Miami Beach Firefighters attend a September 11, 2001, remembrance ceremony at Fire Station 2 on Monday, Sept. 11, 2023, in Miami Beach, Fla.
MATIAS J. OCNER
mocner@miamiherald.com
South Florida leaders, firefighters and police officers from Miami Beach to Fort Lauderdale memorialized the 22nd anniversary of the 9/11 terror attacks.
People at Monday’s ceremonies — also held in Hialeah, Sweetwater and Miramar — vowed to “never forget” the series of coordinated hijackings and suicide attacks that killed nearly 3,000 people from 93 nations:
▪ 2,753 people were killed at New York’s World Trade Center, including nearly 350 firefighters and paramedics, and almost two dozen New York police officers.
▪ 184 people were killed at the Pentagon in Virginia.
▪ 40 people were killed on Flight 93, which crashed into an open field in Pennsylvania.
These onslaughts — carried out by al-Qaeda terrorists from Saudi Arabia, United Arab Emirates, Lebanon and Egypt — led to the U.S. invasion of Afghanistan in 2001 in an effort to topple the Taliban, the faction that ruled the country and provided sanctuary for al-Qaeda.
Check out the photos of the somber 9/11 gatherings across South Florida:
Miami Beach
Miami Beach Firefighter Daniel Martinez, left, helps Lieutenant Christopher Merein with his uniform before the start of a September 11, 2001, remembrance ceremony at Fire Station 2 on Monday, Sept. 11, 2023, in Miami Beach, Fla. MATIAS J. OCNER mocner@miamiherald.com
Miami Beach Firefighter Michael Saavedra, far-right, attends a September 11, 2001, remembrance ceremony at Fire Station 2 on Monday, Sept. 11, 2023, in Miami Beach, Fla. MATIAS J. OCNER mocner@miamiherald.com
Claudio Navas, a Miami Beach Fire Department Fire Investigator and a member of the Honor Guard, far-right, attends a September 11, 2001, remembrance ceremony at Fire Station 2 on Monday, Sept. 11, 2023, in Miami Beach, Fla. MATIAS J. OCNER mocner@miamiherald.com
Miami Beach Firefighters attend a September 11, 2001, remembrance ceremony at Fire Station 2 on Monday, Sept. 11, 2023, in Miami Beach, Fla. MATIAS J. OCNER mocner@miamiherald.com
Miami Beach Firefighter and honor guard Jaime Calderon, center, attends a September 11, 2001, remembrance ceremony at Fire Station 2 on Monday, Sept. 11, 2023, in Miami Beach, Fla. MATIAS J. OCNER mocner@miamiherald.com
Claudio Navas, a Miami Beach Fire Department Fire Investigator and a member of the honor guard, attends a September 11, 2001, remembrance ceremony at Fire Station 2 on Monday, Sept. 11, 2023, in Miami Beach, Fla. MATIAS J. OCNER mocner@miamiherald.com
Miami Beach Fire Department Chief Virgil Fernandez speaks during a remembrance ceremony at Fire Station 2 on Monday, Sept. 11, 2023, in Miami Beach, Fla. MATIAS J. OCNER mocner@miamiherald.com
Miami Beach Firefighters attend a September 11, 2001, remembrance ceremony at Fire Station 2 on Monday, Sept. 11, 2023, in Miami Beach, Fla. MATIAS J. OCNER mocner@miamiherald.com
Miami Beach Firefighter Joshua Mila, left, and Captain Mike Olivares lower the flag to half-staff during a September 11, 2001, remembrance ceremony at Fire Station 2 on Monday, Sept. 11, 2023, in Miami Beach, Fla. MATIAS J. OCNER mocner@miamiherald.com
Miami Beach Firefighters attend a September 11, 2001, remembrance ceremony at Fire Station 2 on Monday, Sept. 11, 2023, in Miami Beach, Fla. MATIAS J. OCNER mocner@miamiherald.com
Miami Beach Firefighters attend a September 11, 2001, remembrance ceremony at Fire Station 2 on Monday, Sept. 11, 2023, in Miami Beach, Fla. MATIAS J. OCNER mocner@miamiherald.com
Miami Beach Police Department Chief Wayne A. Jones speaks during a remembrance ceremony at Fire Station 2 on Monday, Sept. 11, 2023, in Miami Beach, Fla. MATIAS J. OCNER mocner@miamiherald.com
The Miami Beach Fire and Police Department honor guard attend a September 11, 2001, remembrance ceremony at Fire Station 2 on Monday, Sept. 11, 2023, in Miami Beach, Fla. MATIAS J. OCNER mocner@miamiherald.com
As we remember and honor the lives lost on September 11, 2001, our university community comes together to participate in "Ruck to Remember," an annual event initiated by a #umiami student to pay tribute to all those affected by the events of that fateful day. pic.twitter.com/rXDFzIhEeu
This morning, #FLPD joined our #FLFR family at the Fort Lauderdale Fire & Safety Museum for a remembrance ceremony to mark 22 years since the September 11th attacks. Each year, we gather to honor those who lost their lives that day. Together, we will #NeverForget! pic.twitter.com/Si6vjUaMXR
This morning, we joined the Fort Lauderdale Fire Museum to remember those who made the ultimate sacrifice on September 11, 2001. 1/2 pic.twitter.com/Vuokr3tM0j
Omar is a bilingual and bicultural journalist, covering breaking news in South Florida for the Miami Herald. He has a master’s degree in journalism from the University of Texas at Austin and a bachelor’s degree in education from the Universidad de Puerto Rico en Río Piedras.
