A firefighter from Oldham has said it was "such an honour" after he attended a ceremony marking the anniversary of 9/11 on behalf of the region's fire service.

Aaron Lee travelled to New York to represent Greater Manchester Fire and Rescue Service (GMFRS) at the private ceremony at the Ground Zero site on Wednesday (September 11) morning.

Writing on social media, Aaron, from Chadderton, wrote that it was "such an honour" to have represented GMFRS at the event as he stood alongside representatives of the Fire Department of New York (FDNY) and the New York Police Department.

In a separate post on X, formerly known as Twitter, Aaron said he would "always be grateful and humbled" to have watched the march performed by the FDNY Bagpipe Band at Ten House in Manhattan.

In another moving tweet, Aaron shared how he was overcome with emotion when, at 9.03am, the memorial fell silent as the bell marked the exact minute the second plane hit the south tower.

In response, Mayor of Greater Manchester Andy Burnham thanked Aaron for representing GMFRS at the ceremony.

In July, Aaron received the Chief Fire Officers Commendation for his services, fundraising and volunteering to help the community.

Aaron is known for organising the annual Manchester Remembers charity football match at Boundary Park each year.

It marks the anniversary of the Manchester Arena Bombing and raises funds for the Manchester Remembers Foundation, which supports the victims and families of the 2017 terrorist incident.