Roswell Assistant Fire Marshal Ty Childress climbed 78 stories in full bunker gear Sunday, Aug. 23, at the 9/11 Memorial Stair Climb in New Orleans.

Childress has made the climb for more than a decade, according to the Roswell Fire Department's post on X. Each year he carries a card bearing the name of a fallen firefighter he climbs in honor of. The department said he still keeps a card for every firefighter he has honored across all those years of climbing.

The New Orleans Memorial Stair Climb draws firefighters, law enforcement officers and first responders from across the country. Participants wear full turnout gear and ascend 78 floors of a high-rise building, replicating the number of stories first responders reached inside the World Trade Center before the towers collapsed on Sept. 11, 2001.

A total of 343 New York City firefighters died that day, part of the 2,977 people killed in the attacks. Sept. 11, 2026, will mark the 25th anniversary.

The department's post highlighted Childress's consistency, noting he has participated for over a decade and still carries those cards as a personal act of remembrance.

Event photographer Shannon Atkinson, who documented the New Orleans climb on Instagram, described the scene:

Childress holds the rank of assistant fire marshal within the Roswell Fire Department.

The City of Roswell held a 9/11 commemorative ceremony at Roswell City Hall in 2024, beginning at 8:30 a.m. with a moment of silence at 8:46 a.m., the time the first plane struck the North Tower. Details for a 2026 ceremony have not been announced.

Residents who want to reach the Roswell Fire Department can call the non-emergency line at 770-640-4160.