Emmitsburg, Md. – President Bush honored fallen firefighters Sunday for their dedication and service to the nation.
From the Sept. 11 attacks to Hurricane Katrina, “there were firefighters from around the country there to help,” Bush said at a ceremony where he and others paid tribute to firefighters killed on the job, including one from Denver. “The bond between firefighters is obviously unique. It is definitely a source of strength, and it’s a reminder that the work here is a calling, not a job.”
A plaque with the names of 87 firefighters who died in the line of duty last year was added to the National Fallen Firefighters Memorial on the campus at the National Fire Academy. The names of four others killed in previous years and not honored before also were added.
Among those honored was Denver Fire Lt. Richard Montoya, who died of complications from smoke inhalation a week after a May 14, 2006, house fire.
“It takes a special kind of person to be a firefighter,” the president told firefighters’ families and others in the audience. “It begins with a different sense of direction. When an area becomes too dangerous for everybody else, you take it over. When others are looking for the exits, our firefighters are looking for the way in.”
Plaques around the memorial, created in 1981, show the names of more than 3,100 firefighters, the National Fallen Firefighters Foundation said.
