FIREFIGHTERS from Comber and Newtownards will be undertaking a unique challenge this Friday to commemorate and pay tribute to the 343 New York firefighters who lost their lives in the Twin Towers terrorist attack 25 years ago.
Eight firefighters from Comber and 14 from Newtownards will each take to stairmaster gym machines, which simulate climbing stairs, at Ards Blair Mayne Leisure Centre wearing full gear and breathing apparatus weighing an extra 20kg. They will each climb 2,200 steps, the equivalent of 130 floors of a building, over five hours.
The participants will be raising money for the Fire Fighters Charity and Marie Curie, with all money split evenly between the two.
Firefighter Phil Clint who is based out of Newtownards said the teams had been hard at work over the last few months to get fit for the challenge, with participants walking up and down the stairs at their stations in full gear to get ready for the event.
Phil said: “It’s been a lot of fitness training, there’s been a lot of effort put in by the guys over the last few months and we’ve all been looking forward to donating the money to two very good causes.”
As well as the challenge, the Christie Fire Museum, which documents the history of the fire service in Northern Ireland, will also be in attendance with numerous objects from the last 60-70 years of firefighting history. They include a helmet from the New York Fire Department worn by a firefighter on 9/11, and items donated by firefighters from Northern Ireland during a charity car wash in 2001 for victims of 9/11.
“We wanted to pay tribute to and commemorate the 343 firefighters who lost their lives on 9/11 and the countless others who lost their lives afterwards from cancer and other illnesses related to being there at ground zero,” said Phil.
“This is a memorial to their courage and sacrifice and we wanted to acknowledge that and raise some money for the Fire Fighters Charity who help serving and retired firefighters in the UK and Marie Curie, whose work greatly helps those suffering from cancer.”
The event will be taking place from 11am to 5pm at Ards Blair Mayne Leisure Centre. To donate to the fundraiser visit www.gofundme.com/25th-anniversary-of-11th-september-stair-climb-challenge
