The terror attacks on September 11, 2001, saw four commercial airliners hijacked by al-Qaeda terrorists and used to attack strategic targets in the United States. American Airlines Flight 11 and United Airlines Flight 175 crashed into the World Trade Center while United Airlines Flight 93 was prevented from crashing into either the U.S. Capitol Building or the White House by a passenger revolt, and instead crashed into a field in Pennsylvania. Between the crashes in New York and Pennsylvania, American Airlines Flight 77 crashed into the west wall of the Pentagon. Notably, the first firetruck to respond there was also a victim.
On 9/11, three firefighters of the Fort Myer Fire Department were on duty at the Pentagon’s heliport. Alan Wallace, Mark Skipper, and Dennis Young were civilian firefighters manning the Emergency-One Titan 4×4 firetruck designated Foam 161. The three men were watching coverage of the attacks in New York on TV when they received a call from their chief putting them on alert; Washington, D.C. was a prime target and they needed to be ready to respond. At 9:37AM, Wallace and Skipper were on the right side of Foam 161, prepping the truck. Foam 161’s left side was facing the west wall of the Pentagon when UA 77 impacted just 200 feet away.
Incredibly, Foam 161 shielded the two firefighters, though they still suffered burns and minor injuries. Young, who was inside the heliport building, also received minor injuries from the crash. Wallace, who took cover under a van, crawled out and jumped into Foam 161. The truck was equipped to respond to aviation fuel fires at the heliport and needed to be moved away from the burning building if it was going to fight the fire. Unaware that Foam 161 was burning, Wallace started the engine and radioed the Fort Myers fire station for backup. Attempting to move the truck, Wallace stomped on the gas pedal.
Outside the truck, Skipper signaled to Wallace to cut the engine. With each press of the gas pedal, fuel was sent to the burning engine and caused the flames on the truck to jump higher. Realizing the truck was out of commission, the three firefighters recovered what equipment they could and jumped into action fighting the fire and providing aid to survivors.
In 2013, Foam 161 was transferred to the General George S. Patton Museum of Leadership at Fort Knox, Kentucky. Still bearing damage and scorch marks from that fateful day, the non-operational truck was towed through the nearby towns of Radcliffe and Elizabethtown ahead of a Patriot Day dedication ceremony. The Fort Knox Fire Department helped to restore the truck to its 9/11 configuration. Although the side panel with the truck’s markings were removed for display at the Fort Myer Fire Department, the damage at the rear of the truck remains untouched from 9/11. “The truck absorbed and blocked much of the impact,” Wallace said in an Army news story. “It was just a miracle that we were in the right position; the Lord allowed us to live so we could help others that day.”