Friday, September 14, 2018

911


As I am writing this the date is September 11, 2018. It is the 17th anniversary of the terrible day the World Trade Center was attacked, the Pentagon was attacked, Flight 93 was hijacked and crashed in Pennsylvania.

 At that time I worked the midnight shift at a superstore chain. My sister also worked there so we rode together.

After work I dropped my sister at her house. I went home and picked up my son to drive him to work. Once I finally was home for the day I turned on the news. It was early still but after a full night's work I fell asleep watching TV.

I awoke just in time to see the second plane fly into the second tower of the Trade Center. It took me a few seconds to realize that I was not watching a movie. This was real.

I called my sister right away. When I asked her if she was watching the news she said no, why? I said, "I think somebody just declared war on us."

It was an awful day. Terrorists had hijacked airplanes to use them to attack strategic targets.

American Airlines Flight 11 plowed into the North Tower of the Trade Center first. As news crews were trying to figure out what happened the nation watched in shock as United Airlines Flight 175 flew into the South Tower.

Then before we could catch our breaths we learned that 2 more planes had been taken. American Airlines Flight 77 crashed into the Pentagon. United Airlines Flight 93 was headed toward the White House.

The passengers on Flight 93 decided that since they were probably going to die they would protect the White House and maybe the President of the United States. That plane went down in a field in Pennsylvania when the passengers fought against the terrorists.

There were no survivors on any of the airplanes.  Many more people in the buildings died. Still more people lost their lives during rescue efforts.

I obsessively watched television news all day for several days. I saw it happen but it was unbelievable.  Do you remember where you were that day?

21 comments:

  1. Oh yes. I remember what I was doing and seeing the 2nd plane hit. Like you I obsessively watched the news.

    It was one day that we won't be able to forget. Good post.

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  2. I was in my kitchen eating breakfast watching Headline News as I did every morning. At first I thought it was a plane accident but when the second tower was hit I knew it was no accident.
    I followed the news closely for several days, on and off all day.
    Now I never watch the morning news while I have breakfast.

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    1. I try to not watch the news as obsessively as I did then. It is not helpful and maybe it is more harmful.

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  3. Yes, I remember. I remember JFK's assassination and I remember 9-11.

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    1. Me too. I can still hear the incessant drum cadence when I think of JFK. I think of the shock I felt when the Space Shuttle Challenger exploded. I remember the amazement when I realized that someone had attacked our country with our own airplanes. All are terrible memories.

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  4. If you remember, there were no flights in the air after this happened. Living near the Atlanta airport, it was scary to not hear or see one single aircraft. When the planes began flying again, I cannot tell you the relief of seeing them in the sky.
    We must always remember.

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  5. I had been retired for about 18 months and hardly ever watched morning TV, but that morning I happened to turn the TV on and saw that the cameras were trained on the world trade towers in lower Manhattan and the announcer was saying that possibly a smal plane had crashed into one of the towers. While he was speaking I saw the second jetliner explode into the second tower, live as it happened. It was a day I will never forget. When both buildings collapsed it was absolutely unbelievable to think that this was happening in our country. I didn’t leave the set all day that day or the next.

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  6. I was working. One of my nephews was living in New York City at the time, he sent me all an email describing the tower falling and his dismay at seeing it. I hope I still have that email.

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  7. It was shocking here too in New Zealand, but not as personal. I still had a TV then. Although it wasn't a conscious related decision, around this time, I gave it away and haven't had one since. I can hear the news on the radio, or read it on line, but I find it too disturbing to my happiness to see 'things' all the time.

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  8. yes I do vividly recall 9/11 as it was my first day of "retirement" as in having been downsized from the corporate world. I was home alone in my condo when a co-worker called and excitedly told me to turn on the TV. I was glued to the broadcasts for the next 48 hours.Like so many others, I will never forget that date as well we should not.

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    1. I wonder if someday humans will not feel the need to hurt other humans.

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  9. This tragedy has terrified not only American, but the whole world.

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    1. There have been so many tragedies all over the world. I want them to stop.

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  10. worst tragedy my eyes ever witnessed dear Emma!

    i still remember i used to cry like mad for hours

    life for my country and the other muslims was chaged forever
    since then we are paying for the crime we did not commit but was trap for such part of lands and their people

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    1. Too many innocent people are paying for what a few mean people. I still have hope that the world can come together peacefully.

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