By Lookout Staff

September 9, 2026 – The Santa Monica Fire Department will hold a remembrance ceremony Friday morning to mark the 25th anniversary of September 11, 2001 and honor the 2,977 people, including 343 firefighters, who were killed during the terrorist attacks that day.

The ceremony -- which brings together firefighters, city officials, community members and local public safety partners -- "offers an especially meaningful opportunity to pause and remember those who lost their lives," City officials said.

A steel artifact recovered from the World Trade Center site, which is on permanent display outside the Fire Department’s community room, "serves as a tangible reminder of September 11 and the lives, service, and sacrifice remembered on this anniversary."

The ceremony will take place at Fire Station 1, at 1337 7th Street from 7:30 to 8:30 a.m., or 45 minutes West Coast time after American Airlines Flight 11 slammed into the north tower of the World Trade Center, marking the first of four coordinated terrorist suicide attacks carried out by al-Qaeda.

Carolyn Beug, 48, a filmmaker and writer who devoted herself to Samohi's track team, was on that flight, the first of two planes that crashed into the Twin Towers in New York City.

Santa Monica resident Dora Menchaca, 45, a medical researcher, was on American Airlines Flight 77, which crashed into the Pentagon. Another plane crashed into a field in Shanksville, Pennsylvania during an attempt by the passengers and crew to regain control.

Santa Monica's retired Fire Chief Jim Hone -- who was then fire marshal -- was a member of one of three California urban search and rescue teams.

The ceremony, part of the National Day of Service and Remembrance, "will include moments of reflection and remembrance honoring the lives lost on Sept. 11 and recognizing the courage and selflessness of first responders who answered the call that day," City officials said.

For more information, visit santamonica.gov/events/9-11-remembrance-ceremony.