Jane Fazackarley - I find it difficult to believe it has been ten years since the terrorist attacks of 9/11. It is one of those events that has never left the news, nor should it.It was approximately 8:46 AM US time when the news first broke. I remember the moment well. I was working for the Press Association at the time and one of my roles was to type up the news as it came in.
I remember it was a beautiful day so I thought I’d record the afternoon session and type it up later since there was rarely much demand for the afternoon transcriptions as usually they could wait until later unless we were expecting a big news story.
While working freelance for the Press Association, I soon realized the biggest news stories were the ones we didn't expect; and no one in the media had seen 9/11 coming.
I was just on my way out of the door when I first heard the news of the first plane hitting the first tower. I paused for a moment, looking over my shoulder, thinking I ought to cover it because it was obviously an important story although I had no idea at the time just how big the story would become.
When I first heard the news I thought it must have been a freak accident. I typed up the information I had then decided to wait a while in case there was any more news. It must have been 10 minutes later when news of a second plane hitting the second tower came in. I couldn’t believe what I was hearing at first so I put the radio on to see if it was being confirmed. I switched it on just in time to hear the presenter announcing that it was a terrorist attack.
Some of the earliest reports that I had stated that six were dead and that fifty plus were injured so that is what I typed up. Stories like these are fast moving and the information is correct at the moment. Those figures were soon revised upwards, the final death toll was announced at nearly 3000 and countless more injured.
The TV coverage was some of the most striking I’ve ever seen. It’s one of those times when you look at the screen and can’t believe what you’re seeing. You know it’s bad when you see grown men standing in the streets in tears, knowing what they’ve just witnessed yet unable to comprehend it.
The faces that filled the TV screen that day had a mix of disbelief, fear and shock on them. The footage of people covered in dust and fleeing for their lives is something I hope no one has to witness again.
Of the many unbelievable images from 9/11 the one that will always stay with me is the couple holding hands as they jumped from one of the burning towers. I have a newspaper from the next day with the image on the front of it. I can’t look at the picture without wondering what they were thinking as they jumped to their deaths.
My Mum came in part way into the news being reported. I had the TV switched on by then; this was a breaking story that I had to see in order to be able to believe it. My Mum hadn't heard about the attack at the time, so she asked me what the film was all about. I explained to her this wasn't a film; this was the news.
Nationally, airports were shut down and pretty much everywhere in the UK was on high alert. People had watched as America, one of the most powerful nations in the world, had come under attack and that left people thinking that just about anywhere could be next. Locally, the government spy base GCHQ was put on alert. The spy base monitor terrorist chatter and it was feared that the building could become a target. Thankfully, the day finished without incident but it really hits home when it’s that close to you, it stops becoming something you see unfolding in front of you on the TV and you start thinking how it could affect people you know.
Many groups claimed responsibility for the attack, and quite why anyone would want to claim responsibility for that amount of carnage is beyond me. It was soon to become apparent that this was an attack carried out by Al- Qaeda, the terrorist group which was headed up by Osama bin Laden. Bin Laden was already the FBI’s most wanted man after an earlier attack on the U.S Embassy in East Africa. Bin Laden was killed in an operation which was carried out by the Navy Seals earlier in 2011 bringing closure for some but not for many others.
As America -and the rest of the world- began to try and comprehend what happening in New York news came in of an attack on the Pentagon. A plane which had been hijacked by terrorists had crashed into the building leaving 125 dead and many injured.
Then news began to break that flight United Airlines Flight 93 was missing. It isn’t known for sure where the plane was headed although there was speculation at the time that its planned target was the White House or then President George W. Bush. Some now think it’s likely that the fourth hijacked plane was destined for Capitol Hill.
The terrorists were prevented from carrying out the last part of their plan after some of the passengers aboard the flight intervened. With a cry of “Let’s roll”, a group on the plane tackled the terrorists forcing Flight 93 to crash near to Shanksville, Pennsylvania, and killing everyone on board. The heroic actions of the passengers doubtless saved many lives that day and those men aboard the plane must have known by then that they’d be unable to save their own. Their actions that day were a stark contrast to those of the terrorists who hijacked the plane and they are a reminder that while there is plenty of evil in this world there is still plenty of good.
On 9/11, thousands of people were each going about their business and each of them fully expected to return home afterwards. 9/11 should be a reminder to all of us that life is fragile, fleeting and far too short.
By the time the day had come to an end the Manhattan Skyline, New York, America and perhaps the world and the way we see it had been changed forever. The dust from 9/11 is still to settle in many ways.
I remember seeing footage from 9/11 minutes before the disaster began to unfold. Just moments before it was a beautiful day and there was a perfect clear blue sky which was soon to become obscured by the thick grey smoke that was billowing from the burning towers and I thought at the time, maybe it’s a good thing that we can’t see what is going to happen next.
