A 21-foot steel beam recovered from the World Trade Center’s South Tower has arrived in Indianapolis as part of the Tunnel to Towers Foundation's "Steel Across America" tour, which commemorates the 25th anniversary of the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks. The beam is traveling over 10,500 miles through 21 states and Washington, D.C., before its return to New York City for a Sept. 11 commemoration.
The tour, now in its 31st stop, aims to honor the nearly 3,000 civilians, first responders, and military personnel who died on Sept. 11, 2001. The beam, weighing 16,900 pounds, has become a symbol of the attacks and the nearly 1,000 victims whose bodies were never recovered from Ground Zero.
"For the past four months, communities across the country have welcomed this sacred piece of American history with incredible emotion," said Frank Siller, Chairman and CEO of the Tunnel to Towers Foundation. "Watching people stand in front of that steel, hugging it, praying over it, weeping, reminds me every single day of why we do this work."
The Indianapolis ceremony included a color guard, a Pipes and Drums procession, the national anthem performed by the Voices of the Indianapolis Fire Department, and an invocation from Indianapolis Fire Department Chaplain Mike Gatliff. Indianapolis Fire Division Chief Tom Neal and Timothy Winslow, executive director of the Indiana War Memorial and Museum, spoke about the connection between the city's first responders, veterans, and the legacy of 9/11.
FDNY Lt. Jack Kielty, a Tunnel to Towers board member, noted the significance of bringing the steel to a museum dedicated to American sacrifice. "Indiana veterans and first responders understand what it means to serve," he said.
Indiana has its own connection to the attacks, with nine Hoosiers losing their lives on Sept. 11. Indianapolis Task Force One also sent rescuers to Ground Zero, and six members later died from illnesses attributed to their work in the toxic environment.
Marine Corps veteran and Tunnel to Towers recipient Scott Nokes addressed attendees about the importance of experiencing the artifact firsthand. "Out of the 2,977 lives that were lost, there’s over 1,000 bodies that were never recovered specifically from Ground Zero in New York," Nokes said. "Their souls are in that steel, and if you touch it, you feel it."
The tour is also intended to connect younger generations with the events of 9/11. Nokes stated that seeing the beam provides a tangible connection that cannot be replicated through other mediums.
The Indianapolis stop was followed by an appearance at the Cincinnati Fire Museum. The tour's final destinations include West Point, Boston, and Washington, D.C., before the beam returns to New York City. On Sept. 11, Frank Siller and his family will carry the steel through the Brooklyn-Battery Tunnel, retracing the path Stephen Siller took 25 years prior. The steel will accompany the procession but will not enter or stop at the World Trade Center site.