Remembering 9/11
Sad time for all, many lives from around the world lost, many families affected and seeing today a segment on those that helped in the disaster & survived, from firemen to police etc still suffering from lung problems and emotional problems, you are all in our thoughts and prayers as well as all the families that lost loved ones. We shall remember and never forget what happened. God bless everyone. |
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| Hard to believe it's been 5 years. I still remember Jake was only 3 months old, and I spent the entire day crying & holding him while glued to the tv. It's still hard to grasp what actually happened that day.
My thoughts today will be with the families of those who were lost and the people who escaped the attacks and helped in the aftermath. |
| It is still too fresh in my memory. I remember seeing it on the tv monitors at work, then everyone just hovering around all the tvs as we watched the second plane hit. You could have heard a pin drop around here all day. Our son had just started his sophomore year of college, and I vividly remember wanting him home NOW. We settled for a long phone call where we both just cried all the way through it.
Friends of ours have a daughter whose company had offices in the WTC. The only reason she wasn't one of the victims is that she stopped to see a client that morning before going in to the office. The anguish her parents went through until they could talk to her was unbearable. This was printed in an inter-company publication this morning. Very appropriate. ONE As the soot and dirt and ash rained down, We became one color. As we carried each other down the stairs of the burning building, We became one class. As we lit candles of waiting and hope We became one generation. As the firefighters and police officers fought their way into the inferno We became one gender. As we fell to our knees in prayer for strength, We became one faith. As we whispered or shouted words of encouragement, We spoke one language. As we gave our blood in lines a mile long, We became one body. As we mourned together the great loss We became one family. As we cried tears of grief and loss We became one soul. As we retell with pride of the sacrifice of heroes We become one people. We are One color One class One generation One gender One faith One language One body One family One soul One people We are The Power of One. We are United. We are America. - Cheryl Sawyer, a Professor at the University of Houston–Clear Lake in the Counseling Department |
| Thank you, Lisa. 9/11 was quite traumatic for most everyone here. Being a member of the Financial community, my company had offices in WTC and I had been in the buildings on several occasions. We live about 200 miles away from New York City.
I remember on the day of the attacks I was home with a bad back. Joan had left for work and called me on the phone to tell me that there was a problem. I turned on the TV and saw the images that are now so infamous, before the second plane struck. I heard the commentators suggesting it had been a commuter plane and it was likely an accident. A commuter plane? Aren't these people from New York? Don't they know the size of those buildings? Don't they see the outline of the plane in the building? A commuter plane's wingspan wouldn't cover 3 windows or three floors. It must be a commercial aircraft. How could a commercial craft be that low over the city, flying in that direction? How could it not avoid the only obstacle between it and the water? Immediately I assumed terrorism, but hoped I was wrong. Then suddenly I saw a plane approaching in the background. Long TV lenses are notorious for distorting distances, but this plane did appear to be headed toward the towers. It disappeared behind the towers and my breath caught, then --nothing. Phew, and illusion. Then the fireball. Bastards. I recall seeing lots of smoke from the first attack and lots of fire after the second, at least that's how I remember it now. I remembered a conversation I had had with my brother about building homes with steel. I recall asking him since steel wasn't that much more expensive and provided a huge benefit in creating open spaces, how come more steel wasn't used in residential construction? He told me that one reason might be that in a fire wood carrying beams can last a long time and be quite badly burned but still survive, and survive well enough so that after the fire is put out they can simply be scraped down and reinforced and the building saved. Steel beams however, would quickly sag in a big fire, and make the house structurally unsound. I knew the towers would fall when that big fire wasn't extinguished. I thought of my former colleague's dad, who worked on the 95th floor in the tower that had been bombed in 1993. I thought of all of my colleagues on the 25th floor. I thought of a nice lunch I had once in Sfuzzi. I'm not sure why I thought about Sfuzzi, it was just a "nice" lunch. I saw one of the towers' top leaning a bit to one side. Is the building going to fall over? How many buildings is it going to fall over? Then the first collapse. My God that happened so fast, and it looked like it went straight down. Is it possible that the other buildings in the area will be OK? Then the second, and the same thoughts. Alas, later we find out that while they came "straight down" there was enough out to the sides to take 5 more buildings down with them. I recall seeing a "small" building collapse some hours later, and the commentator said it was a fifty story building. Fifty stories! That's the height of our tallest buildings here in Boston, the John Hancock Tower and the Prudential Tower. That 50 story building looked so small in NYC. I recall doing a lot of crying, but never more strongly as when Prime Minister Blair of Great Britain spoke: Quote: Statement By British Prime Minister Tony Blair on U.S. Attacks
BBC Radio News 11 September 2001 "As for those that carried out these attacks, there are no adequate words of condemnation. Their barbarism will stand as their shame for all eternity. As I said earlier, this mass terrorism is the new evil in our world. The people who perpetrate it have no regard whatever for the sanctity or value of human life, and we the democracies of the world, must come together to defeat it and eradicate it. This is not a battle between the United States of America and terrorism, but between the free and democratic world and terrorism. We, therefore, here in Britain stand shoulder to shoulder with our American friends in this hour of tragedy, and we, like them, will not rest until this evil is driven from our world." Prime Minister Blair Says Britain Stands Shoulder to Shoulder with America "Shoulder to shoulder". The United States needs comforting. We've been attacked at home. We've got a friend who remembers our sacrifices when they were in need. Thank you Mr. Prime Minister. Thank you Tony. It's been 5 years now. I still haven't called my former colleague to see if his dad was working in the WTC at the time. My former company had moved their offices out of WTC, so I don't know if I personally knew anyone who perished. There is a list of those that died on 9/11/2001 here: http://www.september11victims.com/september11victims/victims_list.htm That site is pretty busy today, so here is a copy of their page, just for today: http://www.oes.org/victims_list.html One thing most people don't realize is that since the two planes that hit the towers took off from Boston's Logan airport, many of the people who died that day were from Massachusetts. The news reports of locals missing and killed went on for a long time here. |
| My memories of 9/11 consist of me being a volunteer firefighter 1.5 hours away from NYC. When the first building collapsed, I thought mostly about the first responders that I knew would have still been in the towers.
Our fire company assembled that morning, as well as everyone else in our county, to head up to NY to help. I remember filling the engines up with coolers of water & dusk masks and telling myself to bring lots of extra pairs of socks because we didn't know how long we would be up there. Our caravan of firetrucks got called back as we were halfway near our destination. There were too many responding already and it was realized that there was not anyone to rescue... I later learned that my friend's husband was the co-pilot on Flight 93. I donate some of my time doing design work for a scholarship foundation that she started in his honor to help kids get scholarships to learn how to fly - http://www.leroywhomerjr.org . Every year since, they have awarded significant financial scholarships and the kids have gone on to get their pilot's licenses. Thanks for letting me share my thoughts, I don't ever want to forget about the attack. |
| I was riding ambulance full time that year. I remember all of us standing in the lounge watching it on tv and being amazed! About half an hour after the first plane hit we were emptying local hospitals so that we could receive patients from New York in order for those hospitals to deal with all the casualties. The sad part is that that wasn't necessary. I'd have rather seen tons of patients coming in than all those bodybags going out.
The weird thing is that a lot of people were either off work or late for work that day. My husband's band used to play at Windows on the World which was the club at the top of the Trade Center. The booking agent, who had never been late to work a day in his life, had every possible thing come up to make him late. Couldn't find his keys, had to change clothes from a spill, lots of traffic. I've heard tons of stories like that too, now they are pretty funny and miraculous. Then again, I've also heard tons of stories from the task force guys who went up there. None of them are pretty. |
I was at a job interview gone wrong at the time. The person who had called me had lied to me about the position and when I got there, I found I was in the middle of one of those group interviews for telemarketing. I went in to collect the free bagel and figured I'd get up as soon as the lecture started. The first thing the guy says is "I heard that a plane crashed into the World Trade Center in New York, but I'm sure they'll get that taken care of."  I always remember those words verbatim because they couldn't have been a more inadequate way to describe what had happened. |
| I remember the day started with me turning on the news early in the morning as I always do. Reports came in of the first tower and of the shock, horror and sadness I felt viewing the life coverage. When the second plane hit it was as if everything was surreal.
Minutes later I had to go to work at an Elementary school down the street and told my co-workers what I just viewed. Just as others have said - people were in disbelief. That evening I placed numerous tiny candles in my windows that overlook my street. I noticed all my neighbors did the same. That scene will always be etched in my mind...the entire street , all the homes with candles in their windows in honor of the people involved. The next day and days that followed American flags were hung from homes, sign post, buildings and streets to show support to our neighbors. The news flashed to France, Germany, the UK, and many other countries in the world doing the same thing. Oprah had a show a few weeks later in which she showed the outpouring of love from all parts of the world as at that moment in time there was no boarders - this was about innocent lives and humanity. Six months later, I found myself working in NY and stood above ground zero as it was now called, looking down at that massive hole.Meeting people who lived near Battery Park and hearing first hand the accounts of that day. It still seems surreal. Marianne |
| I remember hearing from a co-worker that a small plane hit the WTC and we all went to the conference rooms to watch on CNN. During a meeting the tv was left on and we all watched in horror as the first tower fell.
My boss, who disliked flying more than anything, was in NYC for a meeting and was to fly back that morning. I remember trying unsuccessfully to reach him via cellphone all day. Later he told me his battery died and a total stranger allowed him to use his charger so he could make calls home. Nobody was allowed out of the city but he managed to connect with a collegue who let him stay at his home for a few days until he could arrange for a rental car. I remember standing outside of our office building in Indianapolis, very close to the airport, and the clear blue skies being so quiet and void of any aircraft. Wondering how this could be the same sky that also hung over NY and looked totally different on tv. |
| I grew up in Bergen County, NJ. Just 30 minutes from the City.
From my town you could see the entire NY Skyline. I loved the Skyline so much that I had a hard time going to College in Long Island because I would not be able to see the skyline on a daily basis. Mom bought me a poster for my dorm room. It was a picture of the Brooklyn Bridge with the towers in the background. So I took a piece of the skyline with me. After college I moved back to NJ and was working for my Dad. So I was back to seeing my treasured view everyday. Then I bought a house in Middletown, NY. I even told my ex-husband that we could not move too far away, because I needed to be able to see the skyline. I was close enough, only 45 minutes to my Parents house and there it was. Mom and Dad then moved to California. The tried to talk me into it, but I said I could not leave my Skyline. Even though I was getting divorced and would be all alone in NY. On Sept 7th 2001, (my Birthday) Billy who was my Boyfriend at the time, came to NY to spend my B-day with me. We had planned on going to the City on the 9th so he could see it up close as he had never been there. Well we never made it to the city. So on the 10th Billy suggested we take a picture of us in front of a art piece that I had depicting the skyline. Since we didn't make it there. What is next to us in the picture? The twin towers. I then brought Billy to Newark airport for his flight. His flight was delayed to very heavy thunderstorms moving through the area and they plane sat on the runway for hours. He was one of the last people to see the skyline intact. Also at night. He said he kept looking out the window, because he was in awe of the skyline. I called him the next morning. A friend had called and told me to turn on the news. The first tower had already been hit. I immediately called Billy and woke him up. After that I ran over to my neighbor's Crystal and Jamie's house. She and her husband were my best friends. Her husband works in the city. I asked her where he was working and she said a few block from the WTC. He was a pipe fitter and they had been working in the streets right below. She couldn't get ahold of him. We sat there and cried together. Hitting redial on both of our cell phones trying to get a hold of him. Finally we were able to get a hold of her husband who was a complete mess. He said they thought there was a ticker tape parade after the first plane hit. He said it was so high up that there wasn't really any noise on the ground. Papers just rained down everywhere. He picked up a piece of paper that landed nearby and saw that it was an office document. Then he noticed more papers and he went over to look and saw a piece of a finger. That is when he looked up and saw the flames. Everyone wanted to leave, but with the street wide open the bosses would not let them leave until the road was closed up. The poor guy was so tramatized. He saw people jumping. I believe they got out of there after the first tower fell. Finally I got through to him on my cell phone and we found out he was OK! I stayed with his wife. We did a lot of crying together. We just didn't think the towers would fall. Finally about 3 hrs later Jamie arrived home. I went home to leave them alone. Jamie was crying as soon as he walked in the house. Our community really stood together. We had candle light vigils and all held hands. None of us new each other, but we all felt connected. I already had sold my house, had planned on moving to CA but had delayed the closing because I wasn't sure I could leave my Skyline. Then my skyline was gone.  I moved to CA in Nov 2001. |
| I had several business acquaintances killed in the second tower and one high school friend killed in the Pentagon. Family members, good friends and colleagues who have horror stories of trying to get out of downtown after the Towers collapsed. I lived 3 blocks from the World Trade Center for 2 years and worked across the street at Bankers Trust Plaza, which has never reopened due to the structural damage and contamination it took that day. I've been back to ground zero many times and it breaks my heart. I think about 9/11 every single time I get on a plane - and I fly 4 or 5 times a month. Every single time I board a plane I call my husband and tell him I love him, just in case. I'm not being melodramatic, I really do. |
| Wonderful stories, thank you.
Mine is rather mudane, I was swimming the whole time it happened. Back then I was swimming long distance every morning, beginning at 6 a.m. I'd swim until 9 a.m. Usually the life guards had the radio on rock or country stations which was just noise under water. This day when my mind would return to the real world and I'd listen to the garbled sounds I realized it was talk radio. Strange I thought. When I popped my head up a 9 a.m. my friend told me what happened . Immediate my mind zapped back to a book I had read a few years before about terrorism and how the 1993 attempt was a great embarassment to radical Islamists. My first words to my friend shocked her, "I've been expecting something like that." I yearn for those few weeks when the nation pulled together, showing how strong we can be in unity. (well except for our university professor who showed up to class that day and said, "anyone who bombs the pentagon has my vote.") He lost his job over that, but he's still around, last seen over the weekend at a local coffee shop sporting a t-shirt reading "Hitler did many good things, too." |
SheepieBoss wrote: Wonderful stories, thank you.
I yearn for those few weeks when the nation pulled together, showing how strong we can be in unity." I have never been so proud of our country after that happened. The day it happened and right after it happened, I remember I just spent the entire time watching the news footage, Jason got called by his unit and they told him to have his deployment bag ready (he didn't leave until the following January for OEF), and I was just holding onto Jakob as much as possible asking myself how I could have brought a baby into this world. Then, I saw the outpouring of support and love (mostly) coming from everywhere and how our country united together, and it made me glad that I brought a child into such a caring world.  |
| We will always remember that horrible day. The loss, suffering, fear and the shock. We will forever remember those that died, and those that suffered great loss that day, without ever having known them, for they represent us all.
We will always remember, but will we do what it takes to prevent it from ever happening again. Will we join as one and support our troops that are overseas fighting those that struck out against us? But what about the innocent people caught up in the middle of this war? Remember 9/11? They were innocent too. May God be with all of you that directly suffered from that attack, and to our nation as a whole, for it suffered a great loss that day. The loss of security and freedom. God bless America. |
| At the time I was working in downtown Toronto, in the building right next to the American Embassy. I was in a meeting and then word came out of the first plane. We all sat around a television, in tears, shaking, hugging...totally in shock.
Because of our location the buildings in the area were all closed and evacuated, and streets were all blocked off. The next day there were tons of flowers and cards etc in front of the embassey. They kept piling up every day, and at lunch time business people from the surrounding building would go stand in front of the display, talking quietly, reading the letters, praying, reflecting. The flowers and cards etc spread the lengthof the block, and piled up filling the lawn between the sidewalk and the building. I brought a card that my son's grade 6 class made and signed with a huge banner, and placed it on the pile. It was all very sad, and I still get the shivers remembering that day, and the days that followed. Today at his now high school they played "Where Were You When the World Stopped Turning" by Alan Jackson. That song always brings tears to my eyes. May peace someday come to the friends and families of the victims who lost their lives that day...... |
| Your stories are so touching and I truly empahize for the families and friends of loved ones who perished or were traumatized by the World Trade Center attacks. Thankfully, I didn't personally know anyone affected by this awful tragedy.
I had recently started a new job and they hooked up TVs in some of the conference rooms. I couldn't believe what I was seeing. This was really the first time in my life where news footage had such an effect on me. Up until that point, I'd cry at animal stories, but never anything about humans. For brief moments when I watched the footage of people falling, I had overwhelming feelings of anxiety and couldn't believe something like this could ever happen. I was young and naive prior to this event. After a few days, I didn't turn on the tvs at all as each time I would cry. After 4 long years of dating, Steve had proposed to me on Sept 9, 2001. Our one day of excitement, ended quickly as I couldn't feel happy when the world was in such agony. In order to take our mind off of the events, we started planning our wedding to keep occupied. |
| I had just got off work from my night shift at the hospital. Normally I go straight home, feed the animals and go to bed. This day, I was meeting my friend Mary for breakfast before I went home. I was driving to the restraunt. She called my cell phone and said "turn on your radio". I did, and couldn't believe my ears. I had never been to NY, and am not into the financial world. I didn't really even know what the WTC and the twin towers was. I went home and watched TV footage of the horrors - my nursing background and being a certified trauma nurse made me aware of the horrible things happening to the people there.
I still can't believe it was 5 yrs ago - it seems much less than that. |
| I sat all day in my PJ's, did not go to work and watched and weeped as the horror of the day unfolded. I think everyone around the world can remember exactly where they were and what they were doing when tragedy struck and pure evil unleashed itself onto innocent people.
The world all cried together as one in sadness and disbelief. I know since that day, the world changed forever, we all grew up a little more, we all lost our innocence and all felt the rage that people can do this to others. A new fear reared it's ugly head to all corners of the globe. London, Australia (Bali Bombings), Spain and the terror continues, but life goes on and people should never stop living it to the fullest or evil wins. |
| I was working at the hospital that morning. I was in a patients room when the TV brought the news, several of us stood around the TV and watched the second plane as it hit, in horror. The worst part of the morning was sitting at the nurses station just a short while later next to one of the interns who was on his cell phone with his brother who was in the World Trade Center, their call was abruptly halted and his brother didn't make it out. |
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