London firefighters take on 110-floor climb to honour 9/11
In a powerful tribute to the bravery of their New York counterparts, two British firefighters will tackle an extraordinary feat: climbing the equivalent of 110 floors—while wearing full fire gear.
The firefighters, 35 year old Sam Hayward and 40 year old Jonathan Freeman from Bethnal Green Fire Station in East London, are set to undertake the gruelling challenge this afternoon (London local time). Their climb, done on stair machines, marks the anniversary of the 9/11 attacks, which saw 343 firefighters tragically lose their lives.
The pair will be in full uniform, with Freeman estimating their gear weighs around 15 kilogrammes (33 pounds).
“We want to make it as hard as we possibly can to simulate what the firefighters in New York had to go through.”
This isn’t just a one-off event either. The duo hopes to make this climb an annual fundraiser for the Fire Fighters Charity. Hayward, who previously organised a World Trade Center tower climb using London Fire Brigade ladders, believes it’s crucial to keep the memory alive, especially for younger generations.
“There’s quite a lot of people I speak to in the fire brigade who were born after it happened and don’t really know much about 9/11, so I think it’s important that we pay our respects.”
For Hayward, the cause is personal. He met his wife while participating in a charity run inspired by a heroic off-duty firefighter who ran across New York in full gear to help his colleagues during the attacks.
“From such a tragedy, some good came from it as well.”
Hayward and Freeman aim to complete their climb in under an hour, reported BBC News.
In related news, a blaze erupted at the ‘Reua-bai’ noodle shop on the Chalong-to-Kata road on Sunday, September 8 after a Myanmar worker accidentally left the gas on while cooking an egg dish.
Police were alerted around 3.30pm, prompting a swift response from officers and firefighters from Chalong Municipality. The fire caused substantial damage to the shop’s kitchen, located next to Mini Big C, halfway between Chalong Circle and Kata Hill.
