Firefighter Liam Flaherty Does Cross-Country 'Tour of Duty' to Honor 9/11 Victims

Sept. 10, 2010 — -- Among the ranks of New York City's legendary 9/11-era firefighters, Liam Flaherty is by many accounts an exceptional hero. As the ninth anniversary of the terrorist attacks approaches, Flaherty is once again representing the very best on New York's 'Bravest,' honoring the memory of fellow servicemen and women lost during 9/11 in an exhausting cross-country race across 20 states in 31 days.

Like scores of other firefighters and rescue workers, Captain Flaherty of FDNY Rescue 2 in Brooklyn virtually lived at Ground Zero through the dark, devastating months that followed the September 11, 2001 attacks.

Flaherty organized his fellow firefighters in surveillance units and patrolled the area day after day, night after night looking for "anybody and anything" to bring closure to the families of those lost, former FDNY Department Chief Dan Nigro told ABCNews.com. "He was always there – every single day. Christmas Eve – he was there. New Year's Eve – he was there. Every single day for 9 months – he was there, and in my book he's an outstanding guy."

As part of the Tour of Duty, Flaherty is running thousands of miles to honor those whose lives were lost in service during the events of 9/11. Organized by the Australian Fire Brigade, the Tour kicked off last month in Los Angeles and will be ending at the World Trade Center at dawn on September 11th. It is the hope of each of the 36 Australian and American firefighters, police, and EMT's participating to remember the sacrifice of those who bravely responded to the call of duty.

Flaherty has demonstrated his remarkable dedication to other disasters around the nation and the world in the aftermath of 9/11, serving in a variety of relief efforts in the aftermath of Hurricane Katrina, and organizing the rescue of an 8 year old boy who had been trapped for 11 days in the rubble in Port-au-Prince. The moment was captured in an iconic photo that came to symbolize the small, miraculous victories in the wake of one of the worst natural disasters in decades. Flaherty's team also rescued the boy's 10 year old sister.