MONTGOMERY COUNTY, Md. — Present day members of the Montgomery County Fire and Rescue team were among the first responders called to duty at the Pentagon 24 years ago after the Sept. 11 attacks. On this day in 2025, many of them can still vividly remember the terrorist attack and how it altered their life perspective.

Montgomery County Fire Chief Corey Smedley was working as a firefighter in Prince George's County in 2001, but he said he remembers sitting in the fire house with his eyes glued to the TV screen as he watched United Airlines flight 175 crash into the second tower at the World Trade Center in New York.

"We knew that it was something wrong," he said.

Pete Piringer was - and still is - the public information officer for Montgomery County's fire department. He also remembe

See Full Page