Wednesday marks 23 years since Sept. 11, 2001 — a day of infamy that saw evil strike the heart of New York, but also witnessed uncommon bravery and love from those who sacrificed their lives to save countless people.
As New York and America observe this solemn anniversary, it is important to look back on the images from that day in which terrorists commandeered commercial airliners and used them to strike the World Trade Center and the Pentagon — killing nearly 3,000 people in the process, and bringing the Twin Towers to their demise in horrific fashion. The murderers would have hit another target in Washington, DC, had it not been for the valiance of passengers aboard United Airlines Flight 93, who fought the hijackers that ultimately crashed the plane in Pennsylvania.
With the passage of so many years and generations of Americans having matured in that time, it is important to look back upon that horrific morning to “never forget” not only the destruction wrought but also the heroic efforts to save so many people — and the unity forged between Americans in the days and weeks that followed which ultimately proved that the terrorists had failed in their goal to divide and subdue our country.
The horrific morning
Before 9/11, the Twin Towers of the World Trade Center had become the symbol of our nation’s economic power — standing all above Lower Manhattan as the hub of commerce and business that employed tens of thousands from across the tri-state area.
In 102 minutes on Sept. 11, 2001, on what had started out as a beautiful, late summer morning, terrorists destroyed the World Trade Center in one of the most horrifying episodes in history. The attackers crashed hijacked passenger jets into each tower — American Airlines Flight 11 in the north tower first, followed by United Airlines Flight 175 in the south tower nearly 20 minutes later — setting off massive office fires in each building.
Witnesses on the ground watched in horror as trapped victims above the impact zones began leaping to their deaths. Thousands of first responders — police officers, firefighters, paramedics — converged on the World Trade Center to save as many lives as possible.
Hundreds of firefighters made a strenuous march up the towers’ stairwells, while thousands of victims descended the stairs, to reach the fire zone and put the infernos out.
No one could have imagined what would occur next.
The South Tower of the World Trade Center fell just before 10 a.m. that day, followed a half-hour later by the North Tower. In 10 seconds, each 110-story building collapsed into massive clouds of death and debris that settled upon Lower Manhattan.
The horrors experienced in New York that morning were compounded by news out of Washington that the Pentagon had been struck by another hijacked airline — American Airlines Flight 77 — at about 9:37 a.m. that morning.
Moments after the South Tower fell, a fourth hijacked jet, United Airlines Flight 93, crashed in rural Shanksville, PA — thanks in large part to passengers who rebelled against their hijackers and thwarted another attack in our nation’s capitol.
New York suffered the worst losses in the Sept. 11, 2001 terrorist attacks. Over the following eight months, construction workers and first responders combed the ruins at what was then called “Ground Zero,” removing debris while also recovering victims who died.
More than two decades removed from the attacks, the death toll connected to 9/11 continues to grow today — as many of those who labored at Ground Zero have suffered debilitating illnesses related to their work in the recovery mission.
The Fire Department, for example, lost 343 members during the attacks — and another 360 members in 23 years due to 9/11-related illnesses, according to the Uniformed Firefighters Association.
Ground Zero was finally cleared of World Trade Center rubble in May 2002, and over the next decade, the site was rebuilt into a modern center of business.
The Twin Towers footprints were preserved as part of the National September 11 Memorial and Museum — where the heroes and victims of 9/11 are honored and the history of that fateful day is preserved so all may “never forget.”
Images provided by Reuters.
