A day that will live in infamy. Tuesday, September 11, 2001 started off as a typical fall morning; many traveled into New York City for work, and of those people, an estimated 17,400 people entered the Twin Towers. 110 floors high, the World Trade Center Twin Towers housed many businesses and was a work place for so many.
On that Tuesday morning, 19 terrorists hijacked 4 planes bound for California. At 8:46 AM, the North Tower struck the 93rd and 99th floors, severing all stairwells for the floors above. Many on the lower floors were able to evacuate, however the people on the higher floors were completely isolated and were unable to make it out alive.
The tower completely collapsed at 10:28 AM, 1 hour and 42 minutes after impact. The second strike occurred at 9:03 AM when the South Tower of the World Trade Center with a plane slicing through floors 77 to 85, with millions watching. This tower fell at 9:59 AM, 56 minutes after the strike.
Both of these flights departed from Boston, while the third flight, American Airlines Flight 77 from Washington Dulles International Airport to Los Angeles. This last flight was heading for the Pentagon, and struck the building at 9:37 AM on the western side.
The fourth and final flight, United Airlines Flight 93, left from Newark on the route to San Francisco, but ultimately crashed into a field in Shanksville, PA at 10:03 AM. This would have gone into either the U.S Capitol or the White House if the passengers did not take on the hijackers.
Throughout the morning of 9/11, families and loved ones received voicemails and calls saying their goodbyes.
New York City firefighters and police entered the burning towers attempting to save those they could. Many people in the towers helped others get to safety and guided them to exits. Ambulances were filled and paramedics were working as hard as they could to treat everyone they could. Hospitals were packed as many were suffering from injuries in the tower, from the debris, and more. Families with loved ones in the Towers only could hope they made it out alive. Many people searched hospitals all around the city in search of loved ones. The smoke and debris was good and bad . It went on for miles causing citizens to stay inside or leave Manhattan, however it proved to have lasting lung damage to those inhaling it.
That Tuesday night, emergency search and rescue began at Ground Zero. At Ground Zero, there were piles of cement, steel, and rubble. First responders sifted through the rubble hoping to find signs of human life. Years later many of these first responders obtained lung cancer due to the harsh smoke inhalation as they dug through Ground Zero.
Everyone has their own account of what happened on September 11th 2001. Many lost friends, parents, and children. It has been 25 years since kids have seen their mom or dad walk through the door. For some, they lived shorter lives than 25 years. People that said goodbye Tuesday morning and never saw them again. We will never forget those brave enough to guide people to the stairs, throw colleagues over their shoulders, and go down the stairs and back up just to save another life.
Hingham High School junior Ella Falconieri states, “ It didn’t just affect New York City but it affected the entire world.” 9/11 brought Americans together in a time of uncertainty when many needed it the most. Similarly, Allie Korn, another junior at Hingham High, notes that, “9/11 is a hard day for everyone. It’s hard to listen to all the names of the people that were taken from their families.” 9/11 is a difficult day for most but it’s important that we also take this time to remember those who died and comfort their families.
