9/11 Attacks - 20 Year Anniversary - 2001-2021

Sadly, more have died from 9/11 related illness than died during the attacks.

 

My brother was on a 9:xx am American Airlines flight out of Newark. I got the call that morning that my sis-in-law thought he was on one of the planes. It was a long day before we got word he was fine after landing in Houston.

 

I was at a junior high golf match about 1/2 hour from Shanksville at a local resort. They shut the entire course down for a potential staging and LZ area. We seen the plane and the smoke . Crazy day ill never forget

 

https://www.smithsonianmag.com/history/raising-flag-ground-zero-second-look-180978592/

 

NEVER FORGOTTEN

 

Great article. Thanks for sharing this one.

 

I remember that day vividly. I was glued to the television and took the day off work. It made me sick, I cried, hard. The only thing that compared since, was the loss of my parents. I will never forget those who died on this day, and those who died there after because of it. Directly and indirectly.

 

I was getting ready for school. Senior year in HS, and my Mom was a news junkie. I got up early, made her a pot of coffee, and turned the TV on to the news. It was breaking news that a "small plane" had hit a building in NYC. I was watching the burning, smoking footage live and wondering how a little cessna did something like that. You know, small plane as the news had said. Wasn't 20 seconds after turning it on that I saw the live footage of the second plane impact. My stomach sank because I knew it wasn't an accident at that point. Still went to school, but nothing was taught. We just watched and discussed. Some of the girls were shaken up and crying. Most of the students were angry and wanted answers.

I think surreal is the word for it. It's forever etched in my memory, but it still doesn't seem like I was really present.


Thoughts and prayers go out to all those affected by the actions of those animals that day, and thanks are given to those who heroically stopped the flight over PA. How much worse would it have been if they had not been so brave?

 

I remember specifics of where I was and what I was doing during the Challenger accident, the Oklahoma City bombings, the Columbia accident, and 9/11 sticks with me the most…my kids weren’t born yet, and the world they grew up in is vastly different than the world I grew up in.

 

It was definitely a day I pray never happens again. Very spooky to see thousands of aircrafts on our scopes go from solidly covered to only a handful of military planes in the skies in just a few short hours. It was a very dark day in the Tracon room in more ways than one !

I'm not sure the word is happy but relieved for the families living with the loss but finally having some closure !.

reported today....

 

This is my uncle Chic, he was the pilot of America Airlines Flight 77. I too know exactly where I was on 9/11.
https://www.pentagonmemorial.org/explore/biographies/capt-charles-f-burlingame-iii-usnr-retired

https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Charles_Burlingame

 

It changed my life forever. I was about to retire and live the good life and instead spent three of the next four years in Iraq. That lead to my leukemia I've been fighting for the last twelve years.

 

https://youtu.be/Nj9Fa6IFM8Q

 

Sorry for your loss Jody.

 

Sorry to hear this, stay strong.

 

Yeah. My oldest was 3-1/2 months old. I was at work (one of the first ones there), walked into the break room and saw the TV on. Looked at it, said “what the fuck” and called my wife to tell her she needed to turn on the news.
When the second plane hit the other tower on live TV (a bunch of us were now standing there watching), our owner said “everyone go home. Be with your families” and locked the office. The towers came down as I was driving home, dumbfounded and listening to the radio.

When I got home, my wife and I both said that the world we grew up in would never be the same for our children.

 

I remember it was a Tuesday and I was in Selection out at Camp Mackall They brought all of us into the classroom/auditorium and let us watch on the big screen what had just happened. Then some of the people that had relatives were released. The Cadre didn't know what to do with us initially. We picked a lot of weeds, emptied the 200lbs duffel bags that were used during team week. There were all kinds of rumors. On the 13th I cracked my calcaneus (happy birthday to me) and spent the next 8 or 9 months healing up.
2 years later I got my wish. There's a lot more to the story but, some of its not to be shared

 

Unfortunately you both were right.

 

I was in the hanger. Everyone went in to watch the TVs in the break/meeting room because one plane had hit the first tower. At that point everyone was thinking/hoping that it was an accident. As soon as the second plane hit everyone knew that it was war and that this was going to be for real and not some JAT exercise. We had no idea how much it would eventually influence all of our lives in this country.

 

This day forever altered my life. It was the reason I join the service and went overseas 10 years later. I was in 3rd grade, Mrs Cain's class. I remember it like it was yesterday. I came home from school and my dad was installing doors on the house but when I got there everyone was sitting watching the TV. They just kept replaying the scene of the planes flying into the towers. I remember it crystal clear.

God Bless America. Land of the free. Home of the brave.

Rest in Peace to all lives lost on that day, and every life since.

 

I was in Ft Polk JRTC the next 6 years would be the hardest for my wife , 5 years after I got out I went back to Afghanistan for another 10 years its been a long road

 

I was working a remote trail, installing water bars. At the time I didn’t have a cell phone. I always carried a two way radio, but like all other things we work with in the state, the battery life was sub par (1/2 hour tops) so we left them off and only used them for emergencies.

I honestly didn’t know anything had happened until about 4PM that day. I then had to go to my second job as a gas jockey on one of the rest stops on I90. Lots of people stuck there as bridges and roads were closed. I did not see actual footage until about 2AM when I finally got home from work. Up at 6AM to pack in case our SAR team got called out. I guess in hindsight for my health it’s lucky we never did

 

I was on a job site removing some trees when the homeowner came out and said a plane just hit one of the towers, we kept working and just thought it was a small plane and didn’t think much of it, then she came out and said a second plane hit and we then knew something was wrong. The entire crew set in this ladies house speechless for a hour. I will never forget, I was 25.

 

Like others, I was walking into my 3rd grade class. Mrs. Will had the tv on and I remember looking up at it and just seeing buildings smoking. I thought it was some sort of star wars movie or something. Our teacher tried to discuss it but it didnt really set in until I was home and my mom sat me down and explained.

I now understand when others talk about tragic events and know exactly where they were.

 

9th grade biology class. 2nd period. Teacher walked in told us to turn the TV on. Move to 4th period German class and she said those buildings were made to not fall. 20 minutes later in same class we watched them fall. I'll never forget.

 

Posted this on another thread before I was informed about this thread, sorry to any repeat readers.

I was traveling at the time going to government contracting class when the first plane hit. At that time they made it sound like it was a small plane. Got to my class when a roar of a jet came across the building and a low whomp could be heard, everyone just stopped talking and then the NSA and other acronym governmental workers phones started to ring. It was then when all hell broke loose with fire truck and police sirens started to fly past our building. The NSA guy came back in the class and announced we were under attack and that we should immediately leave the area. The building we were in was two blocks away from the pentagon. Lost all cell service at that time so I couldn’t call my wife and traffic was jammed packed. People were driving onto sidewalks to get around stalled vehicles. The usual 2 hour commute turned into 5 1/2 hour drive. Got home to a wife who was a wreck and after I got her settled down I went out for a 3 mile run just to get things straightened in my mind. Terrible day, and day I wished I was still in the service to get my pound of flesh. To all those hero’s who made the ultimatesacrifice, those wounded, those who served in all of our military services, fire departments and the members in blue, I salute you.

 

My granddaughter turned two years old on that day. Born 9/11/99. She doesn't remember it, either, but her older brother, who was four at the time, asked my daughter, "Mommy, didn't those airplanes see the buildings?"