Fallen Wyckoff Firefighter Dana Hannon To Be Included In County Memorial Using WTC Steel Beam

A one-ton steel beam from the remains of the World Trade Center arrived Thursday at the county's public safety institute, where it will be turned into a public memorial for three Bergen County firefighters, including Wyckoff Firefighter Dana Hannon, who died on 9/11 and two others killed in military campaigns following the attack.

A low-key procession started Thursday morning at Hangar 17 at JFK Airport in Queens, where two county police cars and a flatbed truck -- loaned for the day from the J. Fletcher Creamer company -- picked up the 12-foot beam. Several fire departments, each of whom lost a member in the terror attacks, were also invited to meet up with the procession on Route 4.

"We wanted to keep it simple," said Jack Murphy, a member and charter president of the Bergen County Fire Chiefs Association. "The steel was placed on the flatbed truck and draped with the American flag."

The memorial is intended to honor three Bergen County firefighters --Dana Hannon, Leonard Hatton and Dennis Taormina--who lost their lives in the line of duty during the attack. 

Hannon was a 29-year-old captain with the Wyckoff Fire Department as well as a firefighter with Engine Company 26 in the New York City Fire Department. He was a firefighter in Bridgeport, CT, before joining the FDNY and earned a medal of valor for a rescue he made while on the department.

Hatton was a 45-year-old special agent with the FBI who noticed smoke coming from the North Tower and ran to help those inside on the morning of Sept. 11. He was a member of the Ridgefield Park Fire Department.

Dennis Taormina was a 36-year-old vice president with Marsh & McLennan and was at work in the North Tower of the World Trade Center on Sept. 11. He was a firefighter with East Rutherford Fire Department.

"Our Association is planning to display this living memorial on the grounds of the Bergen County Law and Public Safety Institute," wrote Hodge. "This artifact will be accessible to both the public and all the first  responders who attend the Fire, EMS & Police Academies at this site."

In addition to the three firefighters the steel was originally requested for, the group also plans to honor Port Authority police officers who were Bergen County residents and gave their lives on Sept. 11. Two other Bergen County firefighters will also be honored for sacrifices since Sept. 11--Michael Schwarz, who was a Carlstadt firefighter and a Marine who died in combat in Iraq and Christopher Hrbek, a member of the Westwood Fire Department and a Marine who was killed in action in Afghanistan.

The beam is now in storage in a building at the fire academy portion of the complex in Mahwah. A firefighter from Leonia, Gil Hawkins, has agreed to donate his time to create the sculpture for the memorial. Murphy said they are currently discussing the best location for the permanent placement of the memorial.

"We want it to be in a place where everyone can see, use and enjoy it,” said Chief Fire Instructor Larry Rauch.

For now, it is snuggly tucked away under a protective plastic, where it will safely stay until it can be properly displayed.

“We are honored to have it," Rauch said.

The Port Authority announced in 2009 that it would take requests from those who were interested in obtaining steel from the fallen World Trade Center. Those applying for pieces of steel were required to utilize them in memorials to those who gave their lives in the terrorist attack on Sept. 11, 2001.

The Bergen County Fire Chiefs Association decided to apply for a "substantial" piece of steel to create a memorial for firefighters who gave their lives on 9/11 and also those killed in action in Iraq and Afghanistan in the military campaigns related to the attack, according to Murphy.

"The process began back in October of 2009 when the Port Authority put out the request to anyone who wanted the steel," Murphy said.

The president of the BCFCA, Peter Hodge, wrote a letter to Christopher Ward, the executive director of the Port Authority requesting an "artifact" that was recovered from the WTC site after Sept. 11.

The BCFCA will soon begin to solicit donations from their member departments to help fund the completion of the permanent memorial in Mahwah. Donations can be made to the Bergen County 200 Club in the name of the WTC Memorial.