Salisbury Fire Department

September 11:  A Day to Remember

Tomorrow marks the 18^th anniversary of the September 11 attacks on America.  Here is a synopsis of the events that occurred on 11 September 2001 along with some associated facts referencing the tragedy.  Please consider taking a moment tomorrow to remember and teach your children about what’s best in America.

At the hands of 19 militant terrorists associated with the extremist group al-Qaeda headed by Osama bin Laden, more than 3,000 people (including more than 400 police officers and firefighters) were killed and more than 10,000 others were wounded during the attacks on 9/11. It was the deadliest terrorist act in U.S. history and the most devastating foreign attack on American soil since the attack on Pearl Harbor. While there are thousands of known victims and survivors, some remain unknown. The Office of the Chief Medical Examiner of the City of New York has custody of 7,930 unidentified remains of those killed in the attacks. The remains are located in the World Trade Center Repository situated between the two footprints of the Twin Towers on the sacred ground of the World Trade Center site. 

At 8:45 a.m. on September 11, 2001, an American Airlines Boeing 767, Flight 11, collided into the World Trade Center’s north tower in New York City immediately killing hundreds of people and trapping hundreds more in the 110-story skyscraper. Only 18 minutes later, a second Boeing 767, United Airlines Flight 175, flew into the south tower. Both towers afire, burning debris covered the surrounding buildings and the streets below while hundreds jumped from the towers to their deaths in an attempt to escape. About 30 minutes later, a third plane, American Airlines Flight 77, crashed into the west side of the Pentagon near Washington, D.C. and a fourth plane, United Flight 93, crash-landed into a field in Pennsylvania killing all 40 souls on board. Meanwhile, both World Trade Center towers collapsed into a terrifying and deadly inferno of rubble.

On September 11^th, 2001 (9/11), 19 suicide bombers linked with the extremist group al-Quaeda hijacked four airliners and carried out suicide attacks against targets in the United States. Two planes were flown into the World Trade Center towers in New York City. A third plane hit the Pentagon just outside of Washington, D.C and the fourth plane crashed into a field in Pennsylvania. 

Sitting President George W. Bush addressed the nation with a formal statement, “Terrorist attacks can shake the foundations of our biggest buildings, but they cannot touch the foundation of America. These acts shatter steel, but they cannot dent the steel of American resolve.” 

Key Facts & Information

The 9/11 Attacks

• On Tuesday morning of September 11, 2001, at 8:45 AM, the United States suffered a terrorist attack when an American Airlines Boeing 767 filled with 20,000 gallons of jet fuel crashed into the north tower of the World Trade Center (also known as WTC) in New York City.
• These terrorist attacks became known as 9/11, which is how the American date of September 11 is written.
• The events of September 11th are a very sensitive subject, but very important in American history and never to be forgotten.
• Four commercial jets were hijacked. American Airlines Flight 11 crashed into Tower One (the north tower) of the World Trade Center at 8:50 AM.
• United Airlines Flight 175 then crashed into Tower Two at 9:04 AM.
• American Airlines Flight 77 crashed into the Pentagon and United Airlines Flight 93 crashed into a field near Shanksville, Pennsylvania.
• It is believed that the fourth jet was supposed to target the United States Capitol Building in Washington, D.C. Instead, the plane crashed in a field in Pennsylvania as passengers on the flight fought against the hijackers to regain control of the plane.
• Tower Two of the World Trade Center collapsed at about 10:00 AM. At 10:30 AM, Tower One also collapsed.
• The attacks resulted in the deaths of 2,977 people.
• The victims included 246 passengers and crew on the four planes, 2,606 in New York City, both in the towers and on the ground, and 125 individuals at the Pentagon. Men, women and children from more than 90 countries died in these attacks.
• The 19 terrorist hijackers also died in the attacks. The hijackers were Islamic terrorists from Saudi Arabia and several other Arab nations who were reportedly backed financially by Saudi fugitive Osama bin Laden and his al-Qaeda network.
• In 2004, Osama bin Laden, the leader of al-Qaeda, claimed responsibility for the attacks. Al-Qaeda and bin Laden cited U.S. support of Israel, the presence of U.S. troops in Saudi Arabia and sanctions against Iraq as reasons for the attacks.

A Day to Remember

• Cleanup of the World Trade Center site was completed in May 2002. The Pentagon was repaired within a year.
• Many memorials were constructed to remember 9/11. These include the National September 11 Memorial & Museum in New York, the Pentagon Memorial and the Flight 93 National Memorial in Pennsylvania.
  Next to the National Memorial, the 1 776 feet One World Trade Center was completed in 2013.
• Osama bin Laden was found in 2011, nearly 10 years after the 9/11 attacks. In May 2011, after years at large, Osama bin Laden was killed in Pakistan by Navy Seals from the United States.
• Of the nearly 3 000 people killed, 343 were New York City firefighters and paramedics. 23 New York City police officers also died along with 37 Port Authority officers who struggled to complete a building evacuation to rescue office workers in the higher floors.
• Only six people who were in the World Trade Center towers when they collapsed survived. Close to 10,000 other people were also treated for injuries, many of them severe.
• Operation Enduring Freedom was launched less than a month after the attacks. This was an international effort led by America to remove the Taliban from power in Afghanistan and destroy the al-Qaeda network that was based there.
• Within two months of Operation Enduring Freedom, the Taliban had been removed from operational power. Although the U.S. forces had effectively removed the Taliban, the war continued as coalition forces dealt with a Taliban insurgency campaign based out of Pakistan.
• Around $110 million of art was lost after the 9/11 attacks. Some of the artwork destroyed included works by Picasso and Hockney.
• The morning after, the New York Times was first to print the ‘9/11’ name the attacks became known as. The headline they printed was: “America’s Emergency Line: 9/11”.
• There were many fires ignited by 9/11. In fact, there were so many that it took New York City firefighters 100 days to put them all out.
• The cost to clean up the 1.8 million tons of debris after 9/11 was around $750 million.
• The site of the World Trade Center became known as “Ground Zero”. Originally, this was used to refer to the site where the atomic bomb exploded over Hiroshima in 1945.
• September 11 is now remembered as Patriot Day in the United States. This is a national day of mourning to remember the victims of the terrorist attacks.

Our country’s political atmosphere is polarized and it seems to many of us that little gets accomplished at the federal government level.  Please take a moment on September 11 to reflect about what occurred that day and how it brought our nation together into one unified, strong, compassionate America.  Remember those who lost their lives needlessly and the bravery of the first responders who gave their all to manage an inconceivable event. 

For more information visit:  https://www.biography.com/news/911-anniversary-facts