As 9/11 fades into history, Port Huron first responders still remember

Carol Middleton was driving home when she heard about the Sept. 11 attacks on the radio 22 years ago.

She remembers originally thinking the radio host must have been mistaken when he announced the attack on the World Trade Center in New York City.

"It can't be true, that must be something for a movie," Middleton said she thought.

Then she got a call from her son in the U.S. Air Force. He told her to tell his father to get out of Detroit, because he didn't know if more attacks were coming.

Middleton's story was one of several shared at a 9/11 memorial held at Thomas Edison Parkway Monday morning in memory of the Sept. 11 attacks 22 years ago.

First responders, including the Port Huron Police Department, Port Huron Fire Department and St. Clair County Sheriff's Office, Tri-Hospital EMS and U.S. Customs and Border Protection turned out along with several community members.

"I remember being in my office and struggling to behold what had happened," Port Huron Mayor Pauline Repp said at the memorial.

The Sept. 11 attacks, in which 19 al-Qaeda terrorists hijacked four planes to attack the World Trade Center and the Pentagon, resulted in the deaths of 2,977 people.

Wreaths were presented in memory of the dead, with the St. Clair County Allied Veterans Honor Guard on hand.

During the memorial, several speakers drew attention to those who have died since the attacks from health problems.

Port Huron Police Chief Joseph Platzer said victims who suffered health problems after inhaling the dust from the collapsing twin towers are still being identified, including first responders who worked through the rubble for weeks after the attacks.

"In just the past week, 22 years later, the New York City Office of Chief Medical Examiner has positively identified two more victims," Platzer said.

More people are estimated to have died from health concerns caused by the aftermath of the attack than in the attack itself.

Platzer said he was at home after finishing a shift when his wife woke him up to tell him about the first plane hitting the north World Trade Center tower. He got out of bed and checked the news in time to see the second plane hit the south tower.

Port Huron Fire Chief Corey Nicholson asked those present to remember the 343 firefighters who died while responding to the attacks.

"Forty-four hundred years of collective experience were lost in the span of 30 minutes," Nicholson said.

Nicholson also spoke in memory of the more than 300 who have died after the attack from diseases caused by dust they inhaled.

Attending Port Huron's memorial were several other officers in uniform from military, law enforcement and emergency response offices.

Middleton, however, was saddened by how few people outside of those agencies had shown up.

"There were more people last year, and that's when the weather was bad," Middleton said.

Middleton said she was particularly moved by a statement given by local Pastor Kevin Totty to those in attendance about communities coming together to find strength after the attack. She said she thinks people need to remember that sense of unity.

"I'm afraid we're forgetting, not the incident itself, but the united feeling we had afterward," Middleton said.

For Port Huron Firefighter Donovan Huber, the attacks are more history than a memory. He was only two years old on Sept. 11, 2001, though he does remember his family watching the attacks on the news.

Huber learned more about the attacks from school and his own research. He said he thinks such memorial services are important even decades after such events.

"This is our country and we should keep up on history," Huber said. "We should never let any of these events be forgotten."

Contact Johnathan Hogan at jhogan@gannett.com.

This article originally appeared on Port Huron Times Herald: As 9/11 fades into history, Port Huron first responders still remember