Firefighters walk across Ravenel Bridge to honor lives lost during the September 11 terror attacks

MOUNT PLEASANT, S.C. (WCBD) – It was a four-mile walk from Charleston, over the Arthur Ravenel Jr. Bridge, and into Mount Pleasant, and every step of the way was in remembrance of the lives lost on September 11, 2001.

Firefighters, police officers, first responders, and many others from across the state participated in a 9/11 Silent Walk on the bridge Wednesday morning culminating in a special ceremony at Patriots Point.

 “It means a lot,” said Tyler Carson, a firefighter from Easley who participated in the walk. “I know their families are still suffering, so whatever we can do to keep their name alive.”

“The sacrifices that those brave men made, just what was going through their minds,” said Easley firefighter Wade Brooks, reflecting on the day.

The silent walk, founded by five Charleston-area firefighters, honors the 343 New York firefighters and the nearly 3,000 victims who died during the terror attack on the World Trade Center.

“As the years have gone by, I think people have forgotten, especially our younger generation. It’s important that they see why we continue to walk, and why we continue to remember the sacrifice that was made that day,” said former Mount Pleasant Police Chief Carl Ritchie.

Hundreds of people joined together for the walk.

“We just hope that no one ever forgets those that we lost that day,” said Ashley Anderson who joined the walk. “It’s not only about the firefighters or police officers, but everyone that we lost that day and the families that live on with that memory.”

A ceremony was held after the walk at the nearby USS Yorktown, which recognized how our country came together after the tragedy and reaffirmed the American spirit of unity and strength.