9/11 2001 - what does that mean for you?

[eolise]

I figured, since it's ten years ago since the WTC was attacked, to open this thread.
What do you remember of it? Where were you at the time it was occuring? How did you react?

[eolise]

I remember I was sitting on the couch next to mum. School had already ended. Suddenly gran called and told mum to switch the tv on and then we saw it. I was quite impressed and from that day on, I wanted to know everything about it and I even made a book with newspaper articles about the attack. Still have them and look through it every year on 9/11.

[From Afar]

I remember being at work and one of the guys came back to the office saying that he had heard on the radio that a plane had crashed into a tower block in New York, we were all shocked and someone found a portable radio we could put on on the office to get more news. Then we heard of the 2nd plane and knew it wasn't an accident.

I remember finishing work and driving home listening to the radio as events unfolded and trying not to cry at what I was hearing as I was driving.

When I got home MOH was there and had just turned on the TV, we both watched in silence not really believing what was going on.... it was like watching a Hollywood movie not the news.... got through a lot of tissues that day.....

[flatin5th - Knight of the NC]

This is one event that I followed every minute of. I hadn't done that before or since!

I was out on my bike and called in to County Hall for something. They had a TV on and the first plane had hit - the general opinion was it had been an accident! By the time I got to the next stopping point on my cycle ride, the 2nd plane had hit and it was being reported as terrorist strike!
As soon as I saw the fire I knew what the outcome was going to be (I was a civil engineer before I moved into teaching!) The heat would soften the steel, and the huge weight above the fire was going to be too much! Exactly what did happen!

I watched every news programme for days and weeks afterwards - and I watch every 're-building' programme now too!

If I ever get to visit New York, a quiet hour or two at the new memorial garden is right at the top of my list - actually, it is the only thing on my to-do list!

[meimichan]

I was a freshman at Michigan Tech, it was my third week of being a university student.

I remember I ran into my friends Roberta and Lindsey on my way out of the dorm to class-Roberta and I had the same class. Lindsey said something about a plane hitting a building in New York City. Roberta and I were really not morning people and we hadn't had our caffeine so we kind of had a WTF moment, figured we'd misheard or misunderstood, cracked a joke about a pilot possibly being a moron because how on earth do you not see the WTC, and went to class. Now our first class was introduction to engineering and our professor had a tower made of paper as something of a room decoration. Roberta and I made use of the classroom's coffee maker and wondered why the effing hell that paper tower had a paper plane held to it with a paperclip, think we wished we'd paid a bit more attention to what Lindsey had said.

Walked out of class, went down the stairs to try and leave the building...and it was nearly impossible, since the stairs were full of students sitting on them watching the footage of what had happened. So at that point Roberta and I knew something seriously bad had happened, but...we were going to be late to our next class, so we had to go.

I remember very clearly that it was a Tuesday, because Tuesdays as an incoming freshman were my busiest day-I had class with one 20-minute break from 8am until 6:30pm. I didn't really get a chance to watch the footage until 8pm or so. One of my friends from high school got ahold of me on AIM, and I found out that most of the schools in the state had canceled classes for the rest of the day after the second plane hit. Not Tech though...that school seriously never closes for anything. I missed calls from my parents, I didn't really have a clue of what had really happened until 8pm, had a hard time sleeping. This next part may make me a horrible person, but I did have that moment of being beyond grateful that Chicago and Detroit had not made the target list.

Looking back, most of the day was a blur. I remember talking with Roberta and Lindsey as we stumbled to class, I remember that paper plane being stuck in the paper tower in engineering class, I remember the stairs out of the civil engineering building being filled with students watching the TV looking extremely grave, I remember feeling a bit guilty that I couldn't watch with them because I had to go to class, I remember campus was more or less quiet and somber all day, and I remember going back to my dorm room and kind of feeling like the whole day had been a dream or surreal. I went to class, life at Tech went on like everything was normal, and I go to my dorm, turn on the TV, and the World Trade Center had collapsed, the Pentagon was hit, something about a downed plane, and all those people...



I didn't know anyone killed that day.

[trustme]

Flat, New York is a fascinating place and I'm sure you'd love your visit. I was lucky enough to travel to the top of the World Trade Center when I visited New York way back in 1990, and I can still remember the elevator ride up -- I've never been in one so speedy! The view from the top was incredible and I'm lucky enough to have pictures of it (sorry, they're non-digital and I haven't yet figured out how to scan them to post any).

I'm in the same time zone as New York so it was early morning when I got the news, and I was dumbfounded that an actual terror attack was happening. Over the course of the day, all of the bridges between us and the United States were closed with electronic highway signs near the borders advising of the emergency situation. There was some concern for the area I'm in as there are a lot of power-generating stations that supply power across much of central Canada and well into the States, and officials weren't sure if they would be targeted too.

Since 9-11, there have been a lot of security changes, most notably with crossing the border into the States. It used to be that customs agents accepted a verbal declaration of your citizenship, but passports are now mandatory for every crossing (even if you're just popping over to buy cheaper gas), x-ray machines have been installed near customs booths and customs agents are now allowed to carry guns.

I'm pleased to hear that a memorial garden will be built over part of Ground Zero and that the city is moving forward. Flat, I don't doubt that you'll have lots of company during your time spent in that garden when you do get there. It will remain a gathering place for many for years.

[jacqui]

Flat - visit the memorial garden but also take one the walking tours run by the tribute centre. The guide will be one of a hundred + survivors/rescuers that were there that dreadful day.

Our guide was a lady who was working just a few floors below the North Tower; her blow by blow account of the day was so heart rendering, yet fascinating. It is truly an exremely moving experience.

I was in Nuneaton teaching a Practice; the Practice Manager came running in to the room in floods of tears, her sister worked in the South Tower, she had been glued to the TV in the staff room, she had managed to speak briefly to her sister in the time between the two towers being hit; but then watched as the plane hit the South Tower and later as the South Tower fell. I had to go back to that Practice a few weeks later, the managers sister had perished with her colleagues and many others. I've always wondered if they had found anything of her if nothing else to give the family closure.

[dit]

I can't remember the exact circumstances when I became aware of what was happening, but I do remember the sick feeling when the second plane hit and it was quite clear that it was no accident. That clip was played again and again on UK news, and I watched in horrified fascination, somehow willing it to miss this time - stupid thought. I still find the whole thing almost unbelieveable.

[eolise]

Sept 11, 2011 9:06:58 GMT flatin5th - Knight of the NC said:

This is one event that I followed every minute of. I hadn't done that before or since!

Same here!

Jacqui, that sounds horrible

Very interesting to hear how everybody experienced that day - and the weeks/months/years after.

[antonia]

I was at home with my daughter who was around 2 and they broke into what ever I was watching to show what had happened so far.I can remember ringing my nan and talking to her for a while and then the second plane hit.
I know thinking for a moment or two that it was like a movie and being unable to grasp the situation.
OH came home from work and I filled him in on what had happened then I went to work and spent the next few hours just watching intently at the images.

[Mayfayre]

I was just coming back to the office from the canteen with my lunch and a couple of the others were having a ciggie in their car in the car park with the radio on. They looked me, white faced, and told me a plane had hit the WTC. Once I got home, we had the 24/7 news coverage on. Although I knew a few people whith friends or relations there at the time, as far as I know, they were all OK.

[Wyvern]

I remember so many details of that day. I was taking a week's holiday to do a few things around the house, and that morning I'd received a parcel from America (it was a peppermint green tutu I had ordered for a fancy dress thing) and made an appointment to take my cat Harry to the vet because he seemed to have a bit of a respiratory problem.

I was in the dining room chatting to some friends online when my (now) ex called me into the living room, and I started watching just moments before the second plane hit.

And then we suddenly realised that my ex's brother, a finance worker in Manhattan, might have been caught up in what was going on. We tried to call him, but of course all the phones had gone mad and we couldn't get through, and mobile networks were down too. For hours we tried to get hold of him and we couldn't, and it was terrifying and horrible. Eventually, I had the idea of sending an email, because I thought there was a chance that data might get through more easily than voice calls, and even if it didn't, the message would be there whenever he could retrieve it.

Later that day, early evening our time, he managed to pick up the email and dropped us a couple of lines to tell us he was OK. Later, he filled us in on what happened, and as far as I can remember it was this:

He used to get off the subway at the WTC PATH station. His train must have disembarked roughly as the first plane hit (reading accounts since, although they picked up to get people out of the area, I have a feeling his may have been the last train to disembark at that station), because he said he'd seen paper falling down from high up the building and he didn't look up because he assumed it was an air conditioner fire or something, nothing he hadn't seen numerous times before. He was walking across to his building when he heard the noise of the second plane, and it was only when he turned and looked back that he realised the enormity of what was happening. He was eventually evacuated by ferry and what stays with me most is that he described it as feeling like people being rescued from a sinking ship - the 'Good Ship Manhattan.'

I can't believe how close events so far away came to touching us personally. My brother in law was very lucky; I can't imagine how awful it must have been for the families of those who weren't.

[Vivienne]

I had gone to the emergency room with chest pain at 5am 7am NY time. Told my son but he didn't remember my saying anything to him. Had to call teachers and tell them I was at the ER. They took immediately, nothing had happened at this point. All the TVs were on in the ER when suddenly everything stopped. The first plane hit and you could have heard a pin drop. Chaos ensued. The staff were trying to concentrate on patients and then the second plane hit. I called my son to tell where I was so he came over to sit with me. It was a very long and depressing day to say the least. I was released without knowing what was wrong. A year and a half ago I visited my cousin in Ohio and passed the turn off to the Flight 93 memorial. We were pressed for time and didn't stop. I wish we had.

[inky]

I was the same as Flat and was glued to the coverage for days. I was at home and put the TV on to see what was on worth watching. It was just after the first plane hit and I thought it was a film I was still trying to work out what was going on when the second plane hit. I still couldn't believe that it was an actual event! After about 1/2 an hour I remembered that my mum, sister and brother in law had flown to the US that morning and that's when I started to panic. No-one knew which planes were involved (by now the other two events were being reported) or where those planes had flown from. Then the phone rang and it was my niece in an absolute panic because she didn't know whether her mum (my sister) was on one of the planes. We eventually found out some hours later that their flight had been redirected to Goose Bay USAF base in Newfoundland. My mum rang me 24 hours later and she couldn't speak, just sob, as she was so upset about what had happened. They were at the base for 3 days and were looked after by the US airforce. Eventually, they were able to resume their journey to the West Coast. I still watch the documentaries about that day and never fail to be shocked by film of the events.

[adrianmay]

Weeks after the attacks, I was sitting at my breakfast table with my four year old daughter and my hugely pregnant belly. I looked over at my husband place. He was already at work and had left a half full cup of coffee in his place. On the cup was a picture of the pentagon. He’d been given it at a farewell office party when the Air Force transferred us from D.C. to L.A. I know this sounds selfish but I thought what if we hadn’t been transferred. I knew my husband was coming home later. So, I called him at work, just because. People did that a lot in the months after the attacks. I think they just wanted to reconnect and grieve.

[eshalda]

What does 9/11 mean to me - it means I still have Jim. Sue and Jim are the friends we stay with in Florida when we visit (Sue is English, she covered my maternity leave at school and we became fiirm friend. She did an American exchange, and the rest is history.) Jim works for Lockheed Martin and NASA and a was supposed to be in the World Tade Centre attending a meeting on 9/11 - the meeting was brought forward by three days. I think everyday he says a silent thank you prayer.
I have been to the top of the World Trade Centre, quite a frightening experience, but spectacular views. I have also been to Ground Zero on several occasions, it is heart wrenching to read the messages posted around and about. I also visited the fire station, which is nearby, from where many brave fire fighters lost their lives. I think 9/11 is a salutary reminder to all of man's inhumanity to fellow men.

[jameslover28]

I was only 12 when it happened but i remember coming home from school and watching the events unfold on the tv with my parents. My mum was crying into a tissue and i remember feeling incredibly sick and just disgusted that someone would even think about doing something like that. I had the same sick feeling when terrorists attacked London although thank god it wasn't as bad.

Today after work i've just been chilling out but i decided to wear my I <3 NY pjs in honour, may sound silly but its just something.

[pie]

Obviously being on the other side of the world, the attacks occurred overnight. The next morning I had an exam first thing, and it was also the first day I was going to drive to school by myself - I'd just gotten my licence a week earlier - and I was so worried about parking the car properly once I got there.

About halfway through the drive, I distinctly remember turning the radio on and hearing the presenters, who were usually upbeat and cracking jokes all the time, sounding very solemn and I knew something was amiss. Then they mentioned the "horrific attacks in the US" and detailed what had happened. Needless to say, I suddenly had no concerns about parking the car. And it wasn't particularly easy for any of us to concentrate on the exam, either. It hardly seemed appropriate to do anything except listen to the radio all day.

I didn't see the footage until I got home later that day - and that was a good thing. At the time, I watched it a lot, trying to fathom how something like that could possibly happen. Now, I can't watch it at all without feeling sick.

[devil-may-care]

My in-laws were flying out of Portland, ME airport the morning of 9/11. They were headed to the Grand Tetons and whatnot for a tour. They made it to Chicago before the airports shut down all air travel. The televisions in the airport proper were all turned off. But they passed a bar, and their tv was on. My FIL thought the footage of the first airplane was a movie, until he looked and listened closer & then the second plane hit.

I was at our shop without the radio on. One of my customers, Arlene, called me just to tell me that an airplane had flown into one of the twin towers. I turned on the radio and listened in complete shock as the story unfolded over the entire day.

MOH and I were glued to the television coverage every night for days. Eventually we just had to turn it off. It was becoming an obsession, and we weren't sleeping very well and hardly eating.

After being inside O'Hare for three days, my in-laws eventually got one of their traveling companions' sons to come pick them up in Chicago from Detroit. They spent two days in Detroit before they could get a flight back home. Their plane was the last one out of Detroit for that day because 'someone of suspicion' was coming in on one of the flights that had just landed. So they closed the airport.

I didn't know anyone in Manhattan, the Pentagon or Pennsylvania that day.

I remember a few weeks after the attacks, I was out shopping and standing in the complex parking lot. We could hear a plane flying overhead. Everyone in the parking lot stopped what they were doing and watched the plane until it was completely out of sight. No one said a word. It was the eeriest sound I could ever imagine hearing at that point in time.

[jmsquared]

Like Pie, I found out in the early morning our time. My OH held up the newspaper wordlessly to me as I came down the stairs. The headline read "America Under Attack". We put the TV on and couldn't believe our eyes. That day had an interesting and somewhat upsetting aftermath for our family. My son, 9 at the time, shortly afterward developed a phobia about leaving our house. This manifested itself thus - he would go to the loo just before we got in the car,announce he needed to go again as we were driving out the driveway, again before we got to the end of the street etc etc!! We thought there was something physically wrong with him, went to the doctor, had tests etc - nothing. One day few weeks after the attacks it twigged ..... fear. Fear of something a world away that had been brought into his lounge room. Fear of leaving the safest place he knew. To cut a long story short, he did get over it in time, but it's amazing how such things can have such far-reaching effects, even on normally VERY confident little boys. I was angry.

[eolise]

Wow..... what an impact on everybody, it really does something to me.

[Mayfayre]

JM², that must be a very impressionable age. My oldest nephew was a few weeks off 10 when we had the 7/7 bombings in London. Although he was nowhere near it and didn't know anyone involved, he's flatly refused to go anywhere near a Tube train ever since. He grudgingly uses the bus to get to school but is still nervous about that.

[jmsquared]

Yes Mayfayre, old enough to take it all in, understand that it's a really Big Deal, but not old enough to put it into perspective with regards to their own safety. Hope your nephew eventually overcomes it.

[grizabella]

It sure was a day that won't be forgotten.. I was preparing an evening lesson and had tv on but had the sound turned off. Suddenly I saw this plane crash into the tower and like most people thought it was an accident. Turned on the sound and soon they showed the next plain hitting the building. I don't think I've ever watched so much news as I did then (with the exception of the Japan disaster). It was shocking then and it still is. So heartbreaking to think all those lives lost..to see people plunging out of windows to certain death.. Horrible day

[aeromanda]

I remember 9/11 vividly. I was checking my email in the morning when the phone rang. I decided to screen the call and it was my brother in law. He said he was calling to let us know that he was safe and that he had talked with mom (who was in Arizona and was supposed to be flying back to PA that day) and that she was OK but stuck in Arizona. He then said that since everything had shut down in the city he was heading to a friend's house. The message sounded a little weird to me but I chalked that up to it being from my brother in law. Then I noticed that there was another message and I played it. It was my father saying that he just wanted to know what I thought of the attacks. I thought "Attacks? What attacks? Has everyone gone crazy?" I turned on the news and saw the footage of the 2nd plane hitting the tower and my first thought was "This is a bad day to have an 'I Love Allah' bumper sticker on your car." I immediately called my husband at work and he said that he had heard the news. As I was talking to him, they reported that the Pentagon had been hit. I said to him "Oh my God those crazy f*$*s have hit the Pentagon. Oh my God! Kathleen! I've got to go!" Kathleen is my adoptive mom and at the time she worked in DC. I wasn't thinking straight and it didn't occur to me at that time that the Pentagon is actually in Virginia - I panicked. Because I was panicking I called her at home not at work. But her husband had heard from her and told me that she was OK and on her way home. I was able to relax a little bit then and I went back to watching the news. I couldn't believe what I was watching. I still can't believe it really. I have visited ground zero. I didn't visit it until about 5 years ago. It was still incredibly overwhelming to see such an immense hole in the ground and know that it used to be the location of one of the biggest buildings in the world. It was a very moving experience to visit ground zero. 9/11 certainly was a day that changed history and one that we'll never forget.

[Wyvern]

It's a funny thing, but when I watched the montage of the different memorials on the BBC website, I was OK with it - the devastated people reading the names of loved ones, the dignitaries giving addresses, the silence - until the very end, when there was a shot of the waterfalls in the footprint of the buildings. I have no idea what it was about that shot of running water, but it just brought the whole thing back and had me reaching for the tissues.