Remembering 9/11

By: Ella Smith

Editor: Grace Pilkay

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9/11 was one of the most horrifying days in American history. Most kids these days don’t know what happened on 9/11 or have never even heard of it, but they should. This week we will be reflecting on the events of that horrible day and the effects that remain with us still to this day. It was a day that deeply scarred and will remain with most people for the rest of their lives. They will never forget what happened that day.

On September 11, 2001, four commercial airplanes, two Boeing 757s and two Boeing 767s, were taken over by 19 hijackers. Two of the planes were flown into the World Trade Center in New York City while another plane flew into the Pentagon. The fourth plane crashed in an open field, but suspicions are that it was headed for either the Capital or the White House. At 8:45 a.m., the North Tower of the World Trade Center was hit by American Airlines Flight 11. The hijackers flew the plane into the tower head-on. 17 minutes later, a second plane (United Airlines Flight 175) hit the South Tower of the World Trade Center. Both of these attacks left the buildings burning with people trapped with no way out. Fortunately, firefighters and rescue crews risked their lives to save the people trapped in the towers. However, 2,977 lives were lost on this tragic day. There is a memorial where the World Trade Center was to remember the lives lost on that tragic day.

Later that morning, at 9:45 a.m., American Airlines Flight 77 crashed into the west side Pentagon in Washington D.C. The jet fuel from the plane immediately caused the plane, and part of the building, to catch on fire. 125 civilians and military personnel were killed in the attack along with all of the 64 people on the aircraft.

Less than 15 minutes later the South Tower of the World Trade Center collapsed. This caused massive clouds of dust and smoke to fill the air. A little later at 10:30 a.m., the North Tower collapsed as well. While the North Tower was collapsing the last plane was hijacked. While the hijackers took over the plane the passengers had heard about the World Trade Center and the Pentagon and were afraid that they were next. When they heard about this, some of the passengers and flight attendants rushed to the cockpit of the plane and tried to stop the hijackers. Because of this, the plane crashed into a field at 500 mph near Shanksville in western Pennsylvania. All 44 people on board the flight were killed. Nobody knows what the hijacker’s target was, but many think that it was going to either the White House or the Capital. Because of the passenger’s bravery, there is a memorial in the field where the plane crashed to remember the lives that were lost. In total, 2,977 people were killed in the 9/11 attacks. For the 20th anniversary of the attacks, America remembers the lives lost and the sacrifices made by the many police officers, firefighters, and medical teams made in order to save people and recover those who lost their lives that tragic day.