It’s 9/11 twenty years later. Today, now.

[AtlasPine]

We’re all still a bit clueless. What a mess.

@EvilPea

Watching that presidents war room.

Why the fuck did he give that speech in the school assembly with the kids?!?

I've often thought that, those poor kids must have been terrified, can't think why nobody thought to clear them out!

@Thirtyrock39

I don't know if it's the same but because they had to land all other planes that day and clear the skies there were lots of people stuck in random places and planes weren't allowed to fly for a few days (a week?) so there were sports halls and schools that were suddenly turned into temporary hotels for the stranded passengers and the communities provided food etc- there's some good articles about it if you google.

It wasn’t as long as a week- I was on holiday at the time and flew home as planned about five days later. We had to queue for hours at the airport, I don’t think we were allowed any hand luggage at all and nobody had a clue what was going on.

It's amazing that some people live to 100 whichis 5 times this time period.

@HeronLanyon

Thoughts and rip to all affected by this. I too am struggling to think it was 20 years ago. Was in a work meeting and coming out our security guy at the desk said ‘New York is under attack it feels Like the end of the world’. He was frightened. Afternoon meeting cancelled and sat in a bar with people drifting in to watch news. Just could not believe what I was seeing. Look at photos of me and family on the observation deck of the towers with New York spread out below us from the 70s and my head goes all funny to think of what happened.

I remember feeling frightened too, I was a teenager at the time, I never felt affected by something happening so far away as much as this at that point in my life.

Also, not the same at all, but we watch Home Alone 1 and 2 every Christmas and the intro for the 2nd film, when Kevin is on the observation deck of one of the towers, hits hard every time. Every time it comes on I say, ‘the towers 🥺’

I also really remember the very beautiful huge Miro tapestry hanging in the foyer. Probably one of the first times I really properly noticed an artwork and loved it. Life long love of Miro has followed. Often when I see Miro I remember and then all that follows. A really very personal trigger to the awfulness.

Can't believe people would criticise him for giving the speach. The worlds media was watching, waiting. He was the head of state and he had to say about it. Those children would have been sent home immediately after. I'd have found it immeasurably reassuring hearing from the president instead of rumours in the halls. Which is exactly what would have happened.

Unfortunately sometimes kids needs come second. In this case, he was speaking to the nation, the world. Not to the children.

I was on holiday with my parents in Florida. We were sat around the pool & a couple near us had a portable radio. As I was swimming past them I heard snippets "bomb" "New York" "Trade Center" etc. My Dad used to work for an American bank who had a New York office so I said we needed to check out the news as I thought something had happened in New York & we should go see what was happening.
We got back to our little apartment & turned on the TV just in time to see the second plane hit. It was like watching a movie - we really couldn't grasp it was real & it was happening. We stayed watching the news all day, we couldn't turn off. Later we went out to pick up dinner from a pizza place & I have NEVER seen International Drive in Orlando that empty. It was really chilling.
Later we had to fly home with all the tight security - that was really scary too. Armed men & sniffer dogs EVERYWHERE.

We were there just weeks before that same year. Had a coffee and a slice of cheesecake at the top of the building one sunny morning. Did some shopping in the mall at the bottom. Envied all the people who worked there. Then watched it unfold on all the TVs as I walked through a department store in town on a day off from work back home. I remember turning round and going straight back home to watch it all day.

I think the sheer scale of what happened that day is difficult to convey on screen. Those buildings were bloody massive. The very idea of leaning out of an open window near the top makes me feel sick to my stomach. Those poor poor people.

Feel very profoundly sad today.

TBH, I guess WW3 really did start (war on terror) although not to the same level as WW1 & 2. I don't know what they class as a world war - is it a certain number of countries involved? Even as far back as 1980's/70's there has been mutterings that the next war will be fought electronically/digitally but still with great human sacrifice. How many English, American and AN Other soldiers have been killed in Afghanistan/Iraq/Iran etc. A friend of my family lost his son when he was in Afghanistan - not due to a planned attack but when he was walking back to his tent from the showers and stepped on a land mine/IED

Now the Taliban have resumed control - I wonder, was it all worth it?

I remember sitting watching the coverage in the lounge of my then boyfriend's university house share. We were watching it on a cable news channel and they were showing the scene live when the second plane hit. They cut the feed, but not before we'd seem the second plane approaching. I still remember the bemusement and sudden horror of realisation that it was happening again.

Thousands of individual tragedies, for sure.

I think it's also worth remembering the estimated 250,000 Iraqis who died in the aftermath of 9/11, even though they had no connection to it.

@JustFrustrated

Can't believe people would criticise him for giving the speach. The worlds media was watching, waiting. He was the head of state and he had to say about it. Those children would have been sent home immediately after. I'd have found it immeasurably reassuring hearing from the president instead of rumours in the halls. Which is exactly what would have happened.

Unfortunately sometimes kids needs come second. In this case, he was speaking to the nation, the world. Not to the children.

It wasn’t the speech or address I’m criticising. It’s the fact they did it in an assembly. Do it at the school, but don’t do it with those kids and staff there. Do it in an empty hall

@EvilPea

Watching that presidents war room.

Why the fuck did he give that speech in the school assembly with the kids?!?

All he said was "two airplanes have crashed into the WTC". That's not going to harm the kids.

I was working from home. DP rang me from work. People were returning to his office from their 1 - 2pm lunch break having seen the news in the pub. I turned the TV on and watched it unfold on Sky News. It was just dreadful, absolutely shocking . My mum rang me in tears when people were jumping from windows. The sheer terror they must have felt is unimaginable.

I don't think George Bush had any choice but to make that speech at the school. Although they could've taken the children out of the room. The whole thing was being reported world wide whilst he was at the school.

@snoozer11
He didn’t just say two planes hit.
He said america was under attack and it was an act of terrorism. He went on to have a moments silence for the victims.

I was 16 and was in my room trying to find something to watch. I then saw the 1st tower on fire and the plane hitting the second one. I thought it was a film until I noticed the BBC news banner.

I sat for hours watching it and saw them collapse live, I never clicked that i was actually watching thousands of people die at that point. I naively thought they had all got out.

I didn't even know it was called the world trade centre so when I eventually moved and went to tell my parents I said "the two big buildings in NY" as I'd seen them many times from watching friends etc.

Such a sad day and yes the world changed that day but again at 16 I didn't realise it.

I've been watching some documentaries that I've been catching on the TV and one was from eye witnesses who lived within spitting distance of the towers. It was very moving and very real if that makes sense.

Watching the poor souls jumping was haunting

There was also a thread I found on digital spy some years later. That was people commenting on it in real time but the 1st post was about 2.30pm then next one a couple of hours later. Was very strange to look back on as if someone happens now there is threads etc about it all over the Internet within minutes.

I was in Brooklyn at the time, I'd been to the WTC the day before. I woke up to the sound of the first plane hitting the tower. The smoke, the ash, the posters looking for missing people, it was just unthinkable. It took me years to even begin to process what had happened that day.

@Dave20

It wasn’t until recently I really looked into the passengers on those airplanes. The whole thing was horrendous but the second plane to hit the south tower had three children on it all under 5... The thought of those kids particularly on that flight breaks my heart, must have been so terrifying for them. So heart breaking. What upset me more was one of the families , with their young daughter were on their way to Disneyland , California.

I've thought about the people on the planes too. What did you read?

I was in primary 7, we were in the TV room about to watch some sort of ch4 educational program for the afternoon but as the teacher was setting up the giant TV on wheels and tape, the news came on and the teachers just watched in horror. We didn't really know what was happening, sort of mesmorised watching it though. All the teachers, janitor's etc took turns coming in to watch.

After school I remember walking home to my Grandas house as usual. It was a lovely day but eerily quiet on the way home,then when I arrived my Granda was also sitting watching the news in disbelief. I remember thinking that all adults around the world must be sitting watching the same thing.

I couldn't get my head round the bad guys, that it wasn't an accident. I'd never heard of Afghanistan before then and remember asking my Mum where it was later on.

[quote LookItsMeAgain]This:

[/quote] Unbelievable to me that the first responders are treated so badly.

20 years later and the footage of the plane hitting the tower and then collapsing still bring me to tears.

@Polkadotties

20 years later and the footage of the plane hitting the tower and then collapsing still bring me to tears.

*and then the two towers collapsing

I didn’t know until yesterday that Steve buscemi volunteered and acted in firefighter capacity at the scene. He had been a firefighter when younger.