Lexington community honors lives lost during 9/11/01

Nearly, 3,000 Americans lost their lives at the World Trade Center, the Pentagon, and aboard the hijacked plane crash in Shanksville, Pennsylvania.

LEXINGTON, Ky (WTVQ)- Sunday marked 21 years since 9/11, when terrorists carried out deadly attacks on American soil.

Nearly, 3,000 Americans lost their lives at the World Trade Center, the Pentagon, and aboard the hijacked plane crash in Shanksville, Pennsylvania.

Those lives were honored by the Lexington community Sunday.
At the University of Kentucky, cadets repeated the names of each victim as officers marched with a rifle.

Some, like Cole Wilson, were barely a year old when the attacks took place.

“It gives me a reason to serve, gives me sense of pride in wearing the uniform,” said Wilson.

In downtown, fire, police, and the community came together to lay a wreath near the fire department’s memorial in honor of the law enforcement officers killed while saving more than 30,000 lives.
Firefighters  recalled where they were when finding out what was taking place miles away.

“I had just got off duty that morning. I was on third platoon, which is our duty day. And I just got off, went home, I was doing stuff around the house,” said Captain Ryan Hogsten.

For Hogsten, a thirty year fire department veteran, nothing else mattered in that moment.

“It was definitely one of those things that we all joined together here and went to our separate fire houses and sort of watched the stuff together. Because we knew there was going to be brothers hurting and so we were together for our brothers and sisters in the fire department just trying to deal with what we were seeing,” said Hogsten.

Hogsten says following 9/11, fire departments received more federal funding for terrorist and search and rescue training.
The attacks also stirred a sense of national pride and unity for many.

“It also shows during that time, America became one,” said Lexington police chief Lawrence Weathers.

It put things into perspective for those who risk their lives every day.

“It made me realize how much ya take for granted. How much of your life can be wiped away in an instant,” said Weathers.

A promise to never forget what happened.

“We always say on 9/12, we will never forget what happened on 9/11 and we want to make sure we do that every day,” said Hogsten.

At Sunday night, firefighters and others attended their annual Stairclimb event at Kroger Field.