Gov. Kotek orders public flags lowered to half-staff to mark Patriot Day, in remembrance of victims of 9/11 attacks
![Placed in front of the Crook County Courthouse in Prineville: 2,977 flags representing the lives lost in the tragic events of 9/11.](https://ktvz.b-cdn.net/2024/09/2977-flags-9-11-Crook-County-Courthouse-Steve-Peeler-9-10.jpg)
SALEM, Ore. (KTVZ) — Governor Tina Kotek ordered all flags at Oregon public institutions to be flown at half-staff until sunset Wednesday, pursuant to President Biden’s Presidential Proclamation of September 11, 2024 as Patriot Day and National Day of Service and Remembrance, and in remembrance of the nearly 3,000 civilians and first responders who were killed in the 2001 terrorist attacks.
Governor Kotek issued the following statement in remembrance of 9/11:
“Today, we remember those who lost their lives on September 11, 2001, the families who grieve for them still, and the courage and selflessness of the first responders that day.” Kotek said. “As we honor those we lost, we also honor the kindness and strength so many across the country and world showed in the face of tragedy; they showed us the best of who we can be.”
The U.S. Flag Code governs the circumstances under which governors are allowed to lower the American flag. Governors are allowed to lower flags for first responders who have died in the line of duty.