On the morning of September 11, 2001, 19 hijackers took control of 4 commercial airliners en route to San Francisco and Los Angeles from Boston, Newark, and Washington, D.C. (Washington Dulles International Airport).
At 8:46 a.m., American Airlines Flight 11 crashed into the World Trade Center’s North Tower, followed by United Airlines Flight 175 which hit the South Tower at 9:03 a.m.
Another group of hijackers flew American Airlines Flight 77 into the Pentagon at 9:37 a.m. A fourth flight, United Airlines Flight 93 crashed near Shanksville, Pennsylvania at 10:03 a.m, after the passengers on board engaged in a fight with the hijackers. Its ultimate target was thought to be either the Capitol (the meeting place of the United States Congress) or the White House.
The death toll of the attacks was 2,996, including the 19 hijackers.
My husband Paul and I were supposed to have an important business meeting in the area of the World Trade Center in New York City around the time when the planes by the terrorists struck the Twin Towers.
A day or two before the meeting was supposed to take place, the other party requested to have the meeting pushed back by a few hours. If this did not happen, who knows what would have happened to us. We could have been two more victims in this horrific tragedy. This day has forever changed both our lives and countless others. We are lucky to be alive.
How did it change you?
A sad day for the world.
My father was in a breakfast place on the ground floor, actually basement below the plaza level. He was bussing his tray when the shock of the first plane hitting was felt. Fearing the glass ceiling would collapse, he ducked under the cover of the metal bussing stand. He saw burning aircraft fuel trickling down the window, and knew what it was. He them left without even picking up his coat and briefcase at his table. Realizing it would be bad to go out south across the plaza away from the building because it was downwind and would trap him on the tip of Manhattan, he turned around northeast against the crowd. He was five blocks away when the second plane hit.