GREENSBORO, N.C. — September 11, 2001 was 19 year ago but for Dwayne Church of the Greensboro Fire Department, it feels like just yesterday.
"There were 11 firefighters, including myself, that went to New York to assist with debris cleanup," Church stated.
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Church said he worked at a Staten Island landfill for a week a couple of months after the terrorist attack.
"What we did is, we looked through the debris they would bring over from Manhattan at Ground Zero," he explained. "We would go through the debris on a conveyor belt, we were looking for body parts and for ID badges and anything to identify people."
It was an experience he said he will never forget.
"In the landfill we were able to see all the fire apparatus they had that was close to the collapse. There were a lot of fire trucks and rescue vehicles in the landfill just demolished because of the collapse."
He said he felt compelled to help in some way. It seems everyone around the nation, including right here in Greensboro, felt the same way all those years ago.
"We had people coming by fire stations because they just wanted to do something and all our fire stations had food," he said. "The residents of Greensboro brought us food, cakes, pies, to the fire station because they just wanted to do something and they were really showing their appreciation for first responders and especially firefighters."
