Trump gets South Tower steel gift and reveals what firefighters did to him on 9/11
WASHINGTON, DC: President Donald Trump received an American flag containing steel from the World Trade Center's South Tower during a 9/11 event outside the White House, marking a solemn moment as the country approaches the anniversary of the 2001 attacks.
The tribute prompted Trump to share a vivid personal account of being in New York City that day, including his recollection of two firefighters physically rushing him away from a building they feared could collapse.
🚨 JUST IN: President Trump just walked out to the 9/11 event outside the White House and they are gifting him an American flag that has STEEL from the SOUTH TOWER embedded in it
— Eric Daugherty (@EricLDaugh) September 8, 2026
What an honor for 47 🙏🏻
Trump was in NYC throughout 9/11 and it hit him VERY hard. He's never… pic.twitter.com/pfa25RRZqa
Trump, who was in New York during the attacks, said the experience remained deeply personal decades later.
Wearing a white USA hat at the event, the president described the chaos he witnessed and recalled bringing members of his construction crew to the area after the attacks.
Firefighters grabbed Trump and ran
Trump said he was near the US Steel Building when he and others became concerned that it could come down.
According to his account, the building was making loud creaking sounds, prompting two firefighters to intervene.
🚨 JUST IN: President Trump tells the story of how he was under the US Steel Building during 9/11 and firemen had to RUSH him out in case it collapsed
— Eric Daugherty (@EricLDaugh) September 8, 2026
"They grabbed me under the arms, they got to get out of here and they literally lifted me up. This is not easy to do. I'm big.… pic.twitter.com/oEMKckRqpe
"They grabbed me under the arms," Trump said.
"They said, 'You got to get out of here,' and they literally lifted me up."
The president joked that carrying him was "not easy to do" before praising the firefighters as "amazing."
Trump said he told them he could run on his own, but they feared the structure was about to collapse and moved him away themselves.
Trump said the building ultimately remained standing, but the incident stayed with him.
Trump recalls visiting Ground Zero
The president also spoke about taking his construction workers to the site shortly after the attacks. Trump said members of his crew joined him without hesitation, although he acknowledged there was little they could immediately do amid the devastation.
"It was raw," Trump said, describing the aftermath. "Nobody's seen anything like it ever."
The South Tower steel tribute came as Trump reflected on the scale of the attacks and the lasting impact they had on New York City and the country.
Nearly 3,000 people were killed on September 11, 2001, when hijacked planes struck the World Trade Center, the Pentagon and crashed in Pennsylvania.
Trump has previously spoken publicly about witnessing the aftermath in New York, where he was a real estate developer at the time.
Trump links tribute to today
🚨 JUST NOW: President Trump says 25 years after 9/11 we are BLOCKING the Islamic Republican of Iran from ever achieving a nuclear weapon
— Eric Daugherty (@EricLDaugh) September 8, 2026
"And I will tell you, we're right now fighting because we have a certain nation that wanted a nuclear weapon, they were very close to getting… pic.twitter.com/Xt5OFB7woX
During his remarks, Trump also connected the anniversary to his administration's current foreign policy, saying the United States was working to prevent Iran from obtaining a nuclear weapon.
He praised the US military and said the administration's blockade had been effective, describing Iran as having been "punished greatly."
