Baltimore firefighters and members of the public will climb the equivalent of 110 flights of stairs at M&T Bank Stadium on September 5, carrying photographs of firefighters lost on September 11, 2001, as the city marks 25 years since the attacks. The Baltimore City Fire Department is hosting the event, which opens with a ceremony at 8:30 a.m. before the climb itself begins at 9 a.m. and wraps up by 12:30 p.m.
The announcement came via a post from Baltimore Fire, which detailed the climb's format and timing. Same-day registration opens at 7:30 a.m., though organizers note that registering does not guarantee a T-shirt. Those with questions about signing up can contact Lieutenant Kacey Merrill of Engine 20 at 410-733-6593, and registration itself is handled online through the National Fallen Firefighters Foundation's event page.
Join us Saturday, September 5, at M&T Bank Stadium for the 9/11 Memorial Stair Climb. Participants will climb 110 flights while carrying a photograph of a firefighter lost on September 11, 2001. The ceremony begins at 8:30 a.m., and the climb starts at 9:00 a.m. pic.twitter.com/5hp0AyWtpD
— Baltimore Fire (@BaltimoreFire) August 20, 2026
Retracing 110 Stories, One Stadium Loop at a Time
Participants will gather at 1101 Russell Street, Lot D, Gate D, and climb flights of stairs in the stadium's seating stands until they have covered a distance equal to 110 flights — the same number of stories that stood in each World Trade Center tower. Past Baltimore climbs at the stadium have asked participants to complete roughly two full loops of the upper-level stands, totaling close to 2,200 steps, according to CBS News. Climbers have historically tackled the stairs in running gear, weighted vests, or full turnout gear weighing up to 75 pounds, per the same report.
The tradition traces back to September 11, 2005, when five Denver firefighters scaled 110 flights in full gear to honor their fallen colleagues, an act that grew into a standardized national program after the National Fallen Firefighters Foundation partnered with organizers in 2010, according to the foundation. The Denver climb originally capped participation at 343 climbers, mirroring the number of FDNY members killed on 9/11. This year, the foundation has folded its flagship stadium climbs — including Baltimore's — into a broader nationwide push called #ForThe343, inviting people across all 50 states to complete stair climbs, post video tributes, and challenge others to take part in honor of the anniversary.
A Union Hall With Its Own History
After the climb, participants are invited to an after-party at Local 734, 1202 Ridgely Street, within walking distance of the stadium. The building is the union hall of IAFF Local 734, a former city firehouse built in 1910 and nicknamed the Gameday Firehouse; Engine Company 37 operated out of it until 1988, and the union acquired the property in 1991, according to IAFF Local 734. Proceeds from game-day events at the hall benefit the Baltimore Firefighters Widows and Orphans Fund, tying the post-climb gathering directly to support for families of fallen first responders.
The Baltimore City Fire Department, which is hosting the climb, serves more than 620,000 residents across a 92-square-mile area and responds to more than 235,000 emergency calls annually. The department has endured its own recent losses: five line-of-duty deaths between January 2022 and October 2023, including three firefighters killed in the collapse of a vacant rowhome on Stricker Street in January 2022 — the department's deadliest single incident since 1955 — and two more killed in an October 2023 fire on Linden Heights Avenue, according to FireRescue1.
Fundraising Feeds a Growing Health Crisis
Money raised through NFFF stair climbs nationally funds academic scholarships, grief support, and peer-led mental health programs for surviving families; a 2021 Baltimore climb drew roughly 400 participants and raised nearly $40,000 for those programs. The National Fallen Firefighters Foundation itself was created by Congress in 1992 and is headquartered in Emmitsburg, Maryland, relying on private donations and operating out of the National Emergency Training Center in Frederick County, where it also maintains the National Fallen Firefighters Memorial Park.
The stakes behind the fundraising have only grown. By late 2024, the FDNY reported that more than 360 of its members had died from 9/11-related illnesses tied to toxic Ground Zero exposure — a toll that has now surpassed the 343 firefighters killed the day of the attacks, with 32 additional names added to the World Trade Center Memorial Wall in Brooklyn in September 2024 alone, per the New York City government's health program newsletter. As of late 2025, more than 137,000 first responders and survivors were enrolled in the federally authorized World Trade Center Health Program, but the International Association of Fire Fighters has warned the program faces a projected funding shortfall by 2028 unless Congress acts to sustain it.
