The fire academy recruits, along with several chiefs and instructors, completed the 2021 climb at the Colorado State University Canvas Stadium. The fire academy recruits were each given a badge with the name of a fallen firefighter. They researched the person and shared something about them with the group during short breaks.

The Sept. 11, 2001 terrorist attacks left an indelible mark on people and politics not only in the United States, but around the world. That day had a lasting effect on our community as well, leaving many with firsthand knowledge of the tragedy and aftermath.

Three hundred and forty-three firefighters lost their lives on 9/11 while conducting the largest rescue operation in the history of the fire service. They weren’t looking to be heroes or trying to make a name for themselves. They didn’t care about the ethnicity or the religion or the politics of the people they were trying to rescue. They continued to serve their community during the deadliest terrorist attack in our nation’s history.

Colorado Task Force 1 - Urban Search and Rescue (USAR), a federal disaster response team, deployed 62 Coloradoans--including seven Poudre Fire Authority firefighters--to the site of the World Trade Center to assist with the search and recovery after the buildings fell.

By telling their story, we remember together and show that the response to tragedy can define a community more than the tragedy itself.

Poudre Fire Authority partnered with the City of Fort Collins to create the 9/11 Memorial at Spring Park located at Poudre Fire Station #3, 2000 Matthews St. Fort Collins, CO. 

Each year the PFA also hosts a stair climb at Colorado State University's Canvas Stadium where firefighters and civilians climb the equivalent of 110 flights of stairs to commemorate the firefighters that lost their lives on 9/11.  

“Traditions like these help us not only remember, but pass on the memory, especially now when we’re entering a time when many are too young to remember where they were that day. Please take a moment to remember that day each Sept. 11, whatever that may look like for you." - Fire Chief Derek Bergsten