A change of plans
9/11 attacks inspired education major to become firefighter
SAN LUIS, Ariz. – Angel Ramirez had other plans for himself. Then on Sept. 11, 2001, hijacked jetliners slammed into the World Trade Centers, bringing down the Twin Towers and killing thousands of people.
Ramirez, today fire chief in San Luis, Ariz., was in his last year at Arizona State University, studying toward a career in education.
“It’s funny because I had gotten a scholarship to play baseball at the university, and when I got there, they told me, ‘You have to
choose a major,’ and I said, ‘I want to be a teacher.’” Ramirez recalled. “But on the day of 9/11 I got up and was astonished to see what was happening.”
The attacks led him to a new calling.
“9/11 was something that changed my focus. I saw what firefighters do for people, how they help them and how important a career in firefighting is,” he said.
“Going out to help in an emergency, to me is something that is incredible.
For me, it is very special work.”
Ramirez went ahead and finished his studies, and he taught math at San Luis High School for two years beginning in 2002. But, meanwhile, he took classes at Arizona Western College’s firefighting training academy. He found an important mentor in Cesar Dominguez, then a captain of the Yuma Fire Department and his neighbor in Gadsden, where Ramirez had grown up.
In 2004, Ramirez fulfilled his dream when he joined the San Luis Fire Department. Many of his classmates at the AWC academy sought firefighting positions with departments in larger cities, but Ramirez believed he could make a bigger difference in San Luis.
Ramirez worked on the side as a substitute teacher for several years , but he insists he’s never regretted making the career change. Even before he began his university studies, firefighters used to get his attention, he said.
“But I never imagined that I would end up being a firefighter. What happened on 9/11 changed everything for me. I knew that I had to become a firefighter to serve the people, and even now I don’t fail to get excited in getting on a fire truck and going out to an emergency.”
Among the nearly 3,000 killed in the terrorist attacks, 343 were firefighters who were coming to the aid of those trapped in the Twin Towers.
The attacks led firefighting agencies to improve tactics for entering burning buildings, to upgrade equipment and better monitor the health of personnel, given that New York firefighters suffered lingering effects of the 9/11, including cancer.
“I hope people always remember those who died, that they not be forgotten after 20 years. Many lessons came out of that tragedy, tactics for responding to emergencies were greatly improved, but it also made firefighters in general stronger.”
In January 2019,
Ramirez became fire chief in San Luis, a city he says he will always consider his home.