about 150 people gathered at the Depot Road station. “There are families who continue to grieve, and there are people who were not even born on Sept. 11, 2001 who are nevertheless living with its consequences.”

Friday’s ceremony included the ceremonial tolling of a bell and lowering the flag to half staff. Gathered along with residents were town officials, police officers and Coast Guardsmen from Station Chatham.

The centerpiece of the ceremony was the station’s memorial garden which includes a piece of a steel beam from one of the Twin Towers. It is a “place to stop, a place to remember, a place to teach, and a place to make sure that the passage of time does not become the loss of memory,” Tavano said.

“Twenty-five years later, this piece of steel still stands as a reminder,” he said. “It reminds us of what was lost, reminds us of what was sacrificed, and it reminds us that courage can be found in the darkest moments. It also reminds us that like steel, people can be under overwhelming circumstances and still find a way to provide support.”

Coast Guard Senior Chief Ross Comstock was on the West Coast the day of the attacks, but recalled how Lower Manhattan became an island after the towers fell and bridges, streets and tunnels were closed. The Coast Guard issued a call to mariners to help evacuate the thousands of people who were stranded amid the dust and debris. About 150 vessels answered the call, the “improvised flotilla” carrying nearly half a million people out of the area.

“Today it remains the largest waterborne evacuation in history, even, in sheer numbers and speed, larger than the legendary rescue at Dunkirk,” he said. “There was no plan, but readiness and an understanding that people needed help. That day the Coast Guard lived up to its motto, Semper Paratus — Always Ready. And so did the civilians who answered the call.”

The town had asked residents to submit the names of 9/11 victims with local connections. Deputy Emergency Management Director Mark Heller read out several names, including Sean Patrick Lynch, who was at the Pentagon; David and Lynn Angell, who were in one of the airplanes; and Jeffrey Palazzo, who served at Coast Guard Station Chatham and was one of the hundreds of firefighters who responded that day.

Sept. 11 exists both in “our history and our present,” Tavano said. “Far enough removed that we have first responders standing with us today who were not yet alive, and near enough that we have first responders who were on duty that day.”