Two large steel pieces salvaged from the World Trade Center after the Sept. 11 attacks were delivered to the city of Miramar Monday, where they will become part of a memorial.
The pieces weigh about 4,100 pounds each and were delivered from New York on a special contracted flatbed truck.
Once they reached Miramar, they were taken to an undisclosed location. They will be on display at the Miramar Cultural Arts Center early next year and until they are placed permanently at the memorial, which is set to be completed by Sept. 11, 2012.
Mohamed Zakir Hussein, who drove the steel from New York, said it was different than transporting regular cargo, the South Florida Sun Sentinel reported.
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"It is something that is in your mind, with you in your heart, but you have to just put it in your past; it has more of an effect on you if you start thinking about it, " he said.
The Professional Firefighters of Miramar Benevolent Association and the Miramar Police Benevolent Association will raise the money to construct the memorial.
The pieces were donated by the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey to the firefighters’ association. The process to apply and get the steel took 15 months.
Miramar police officer Michael Yepez was a New York City police officer when the attacks occurred.
He said he saw the second plane hit the tower as he was coming into the Brooklyn precinct that day, the newspaper reported.
"It was a feeling of emptiness, because I knew at that point, it wasn't an accident," he said. "I could have been standing on top of that piece looking for people."
Yepez escorted the flatbed truck the final miles of it’s journey.
