Photo By Cpl. Francisco Bedolla | Retired Senior Chief Petty Officer Nicholas J. Tarulli, a 42-year veteran of the U.S....... read more read more
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NORFOLK, Va. – About 300 people each took 2,977 steps during the 9/11 Remembrance Ceremony at the Naval Support Activity Hampton Roads POW/MIA Memorial Park Sept. 11, 2012.
Each of the steps taken was to honor the individuals who lost their lives in the tragic events that unfolded 12 years ago.
A moment of silence was observed at different times during the somber ceremony, which was one of thousands held throughout the world.
At 8:46 a.m., when the march started, was set to remember the moment when American Airlines Flight 11 was flown into the north tower of the World Trade Center. At 9:03 a.m. a moment of silence was held during the ceremony to remind everyone of AA Flight 175 and when it was flown into the south tower. The final moment of silence during the ceremony was held at 9:37 a.m. to honor those who lost their lives when AA Flight 77 crashed into the Pentagon.
Although 12 years have passed since the terrorist attacks, memories of the events are still vivid in the minds of many.
“How many people here can recall where they were or what they were doing on that morning?” asked retired Senior Chief Petty Officer Nicholas J. Tarulli, the guest speaker during the 9/11 Remembrance Ceremony.
Tarulli, a 42-year veteran of the U.S. Navy and a 22-year veteran of the New York Police Department, was on duty walking through the NYPD’s 75th precinct that morning at around 8:55 a.m. when the platoon commander rushed in to mobilize a detail to head to the World Trade Center to assist in rescue efforts. At this time only one plane had crashed and it was assumed to be an accident.
Once the second plane flew directly into the south tower, they all knew it wasn’t just a random accident anymore.
The 75th precinct along with many of the NYPD’s precincts continued to mobilize officers and sent them into the site.
“For the first hour we were in organized chaos, that is, we knew what had to be done but we were waiting for the order,” said Tarulli.
As soon as the NYPD began to implement their Disaster and Disorder Control Plan they began to send out orders to all the precincts. One of the first orders was to recall all officers who were off duty. At this point there were almost 40,000 NYPD officers deployed in lower Manhattan.
With a large scale mobilization like this one there was a problem with accountability. There were times when Tarulli didn’t know where many of his men were or even if they were still alive.
“One officer mobilized from my precinct was MIA for about three days,” said Tarulli. “He finally was able to contact the precinct to tell us he was alive and well in New Jersey.”
When the towers came down this officer ended up on one of the ferries that was evacuating people from a Marina on the Hudson River across the street from the World Trade Center site.
To not exhaust the officers who were assisting with the rescue, they were all placed on 12-hour tours with at least 20 other officers of each precinct. The officers were on these tours to help dig for survivors and to maintain control over the area.
“It didn’t hit you right away,” said Tarulli remembering how it was like at the site of where the World Trade Center towers stood just earlier that morning.
The U.S. Navy began to send in sailors with specific skills to assist in the search and rescue efforts. The George Washington Battle Group, which was already at sea conducting exercises, was also dispatched to the area.
The USS Bataan, USS Shreveport and USNS Comfort were also sent into the area. These ships, because of their large medical treatment capabilities, were intended to receive wounded if necessary. They also served as a safe haven to rest and get hot meals for all the first responders.
Of all the 2,977 lives that were lost during this attack, 411 of them were first responders sent into the area to help save as many people as possible.
“Of the 23 NYPD officers [who lost their lives] I personally knew three,” said Tarulli. “Michael Curtin was assigned to an Emergency Services Unit.”
Retired Marine reservist Sgt. Maj. Michael Curtin, an officer with the Emergency Services Unit in the New York Police Department, was one of the last individuals who was pulled from the rubble. His body was transported out and handled with great respect and reverence. His body was draped with an American Flag he helped raise a decade earlier during his tour of Desert Storm in Kuwait City.
It wasn’t until Sept. 28 that the fires at ground zero finally died out, but the digging and searching kept on.
“I have barely touched on all that happened 11 years ago,” said Tarulli as he ended his speech. “Many of us do not want to recall those events, but it is history now.”
Those 2,977 steps were not only taken to honor those individuals who were lost in the deliberate attacks of that day, they were also meant for people to never forget.
| Date Taken: | 09.19.2012 |
| Date Posted: | 09.19.2012 11:50 |
| Story ID: | 94958 |
| Location: | NORFOLK, VA, US |
| Web Views: | 134 |
| Downloads: | 0 |
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