MYRTLE BEACH, SC (WBTW) – Many gathered in Myrtle Beach Thursday evening to remember the lives lost and impacted in the September 11 attacks.
The September 11 Remembrance Ceremony was held at the Unity Memorial, located on 29th Avenue North.
Those who gathered – both members of the community and first responders – prayed for continued healing nearly 15 years after the deadly attacks.
FDNY Firefighter Bill Owens (Ret.) recalled the events of September 11, 2001 as the ceremony’s keynote speaker. Owens worked at a firehouse in the Bronx at the time of the attacks and previously worked at the Myrtle Beach Fire Department.
“A last minute swap caused me to work the night of September 9 and the day of September 10, instead of the night of the 10th and day of the 11th,” he told the crowd. “The morning of September 11, 2001, every member working in that Upper West Side firehouse – Engine 30 (and) Ladder 35 – were killed when the South Tower of the World Trade Center collapsed.”
Owens says responding to the September 11 attacks taught him the importance of resiliency and the power of people.
The City of Myrtle Beach received a steel beam from the North Tower of the World Trade Center in 2011, which is now displayed at the Unity Memorial. According to the city, it serves as a thank you from New York City firefighters for “the hospitality they recieved here in the months following the attacks.”