THE MALDEN ADVOCATE–Friday, September 18, 2026 Page 7 9/11 | FROM PAGE 1 2002; that was the first time members of Malden’s Fire and Police Departments partook in solemn recollection of the nearly 3,000 lives that were lost due to the worst terrorist attack in U.S. history, marking the one-year anniversary of what came to be known as “9/11”. In the years that followed, Malden public safety personnel continued to honor those killed in the attacks on New York City and the Pentagon — across the river from Washington, D.C. — and in a thwarted attack where brave American passengers aborted more potential bloodshed by overcoming hijackers and downing a fourth plane in central Pennsylvania. The term “first responder” was first used in the United States in the early 1970s. Over 50 years later, it is now a wellknown part of the national lexicon, having come into prominence largely since the 9/11 attacks. As a result of the 9/11 terrorist attacks, particularly due to the hijacked planes taking down the Twin Towers, some 343 members of the New York Fire Dept. (FDNY) died trying to save victims when the Towers collapsed. Also killed were some 50 police officers, 37 Port Authority and 23 NYPD officers. On Friday, September 11, for the 25th time, Malden Police and Fire Honor Guards and many other firefighters and police officers, including Police Chief Marc Gatcomb and Fire Chief Steven Froio, joined with Malden Mayor Gary ChrisMalden Firefighters rang the Remembrance Bell at the 25th Anniversary of 9/11 Ceremony. (Courtesy Photos/Malden Police Dept.) Malden fire trucks were displayed at the Malden Central Fire Station at 1 Sprague St. and Salem Street, under patriotic bunting, on 9/11 Remembrance Day, Friday, September 11. (Courtesy Photos/Malden Police Dept.) well as those across the nation who protect us from harm with their dedicated service. Also, the mayor implored those in attendance to “never forget the victims of 9/11 as we mark the 25th anniversary of their passing.” “We owe it to these families Malden Firefighters observe the 25th Anniversary of 9/11 at Friday’s ceremony tenson and city and state elected officials to remember those lost on that fateful day. Many Malden civilian residents also turned out for the moving ceremony, which included remarks from the Mayor. Mayor Christenson, in his remarks, championed both the courage and resilience of Malden’s first responders as to keep the memory of their loved ones alive in our hearts and in our minds,” the Mayor added. The milestone anniversary brought memorial rituals — wreath-laying, flag-flying, moments of silence, vigils and readings of victims’ names — and volunteer projects in tribute to a day that about half of U.S. adults remember as the most historic event of their lifetime, according to a new poll. On Sept. 11, 2001, al-Qaeda extremists hijacked four commercial jets and crashed them into New York’s World Trade Center, the Pentagon and a field near Shanksville, Pennsylvania, killing nearly 3,000 people. At the Malden observance a Pledge of Allegiance was followed by the National Anthem and then Mayor Christenson’s 9/11 25th Anniversary address. A Malden firefighter then clanged the memorial bell — set up adjacent to the Central Fire Station at 1 Sprague St. at Salem Street — to honor victims killed in the attacks. Statewide in Massachusetts, Malden Firefighters alongside Malden Police officers at the ceremony many communities held their own 9/11 25th Anniversary remembrance ceremonies, and a major ceremony was held in Boston, led by Mass. Governor Maura Healey. The names of the Massachusetts 9/11 victims were read aloud at the day, as was U.S. Vice President J.D. Vance. The attacks brought down the World Trade Center’s Twin Towers — icons of U.S. economic power and among the tallest buildings on Earth — and blew a hole in the PenMalden Police Officers and Firefighters at the ceremony in front of the Malden Central Fire Station official statewide commemoration ceremony on the steps and inside the Massachusetts State House in Boston. Nationally, hundreds attended a ceremony held at the National September 11 Memorial & Museum in New York City to observe the 25th anniversary of the 9/11 terror attacks, honoring the 2,983 men, women and children killed in the 2001 attacks at the World Trade Center site, the Pentagon, aboard Flight 93 and those killed in the February 26, 1993, World Trade Center bombing. All living former U.S. Presidents, including Bill Clinton, George W. Bush — who was in office at the time of the attacks — Barack Obama and Joe Biden, were in attendance in New York City on Fritagon, the U.S. military’s fortress-like headquarters near Washington. The fourth plane was headed for Washington, officials concluded, but the aircraft went down in Pennsylvania after passengers and crew members stormed the cockpit and fought the hijackers. U.S. President Donald Trump attended and spoke at a separate remembrance held at the U.S. Pentagon. “Sept. 11 reminded us of the terrible power of hate,” President Trump said Friday. “The 25 years since have shown us the even greater power of the American spirit to endure and prevail, and to win,” added President Trump, a native New Yorker who had been in New York City on 9/11.
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