Monday marks the fifth anniversary of the 9/11 terrorist attacks, a day etched in the minds of all Americans, particularly those who were on the front lines of recovery efforts at ground zero.
In the hours and days following the attacks, FEMA search and rescue teams from all over the country were called in to help, including members of Indiana Task Force One, 6News' Jennifer Carmack reported.
Tom Adams, who watched the horrors of 9/11 unfold on TV, was thrust into the story hours later, when he and many other members of Task Force One loaded into a bus to go to New York.
"It was a trying time thinking, 'Am I going to be able to do my job?'" Adams said.
The group drove through the night and made it to New York the next day. What Adams saw at the break of dawn will never be erased from his mind.
"Being there and note being able to see the entire site at once, it was quite moving," Adams said.
For 10 days, Adams and his teammates worked 12-hour shifts searching for survivors who were not to be found. Adams said he remembers the victims' pictures being carried by loved ones who asked for help to find that person.
"It was very difficult because you know as a firefighter you can look at that scene and know the likelihood of someone surviving that was very low," Adams said. "You get to the point where you know you have a job to do. You put back the emotions and you focus on the task at hand."
In the five years since 9/11, rubble has been cleared from ground zero, but not from Adams' memory.
"I think for all the guys that went, I think it will be the same. You close your eyes and you're there again," Adams said.
Adams told 6News that he hopes that America does not forget those who gave their lives in hopes of saving others on that dark day.
"They're heroes. They are absolute heroes, and I hope that if I am ever called to do the same thing that I can live up to that standard that they set," Adams said.
Adams is spending 9/11 on duty as a Washington Township firefighter. He is still a member of Task Force One, and said the experience has made him more dedicated to public service.
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