20 Years Later: Remembering September 11, 2001
This year marks 20 years since a coordinated terror attack sent two planes crashing into the Twin Towers and a third into the Pentagon along with a fourth barreling down into a field in Shanksville, Pennsylvania after the passengers fought back. On that day, a total of 2,977 people were killed including 2,753 at the World Trade Center; 184 at the Pentagon; and the 40 people who were on Flight 93. In all, 72 law enforcement officers and 343 members of the New York City Fire Department perished on September 11, 2001. Below are the events of that tragic day as remembered by the staff of Officer Media Group, along with Endeavor Business Media’s CEO.
Chris Ferrell, CEO, Endeavor Business Media
My wife was chaperoning our kindergartener son’s class trip to an apple orchard so I was going to head to the office late after dropping off our younger two kids at preschool. I had the morning news on while I waited until it was time to take them when I saw the Today Show switch to coverage about a plane hitting the World Trade Center. I stayed glued to the TV while watching the rest of the events of that day unfold. Periodically, I called my wife with updates as I watched the unthinkable happen in New York City, Washington, D.C., and Pennsylvania. I think I needed the reassurance of knowing my wife and son were safe as much as she needed to hear the news updates.
Twenty years later, I still vividly recall the mix of emotions that hit me that day. I was horrified at the loss of innocent life as well as awed by the bravery of the first responders who ran into those buildings to try to save lives. At the same time, I felt the uncertainty that came with knowing that the world had changed. Our façade of American invincibility was damaged. I remember thinking my young children would grow up in a world where terror could be lurking anywhere.
Today, the children growing up in the aftermath of 9/11 have shown their resilience and so has America as a nation. There is no doubt that part of that resilience is knowing that there are men and women who dedicate themselves to protecting us from harm and others who dedicate themselves to taking care of us if harm comes our way. But we also know we are not promised tomorrow and that knowledge compels us, each day, to try to leave the world a better place for those who come after us.
Bill MacRae, Group Publisher, VP Public Safety
Like many Americans, I remember where I was when the reports of the attacks took place on September 11, 2001. I was stuck at a traffic light while admiring how blue the sky was and listening to the radio. The light turned green, and the news broke that shocked me and the entire nation. Four planes hijacked by terrorists killed nearly 3,000 people, resulting in the deadliest attacks on U.S. soil since the Japanese bombed Pearl Harbor in World War II.
Almost 20 years have passed and the memories and pictures that we saw, stories that we heard about innocent civilians who died and the heroic actions of the first responders who laid down their lives to save others on that frightful day come back to us every time this year. America was in a different place after the 9/11 attacks. There was a sense of unity across the nation and today our nation is in chaos. I miss seeing the U.S. flag being displayed in neighborhoods after the attacks and hearing the members of congress come together and singing “God Bless America”—Can we regain that unity again? I hope so.
Lt. Frank Borelli, Editorial Director
Like so many of my generation (and the older one and the younger one), I remember that day in fairly great detail. I will never forget the day that war was brought to our shores in my lifetime and I can’t help but be aware that it wasn’t the first time. As a terrorist attack on the World Trade Center, it wasn’t the first. One occurred in 1993 as well. It was far less impactful and therefore didn’t receive the same attention.
There are some things I don’t think we Americans should ever forget, and some of them most of us aren’t aware of. On the morning of September 11, 2001, after the attacks and the collapse of the Twin Towers, history’s largest maritime evacuation occurred using watercraft from every source: Coast Guard, Navy, commercial and private. More people were evacuated from Long Island by water than by any other method of travel. No other attack on American soil cost us as many civilian lives as those committed on that day. It was NOT a military event even though there was a military target—the Pentagon. The attacks were coordinated and aimed at our military seat of power, our financial seat of power and (potentially) our political seat of power (since no one really knows where Flight 93 was supposed to crash).
And that brings me to probably the most valuable thing we all need to remember about that day: America didn’t stop an attack that day. Americans did. While it took our nation a week and more to respond to the attacks, gathering intel, moving military assets, etc., it took our citizens less than a few minutes. Those heroes on Flight 93 were the first Americans to respond to the attacks, foiling the intentions of their attackers; ruining the plan; and sacrificing themselves so that others might live.
That refusal to be willing victims is at the heart of what makes Americans great. Our government doesn’t make our country great; our citizens do. If we learned nothing else from that day, THAT is what we should all hold dear in our hearts and minds. We are Americans—and we won’t be willing victims to anyone. We will assist our neighbors. We will extend the hand of friendship. We will be courteous to those courteous to us. But we will not stand idly by and accept being punched in the face (figuratively speaking).
Kind of sounds like everyone I know in the law enforcement and military professions. Stay strong, America!
Paul Peluso, Editor
Shortly after the first plane crashed into the North Tower of the World Trade Center, I was walking through the Student Union of Frostburg State University on the way to my first class of the day. I was majoring in English at the college in western Maryland. It sits little over two hours from the Pentagon and just 45 minutes from Shanksville. I saw smoke coming from the tower on a TV screen as I hurried to my 9 a.m. class. Shortly after I settled into class, it was canceled and so were classes for the rest of the day. All of us were just trying to make sense of that day’s events. When I graduated, I worked at my hometown newspaper, but soon transitioned to writing for a group of websites that included Officer.com.
While working for Officer.com, and now OFFICER Magazine, I have been able to speak to first responders about their experiences from that day and was in New York City for the 10th anniversary of 9/11. It seems like just yesterday I was there. My wife, who was pregnant at the time, joined me. Our daughter is now 9 years old. As I grow older, it is amazing how quickly time passes. I was just months away from my 20th birthday on the day of the attacks. This November I’ll turn 40. Conversely, those days that followed the attacks seemed like they lasted forever. My daughter asks us about 9/11 and what happened that day. We try to explain it to her, but it is difficult to describe the combination of fear, sadness and anger so many of us felt that day. We really did come together as a nation and were proud to be Americans. The officers, firefighters and other first responders who answered the call truly stepped up. As we mark 20 years since 9/11, I hope those who may have forgotten the sacrifices of the brave men and women that day can rediscover them as our children learn for the first time.
Joe Vince, Associate Editor
Getting ready to go to work at a South Bend, Indiana, newspaper on the morning of September 11, 2001, I remember watching the illusion of “normal, everyday life” shatter in real time.
“My God, a plane just flew into one of the World Trade Center buildings,” I called to my then-girlfriend in the other room as the morning news played out. My memories of the rest of the day are like that fractured fantasy of normalcy: jagged fragments that don’t quite fit back together no matter how hard you try. I remember the staccato chaos of the newsroom as people were trying to sew together the patchwork of information into something that made sense. I remember rolling several TVs into a conference room so the TV writer could watch the uninterrupted tragedy and try to tease out some bit of insight from it. I remember trying to call my parents, who lived close to Fort Detrick in Frederick, Maryland, after I heard about the attacks in Pennsylvania and the Pentagon, only to be told via recording that all the lines were busy. But mostly I remember the next 20 years after that day. The fear of going to work because of possible anthrax mailings. Endless security checks at events and airports. A generation—or is it two generations?—of military men and women with the mission to pound the world back into shape.
The events of 9/11 might have happened two decades ago, but in some ways, that day hasn’t ended yet. It continues to hang over us like the thick plumes of black smoke from the Twin Towers.
Hilary Rodela, Contributor
September 11, 2001 will always be a day of remembrance for all. Every person is able to recount where they were, who they were with, what time they heard of the events, and how they felt. That morning, I was on my way to school. I was 14 and was in my father’s truck with my mother driving. The radio was on when all of the sudden, the classic rock station we were listening to cut out to announce what was happening in New York City. At that point, only one tower had been struck. A feeling of fear and dread engulfed both of us, with the thought of can this really be happening? My mother told me to be careful and assured me she would pick me up as soon as the final bell rang that day.
Once I arrived at school, everyone was rushing to their classrooms early and there was a lot of chatter throughout the building. I walked into my first period class and everyone was quiet and the teacher already had a television in the room with the news on. It was around that time that the second tower was struck. We were all in shock and even the teacher had tears. I remember sitting with my best friend; neither of us knew what to say. My entire class just sat there watching and waiting in fear, sadness, and astonishment.
Since I went to a private, Christian school, each class I had began with a prayer every single day. That particular day, a few of my classes were entirely prayer vigils. If memory serves correctly, we had a special school event in the gymnasium as well, where everyone, elementary through high school came together in remembrance and prayer. I believe candles were also lit for the fallen.
Most of the day resumed as usual after that though some teachers allowed either the news to be on in the background or allowed us to watch it or talk about it if we needed to. Many classes were filled with classmates asking questions and the teachers trying their best to calm some students down.
I remember the whole day was a daze and felt very unreal. It began with my classmates and I feeling unsafe because we didn’t have all of the facts yet, and had no idea what could or would happen next. Though we were in southern New Mexico, the entire country was affected and no one person was left untouched. It ended with tons of prayers of peace and protection for those who were lost, and those who were responding. Feelings of sadness, and reflection would come and go throughout the day. It certainly will never leave my memory and as I write this I can still feel how the atmosphere was that day.
