9-11-01: Remember Lt. Kevin Pfeifer
LT. KEVIN PFEIFER, ENGINE 33
“A hero is a man who is afraid to run away” -English proverb
Remembering the Victims of 9/11: Project 2996
On Friday, eight years will have passed since the September 11, 2001 terrorist attacks on the World Trade Center I and II, the Pentagon, Shanksville, American Airlines Flights 11 and 77 and United Airlines Flights 93 and 175. On 9/11, we did not define ourselves as liberals or conservatives, democrats or republicans, but merely as Americans. Americans united as a nation and Americans who recognized the heroic acts of the brave emergency services personnel like Lt. Kevin Pfeifer of Engine 33.
On that fateful day, Kevin had been a Lieutenant with Engine 33 for almost 2 years. Before becoming a firefighter, Kevin worked as a paramedic for 9 years. When I volunteered for Project 2996, I wavered between the idea of making contact with Kevin’s family for some background information or simply writing a memorial tribute based on the information I was able to obtain from the internet. I was reluctant to make contact with his family because I did not want to open any emotional wounds that even with the passage of time, never fully heal. As I pondered my dilemma, I recognized that when Kevin and his brethren received an alarm call they simply responded, without question, and performed their duties admirably under very dangerous circumstances.
An English proverb defines “hero” as a man who is afraid to run away. One must not fail to recognize that while most people exit a burning structure as a matter of self-preservation, Kevin entered those same buildings to preserve and protect the safety of complete strangers. A short time after the first plane hit the North Tower, Kevin reported to his brother Joe in the Command Post. Joe recalled:
We spoke only a few words then gave each other a look as to worry if the other was going to be OK. But people needed to be evacuated and there were many people trapped. So my brother started walking up the stairs attempting to rescue those in need. Thousands of people escaped because of firefighters like my brother. After the collapse of the South Tower, in the darkness of the collapse, I called for the firefighters to evacuate the North Tower. On their way down, around the tenth floor, Kevin saw that the stairs some of the firefighters were coming down would lead them into the falling debris. One of those fire companies was Engine 7. My brother told them to switch to a different stairs. About 30 seconds after Engine 7 escaped, the second building collapsed.
Even with limited visibility after the collapse of the South Tower, Kevin operated as a beacon of light which guided Engine 7 to safety. On Friday, I would ask that you remember Kevin and his family in your thoughts and prayers and never, ever forget the ultimate sacrifice he made on this day.
Additional Resources/Links:
SHORTLINK: http://wp.me/pjWTB-AT
9-11 Victim Memorial: Lt. Kevin Pfeifer
Legacy.com Guestbook for Lt. Kevin Pfeifer
flushingflyers.com Funeral Link for Lt. Kevin Pfeifer
CNN.com – September 11 Memorial
Firefighter’s Pry Bar Carried by Lt. Kevin Pfeifer
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