A 9/11 remembrance ceremony took place in the city of Fort Lauderdale on Wednesday morning.
It happened outside the Fort Lauderdale Fire and Safety Museum located at 1022 West Las Olas Boulevard.
There were several speakers including city leaders, law enforcement authorities, fire officials and airline representatives.
The ceremony also featured a presentation of colors, accompanied by the Fort Lauderdale Police and Fire Honor Guards and the Black Pearl Pipes and Drums.
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Following the ceremony, there was a moment of silence and playing of TAPS for the nearly 3,000 lives lost on Sept. 11, 2001.
Just days after the attack, now retired Fort Lauderdale Battalion Chief David Carter went to ground zero in NYC to help sift through the rubble with search and recovery efforts.
"It became perfectly clear very early on that there was not going to be any lives to be saved that day," Carter said.
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He said he was close with about 20 NYFD firefighters who lost their lives that day.
"Never forget to me means never forget and always celebrate that selfless heroism that they displayed that day," Carter said.
He shared how important it is to keep the memory alive for generations to come.
"What happened on 9/11 in NYC brings to the attention of everybody that the men and the women of our first responder units, our fire department our police department, are standing with us every single day even here in Fort Lauderdale," said Fort Lauderdale Mayor Dean Trantalis.
During the ceremony, many shared a message of unity and community as was seen in the days following the attack.
"I think when we have a country that is so divided right now it’s so important to have a day like today so that we reflect on how that felt and we work to get back to that day and that those that died that day didn’t die in vain, but not only saving the 20,000 people then, but saving all of us today by being kinder to each other," said Fort Lauderdale Fire Chief Stephen Gollan.
