Charleston Memorial Stair Climb honors fallen first responders

CHARLESTON, S.C. (WCSC) - On the 15th anniversary of the Sofa Super Store fire that killed nine Charleston firefighters, people from around the country came to North Charleston to honor first responders who have perished in the line of duty.

“Our goal is to bring awareness and to really honor our mission that we made on 9/11, to never forget,” Event Coordinator Rachel Cole said “So, we want to remember the individuals that have given their lives for our country as first responders, both our individuals on 9/11 and then our local heroes as well. So, we do honor our Charleston Nine today as well as some other local heroes that have died in the line of duty.”

Participants of the 2nd annual Charleston Memorial Stair Climb honored the men and women who lost their lives on 9/11 by climbing the stairs of the North Charleston Coliseum. The stairs were climbed by people from here in the Lowcountry and as far as Seattle, California, Louisiana and New York.

Participants climbed 110 floors, or 2,220 steps, which was the height of the twin towers. At two locations, they rang a bell. First, they rang a bell at the 78th floor, which is as high as they got on 9/11, and then again at the 110th floor, which symbolizes bringing the fallen all the way to the top.

First responders were encouraged to wear appropriate attire from their professions.

“For the majority of us, it’s just making that pledge and honoring that pledge to never forget and then to also pass it on to the future generations, because our youth don’t know what that means and they don’t know what happened that day, and it’s our responsibility to do these things to educate them and to help them understand what the mission is to never forget,” Cole said.

Cole says they plan on this being an annual event. The Charleston Memorial Stair Climb is a sanctioned event of the Association of Memorial Stair Climbs.

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