Brooklyn native to climb 110 flights of stairs in Oklahoma City to honor brother lost on 9/11
Al Derrubio, who lost his brother in the 9/11 attacks, will climb 110 flights of stairs in Oklahoma City on Saturday to honor the fallen and preserve their memory.
OKLAHOMA CITY —
Al Derrubio, a Brooklyn native who now lives in Wichita Falls, Texas, will climb 110 flights of stairs in Oklahoma City on Saturday morning as part of the 15th annual OKC 9/11 Memorial Stair Climb to honor his brother and others lost in the 9/11 terror attacks.
“I got a brother down there; in fact, I had four brothers down there — all four of them are firefighters — FDNY,” Derrubio said.
Derrubio lost his brother, Dave Derrubio, in the attacks. All four of his brothers, who were FDNY firefighters, responded when the calls went out that day.
“This guy was the party — any family outing or get-together, he would make everybody laugh,” Derrubio said.
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The last time Derrubio saw his brother was in April 2001, when Dave traveled from New York to attend Al’s military retirement.
“April of that year, he had come down from New York to see my retirement, and that was the last time I saw him,” Derrubio said.
He described Dave as someone who was both generous and strong.
“He’d give you the shirt off his back — strong as an ox,” Derrubio said.
On Saturday morning, Derrubio will join 343 firefighters, 61 law enforcement officers, eight paramedics, and many civilians at Leadership Square in downtown Oklahoma City for the climb. Participants will honor the 343 firefighters who died on 9/11, with many wearing full gear during the event.
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“We pat the guys on the back that are there in full gear, because there’s going to be 343 local area firemen there,” Derrubio said.
Derrubio hopes the event will help keep the memory of 9/11 alive for future generations.
“Parents out there, let your kids know what happened on that day, and the importance of remembering what happened on that day,” Derrubio said.
The OKC National Memorial and Museum has identified six Oklahomans who were killed in the 9/11 terror attacks.