O.T put aside Elevator gate for a second

[AzorianPats]

And remember the tragedy that happened 13 years ago today....

 

[1960Pats]

And remember the tragedy that happened 13 years ago today....

I found this on that day. It's the best of it's kind.

http://attacked911.tripod.com/

 

[Nikolai]

I have the raw news coverage from that day from the major networks. Every year, I'll pick a network and watch a couple hours of it. It's still hard not to get a little teared up when the second plane hits. Never ever forget.

 

[Gwedd]

I can remember it clearly. I was home that morning, as our youngest was under the weather. She & I were in the front room, looking at books, when my wife, who was using the computer, hollered for me to turn on the TV. She'd gotten a news alert that a "small plane" had struck one of the towers.

I turned it on and knew at once that it wasn't any small aircraft. I was an aircrewman with the US Navy, and had also been to crash sites during my time in service.

While listening to the talking head describing things, I could see a small black dot in the background and there was no doubt what was about to happen. At first I thought that ATC had vectored an airliner wrong because of the 1st incident, that maybe something had gone haywire with ATC, or the comms, or whatever, but in just a couple seconds, I KNEW. I could see that dot grow bigger, and it was maddening watching this unfold while the CNN reportard just kept blabbering, as if he couldn't see what was happening on his own news feed.

Then the 2nd aircraft hit. I grabbed our go bags. threw them in the car, and told the Mrs that we were headed out of the area for a couple days. We stopped by the Middle School and picked up the older two kids. Geing as how we lived literally across the street from Bath Iron Works, one of the two shipyards building Navy Destroyers & Cruisers, I wasn't going to take the chance that the attacks in NYC were an isolated event. Then we started to get news of the other 2 aircraft, the strike on the Pentagon, and that was it for us. We spent a couple days at a KOA listening in through our radio(s) reading newspapers and letting the dust settle, as it were, before heading home.

I can't honestly describe my feelings those 3 days, because although most of it was crystal clear, image-wise, I was running on adrenaline and instinct, from both a desire to take care of my family and from my Navy training, where you go into a "crisis response" mode and run things automatically until it's over.

Even now I can close my eyes and remember it like it was yesterday, though as I said, the emotions I felt are all hidden away in some hard-to-reach place, and perhaps it's better that way.

Sorry to go on such a ramble, but sometimes it's good to "talk" about things.

 

[Mike the Brit]

A terrible time which we all remember. My thoughts are with all those who lost friends and family that day.

 

[DaBruinz]

PatsfanfromPhilly wrote something and I have it on my facebook page now.. I hope he's still around and will share it again. If he's not, then, when I get home, I'll repost it..

Actually, it's still up in the 2009 9/11 Remembrance Thread.

Six years ago on the second anniversary in 2003 I was in NYC and saw the Towers of Light...and put pen to paper......

Memories of 9/11

[FONT=&quot]
I refuse to live in fear.
I am an American.
I will travel whenever I want in this great land of ours
undeterred by the threats of others.
I will take my children to our treasured landmarks
and historical sites.
I will not retreat form an adventuresome journey
because of others with a disdain for our way of life.
It is the legacy of our forefathers who shed their blood
on battlefields throughout the world to protect
our democratic institutions.
I will show my children this country in all its majesty,
from the beauty of a Pacific sunset to the bright lights of Broadway
to the beacon held high by Lady Liberty.
I will show them Ellis Island,
the gateway to a new world with the hopes and dreams of millions.
This nation was forged by an amalgam of spirited people
who believed in self-determination.
I will not bow to those who challenge that notion.
It dishonors the memory of those who have gone before me.
I refuse to let the actions of a few destroy my will.
I will show my children the monuments to our presidents
who persevered in times of crisis and triumphed over evil.
I will show them Arlington National Cemetery
and the graves of those who fell in the defense of freedom.
I will show them a field in the rolling hills of Western Pennsylvania
Where citizen soldiers fought back
and gave their lives in the latest struggle.
I have seen the horrors of that fateful day.
I have watched as flags ruffled in the breeze unbowed
as the smoke rose from the ashes.
Its pungent odor and acrid smell did not destroy our spirit.
I have heard the countless untold stories of heroism
that will stay with me forever.
To live timidly disgraces their honor.
I will keep that dream alive.
I refuse to live in fear.
I am an American.

MKK 9/11/03

 

[Haley]

The image of people embracing and jumping in pairs from the upper floors to escape the burning building will haunt me for the rest of my life. I don't think I'll ever quite shake the horror and sadness of that moment of realization. I'm not sure how people with loved ones that died in the crisis dealt with the tragedy but they are made of something far stronger than those towers. My thoughts are with them.

 

[jmt57]

I was there the weekend before the attack happened.

Originally I was going to be there for a long weekend that ended on 9/11. The itinerary included me being in lower Manhattan on that Tuesday morning for breakfast before heading home.

At the time I was rolling my eyes at my company for changing the dates by one week (and take away my Labor Day weekend), in order to insure I didn't miss an extra day of work for winning a contest for a four-day trip to NYC.

Funny how things work out, but the day hits home for me every year. I can still vividly see the twin towers as my flight descended, as well as on the trip from LaGuardia to Manhattan.