Ann Arbor Fire Chief Mike Kennedy says the emergency response reforms born from the Sept. 11 attacks risk fading as the responders who built them retire.

Kennedy made the remarks in an interview with WEMU's Ana Longoria ahead of the city's 25th anniversary 9/11 memorial, held Friday, Sept. 11, at Fire Station No. 1, 111 N. Fifth Ave. The Ann Arbor Fire Department and Police Department organized the ceremony, which began at 9 a.m. and was expected to last about 90 minutes.

Kennedy said the tragedy and loss of life on Sept. 11, 2001, led to changes in how emergency services communicate and work together. He pointed to unified command, a coordination system adopted to prevent the communication breakdowns between police and firefighters that plagued the response in New York City.

That system has become a core part of emergency response. But Kennedy said newer generations of emergency workers need to learn and carry on the reforms established by the older generation now slowly leaving the workforce.

"As time progresses on, we want to make sure that future generations are really aware of what happened that day and really the profound impact it did have on emergency services in the United States," Kennedy said.

The memorial honored all who died in the attacks, including 343 New York City firefighters and 60 officers from the New York City Police Department and Port Authority Police Department killed in the line of duty.

Police Chief Andre C. Anderson, City Administrator Milton Dohoney Jr., Mayor Christopher Taylor and U.S. Rep. Debbie Dingell also gave remarks, according to the city's announcement. The city livestreamed the ceremony on its Facebook page.

Kennedy's warning carries weight in Ann Arbor, where both the fire and police departments rely on unified command during multi-agency responses. As the responders who were on duty 25 years ago continue to retire, Kennedy said departments need to make sure the lessons of that day are passed along to the next generation of emergency workers.