Three Rockwall firefighters climbed 110 flights of stairs in a Dallas skyscraper on Sept. 5 to honor the 343 firefighters killed at the World Trade Center.

Capt. Michael Burden, Capt. Josh Turner and driver engineer Jase Kirkpatrick joined more than 400 first responders at Comerica Bank Tower for the 15th annual Dallas 9/11 Memorial Stair Climb, the Rockwall County Herald-Banner reported. The event fell six days before the 25th anniversary of the attacks.

Firefighters, police officers and EMTs from Texas, Oklahoma, New Mexico and New York took part. Each participant wore a badge bearing the photograph and name of a fallen first responder during the climb.

The morning began with a remembrance ceremony at Main Street Garden Park, where bells tolled for those killed. The climb started at 8:47 a.m., immediately after a moment of silence marking the time American Airlines Flight 11 struck the North Tower, The Dallas Morning News reported. Additional pauses throughout the morning marked other moments from that day.

Inside the tower, climbers completed three legs to reach 110 floors. At the top, each rang a bell for the responder they carried and placed that person's name on a memorial board.

Participants also listened to radio transmissions from Sept. 11, 2001, as they climbed, according to CBS Texas.

The event honored not only those killed on Sept. 11 but also first responders who later died from illnesses linked to the Ground Zero recovery.

Joseph "JoJo" Esposito, a 42-year FDNY veteran from Rescue Company 5, delivered the keynote address. Esposito lost family and colleagues in the attacks.

"I lost my brother. I lost my cousin. I lost 11 members of my company, and hundreds of friends," Esposito said at the ceremony.

Lauren Sanchez, event director for the Dallas 9/11 Memorial Stair Climb and emergency management coordinator for the Duncanville Fire Department, said climbers take the tribute personally. Each participant carries a fallen responder's identity to the top, she said.

Rodney Smith, the event's operations coordinator, said the climb also connects younger firefighters to the history. Many of today's firefighters were not yet born on Sept. 11, 2001, he said, and the annual event gives veteran responders a chance to share what they witnessed.

The Rockwall Fire Department is also among ten Rockwall County agencies scheduled to participate in a separate 9/11 Remembrance Day ceremony at 8:30 a.m. Friday, Sept. 11, at the Rockwall County Courthouse, 1111 E. Yellowjacket Lane, according to the Royse City Herald-Banner.

Organizers of the Dallas stair climb said planning for the 2027 event will begin in March.