Hillsborough firefighter honors relatives that died on 9/11

TAMPA, Fla. — A Hillsborough County firefighter is honoring relatives killed on 9/11, while reflecting on the tragedy almost 25 years ago.

“A lot of times they say, I wish we could go back to September 12th, everybody was friendly,” said Battalion Chief Brian Muldowney with Hillsborough County Fire Rescue. “I want to go back to the 10th. I had my brother. It’s tough, every day is tough.”

A tough 25 years, says Chief Muldowney, who lost his brother in the terrorist attacks.

“We saw the video of him and his crew walking up to the towers, and we knew it was my brother because he had a big shamrock on the back of his helmet,” said Muldowney.

Richard Muldowney Jr. was 40. He was a New York City firefighter.

“He was a cool guy, tough guy, very, very tough,” Muldowney said of his brother.

Chief Muldowney comes from a family of first responders and also grieves the 9/11 loss of his cousin, Kenneth Watson.

“They got hired on together, never worked together until that day,” said Muldowney of Richard and Kenneth. “That was the first time they fought a fire together.”

Now, Muldowney fights to keep their legacies alive. He started a nonprofit that supports first responder families. The name, Muldowney Moondogs, comes from his brother’s nickname, “Moondog.”

“We work closely with Tunnel to Towers, and our mission is to educate, let these people know what happened that day,” said Muldowney, who says the mission not only honors his loved ones but also helps him cope.

Retired HCFR Capt. Joshua Tichenor saw the devastation firsthand in the days following 9/11, initially traveling to New York to support the Muldowney family, but ending up supporting the rescue and recovery mission, too.

“We got overwhelmed with emotion, and we wanted to help,” said Tichenor. “One thing led to another and we found ourselves, you know, doing our own dig with the NYPD and some of the other New York City firemen. We just got to work.”

25 years later, the firefighters work to honor those lost more than two decades ago.

“You know, the main thing is don’t forget,” said Chief Muldowney. “And I think we’re at the point where we’re starting to, and we got to fix that.”

Muldowney shared something his brother once said: “I’ll be going out doing the best job in the world,” he recalled.

“And he did,” said Muldowney.

More than ever, he wants the world to never forget.