OFTC remembers 9/11 25 years later

While members of the Dublin Fire Department raised the American flag, a trumpet played “Taps” in remembrance of the almost 3,000 people who were killed on September 11, 2001 – 25 years ago.

Students and officials at Oconee Fall Line Technical College held a program on Thursday to reflect on the survivors and honor the first responders who put themselves in danger to save others who for no fault of their own were placed in deadly situations after two planes hit the World Trade Center, one hit the Pentagon and another crashed into a field in Pennsylvania.

“We honor firefighters, first responders and civilians whose lives were changed by the events of 9/11,” said Adera Smith, who introduced the guest speaker, Dublin Fire Chief Matthew Cutler.

Before Cutler began his presentation, he thanked trumpet player, Matthew Pack for playing and Liz Green for singing the National Anthem.

“They both did an awesome job,” Cutler said. “They gave me chill bumps.” 

Cutler went through a timeline of the events that happened 25 years ago. 

“On 9/11/2001, terrorist hijacked commercial airliners with specific targets in mind,” he said.

At 7:59 a.m., American Airline Flight 11 left the airport in Boston flying to L.A. About 15 minutes later, terrorist over took the plane and flew it into the North Tower of the WTC at 8:46 a.m.

At 8:14 a.m., United Airlines Flight 175 left Boston flying to L.A. Terrorist took the plane over 28 minutes later and flew it into the South Tower of the WTC at 9:03 a.m.

At 8:20 a.m., American Airlines Flight 77 left an airport in Virginia heading to L.A. Thirty-one minutes into the flight, terrorists took over the plane and flew it into the west side of the Pentagon at 9:37 a.m.

At 8:42 a.m., United Airlines Flight 93 took off from New Jersey flying to San Francisco and terrorist took it over 46 minutes later. At 9:59 a.m., the South Tower, which was hit second that day, collapsed.

“That was about the time that the passengers of Flight 93 discovered the hijackers’ plan and fought until it crashed into a field in Pennsylvania at 10:03 a.m.,” Cutler said. “This flight was likely intended to strike the White House. Heroes on that flight sprung into action, sacrificing their own lives to take this flight down.”

The North Tower collapsed around 10:28 a.m.

“Seventy-five fire stations responded to the Twin Towers incident,” Cutler said. “To put that into perspective, Dublin, East Dublin and Laurens County has 21 fire stations, and they sent 75. Each of the 75 that responded, lost at least one member on 9/11. Some lost all.”

In all, 121 fire engines, 62 ladder trucks responded, 27 chief officers responded. For the first time in more than 30 years, the New York Fire Department issued a total recall of all personnel to respond to the site.

Cutler mentioned James 4:14: “Why, you do not even know what will happen tomorrow. What is your life? You are a mist that appears for a little while and then vanishes.” 

“I assure you, those 3,000 people had no idea that that would be last day,” Cutler said. “We all take for granted that our plans will work out, and most times they do. But what if today is all you have? Have you shown love, compassion and forgiveness? We should all strive to live each day as if it is our last and make sure the ones important to us know that they are loved. A quote I read this week said, “The best way to honor the people we lost on 9/11 is to be the people we were on 9/12.” 

On Sept. 12, people swore to “Never Forget,” we flew our American flags and political party lines disappeared, he said. 

“We cared for our fellow Americans and we held the ones responsible accountable for their actions,” Cutler said. “We took measures to ensure that this would never happen again. Every state in the United States sent people to help in the recovery efforts.” 

But the death toll from the 9/11 attacks continues to rise. As of Sept. 11, 2025, the FDNY updated the number of firefighters who have died from 9/11 to 400, bringing the death toll for first responders to 743.

The longer Cutler has led in similar programs each year, the more people he meets who were either young children or not born when the attacks happened in 2001.

“We must keep the memory alive, and continue to remember the ones who made the ultimate sacrifice,” Cutler said.

Pam Dunn, official at OFTC, said it was important to remember those who died and those who rushed toward danger.

“Even though this tragedy happened in the past, it still teaches us a vital lesson today,” Dunn said. “In the dark days after 9/11, people everywhere set aside their differences to support proper and care for one another. As we return to our campus routine, let’s keep that spirit alive by choosing kindness, looking out for each other and strengthening our community.”