Al DerRubio last saw his brother Dave in April 2001, when the FDNY firefighter traveled from New York to attend Al's military retirement ceremony. Five months later, Dave DerRubio died at the World Trade Center on September 11, 2001, one of 343 FDNY firefighters lost that day. Today, Al DerRubio will climb 110 flights of stairs in downtown Oklahoma City to honor his brother and everyone else lost in the attacks.
DerRubio, a Brooklyn native who now lives in Wichita Falls, Texas, is one of the participants joining 343 firefighters, 61 law enforcement officers, eight paramedics and civilians at Leadership Square for the event, according to KOCO. Many participants will wear full firefighter gear during the climb, and DerRubio said local-area firefighters will take part in full gear as well. He described his brother as generous and strong, and said Dave was the one who made everyone laugh at family outings.
DerRubio has four brothers who were FDNY firefighters, and all four responded when emergency calls went out on 9/11. He is the one who lost Dave that day, and he said he hopes the climb will keep the memory of 9/11 alive for future generations who never lived through it.
A 15th Year For Oklahoma City's Memorial Climb
The 15th annual OKC 9/11 Memorial Stair Climb at Leadership Square in Oklahoma City takes place Saturday, September 12, 2026, and begins with a memorial ceremony at 8:15 a.m. followed by the stair climb itself at 8:46 a.m., according to okcstairclimb.com. Proceeds from the climb support the Oklahoma Firefighters Foundation.
The 110-flight format traces back two decades. As Hoodline has reported, the national memorial stair climb tradition began in Denver on September 11, 2005, when five firefighters in full bunker gear scaled 110 floors of a downtown high-rise to honor fallen FDNY colleagues, a model that was standardized nationally by 2010. Similar climbs have played out this month in Dallas, Kansas City and Jacksonville.
Why Oklahoma City And New York Share A Bond
The connection between the two cities runs deeper than a shared stair-climb tradition. The cities' connection continued in the aftermath of 9/11.
Among the attacks' victims were six Oklahomans, according to Gaylord News. The Oklahoma City National Memorial and Museum has identified those six residents among the attacks' victims. Oklahoma has also remembered the victims.
Passing The Story To A New Generation
DerRubio urged parents to tell their children what happened on 9/11 and why remembering it matters, a message that echoes broader efforts this year across memorial institutions. The Oklahoma City National Memorial & Museum has collaborated with memorial museums in New York, Oslo, Paris and Spain.
That generational focus is personal for DerRubio, whose nephew Dominick DeRubbio is an executive director. Dave DerRubio served with FDNY Engine Company 226 in Brooklyn. For Al DerRubio, climbing 110 flights in Oklahoma City this week is one more way of making sure his brother's name, and those of his FDNY colleagues, aren't forgotten.
