B.C. firefighters reflect on their 9/11 role 15 years later

It has been 15 years since the September 11 terrorist attacks on the World Trade Centre in New York City and fire fighters who walked the ruins and rubble say they'll always remember the horror.

"The smell of ground zero was one of those smells you'll never forget," said Dan Cochrane, a firefighter with Vancouver Fire Search and Rescue. 

"Like, you can tell people it's a campfire but it's not a campfire or tell them it is a house fire, it's not a house fire," he said of the gruesome smell.

Cochrane — who was in his first year of firefighting when the attack happened — was part of several hundred firefighters from Vancouver and Burnaby who went to New York after the tragedy.

Nearly 3,000 people died following the attacks and 411 of them were emergency workers. 

Firefighters from B.C. were asked to attend the funerals of those fallen firefighters to show their families the support they deserved because local firefighters weren't able to attend them all.

"To know that they're being supported... that it is not an insignificant funeral, it is something big and powerful," said Captain Mike Huntley with Vancouver Fire Search and Rescue.

The firefighters would attend one or two funerals each day. 

"It was very emotional. It was very hard ... you were drained when you got back," said Huntley.

You don't want them sitting in the fire hall thinking of all the crap they just went through.- Dan Cochrane, Vancouver firefighter

Firefighters in New York City were adamant about recovering bodies from the wreckage and so crews from B.C. were asked to strictly provide emotional support.

They would sit for hours at various fire halls talking, laughing or crying all at the same time. 

"You help them try to have some sort of normality back at the fire hall life. You don't want them sitting in the fire hall thinking of all the crap they just went through," said Cochrane. 

More aware of safety

The tragedy of 9/11 served as wake-up call to firefighters from this province. 

There was a feeling of invincibility for the first year of my job.- Jonathan Evans, Vancouver firefighter

"There was a feeling of invincibility for the first year of my job and since then, it's definitely [been] put it into check," said Jonathan Evans, who was also in New York and has now been with the Vancouver Fire Department for 17 years. 

"We are trained to do what we do, we're there to mitigate the disasters that come but you're more aware of the safety of your equipment, of your team, definitely you apply yourself more to making sure you're prepared for everything and anything," said Evans.

In addition to training and safety, Huntley believes the aftermath of the attacks highlighted the importance of sharing emotions. 

"Since then, we have our PTSD team, we have our critical stress management teams, I think a lot of that came from 9/11," he said.