On the morning of September 11, 2001, 19 al-Qaeda terrorists took control of four airliners with a plan that would put them in our history books. At 8:46a.m. the first plane crashed into the North Tower of the World Trade Center in New York City. At 9:03 the second plane hit the South Tower. Another plane crashed into the Pentagon in Arlington, Virginia at 9:37. The fourth plane smashed into a field in Shanksville, Pennsylvania at 10:03. It is thought that the target of this plane was the Capitol, but luckily the passengers of this flight were able to stop the hijackers from reaching their goal.
Three World Trade Center buildings collapsed on that morning. The first to fall at 9:59a.m. was the South Tower which burned for 56 minutes. The second to go was the North Tower at 10:28 after burning for 102 minutes. Pieces of the North Tower had fallen on the 7 World Trade Center building starting fires that burned it to the ground at 5:21p.m. From the three buildings and two planes there were 2,753 fatalities.
At the Pentagon 184 people were killed. There were victims from over 70 countries. The Pentagon was fixed and repaired within in a year. I went to Washington D.C. in 8th grade and we drove past the Pentagon. We were able to see where the building had been hit because where it had been repaired was a different color. It was amazing to see that building and how much of it had been damaged. In memory of the victims the Pentagon Memorial was built.
On the fourth plane, the crew and passengers stayed strong and fought back against the hijackers. Recordings from the plane prove that passengers tried to take back control of the jet. The airliner eventually crashed in a field in a rural town called Shanksville in Pennsylvania. There were 40 fatalities from this crash.
Because of these attacks our country has developed new safety features. Some people may think they are ridiculous, while others completely understand. Since 9/11 our government has set up police checkpoints, a Department of Homeland Security, and many, many, many restrictions in all airports. Myself and many other people I know, have traveled by plane since September 11. I have flown to Washington D.C. and Florida in the past two years, and each time I packed I had to triple check that everything I put in my bag would make it through security. The attacks of 9/11 caused our country to be more cautious and careful about everything we do and everyone we encounter. It has also brought us closer together. I think it made us realize we can't take what we have for granted.
I was in 1st grade when the 9/11 attacks took place so I can remember very few things from that day. All I can remember seeing was teachers crying and turning on the news so they could watch what was happening. I know I didn't understand what was happening or why everyone was so worked up. This might sound awful, but I wish I could've been older. If I was older, I could've understood what was happening and I could've been able to feel afraid for myself and everyone else in the world, because honestly, I can't remember feeling anything. All I can say is, I wish everyone, everywhere could just get along so 9/11 would've never happened.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/September_11_attacks
http://www.wisegeek.com/what-happened-on-september-11-2001.htm
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