Remembering September 11

CRESCO - The September 11 attacks on the United States of America in 2001, marked the war on terrorism and left a deep wound in American history.

Howard County encountered a local story regarding local family members narrowly missing fatality in New York when two planes where overcome by terrorists. 

The terror attack, carried out by al-Qaeda, an Islamist extremist group, involved the total destruction of the World Trade Center, killing 2,977 people from 90 different nations, a plane striking the Pentagon, and a flight hijacked, but taken back by brave passengers and crashed into a field. 

 

What is the World Trade Center?

The World Trade center was located in lower Manhattan and contained seven buildings total. It included an underground shopping mall that joined six of the buildings. In total, it was a 16-acre commercial complex, with the Twin Towers standing out, with a tower located on the North and South side. 

 

What is the significance of the Twin Towers?

The Twin Towers were 110 stories each, and were the tallest buildings in New York City. After their completion in 1973, they were considered the tallest buildings in the world for a time. The Towers gave 430 companies and 35,000 people 10 million square feet of office space. The buildings themselves attracted nearly 70,000 tourists and commuters daily. Views from the towers could reach 45 miles or more in every direction. Each floor was an acre in size, and each building contained 99 elevators and 21,800 windows. 

Before 9/11, the World Trade Center had been previously attacked by a van filled with explosives in the underground parking lot. Thousands of people were injured from the attack, and six were killed. 

 

What happened?

Flight 11 was hijacked and crashed into the North Twin Tower at 8:46 a.m. The plane hit floors 93-99. The second plane, Flight 175, struck the South Twin Tower at 9:03 a.m., only 17 minutes after the first attack. The plane took out floors 77-85. With nearly 18,000 people in the World Trade Center Complex, many were able to evacuate safely. 

First reponders rushed in to help any who were trapped or injured, while fires were intensified by the fuel from the planes. The fires weakened the steel support trusses, which were used to attach the floors of the building to the exterior walls. Both towers, combined with the weakening structure and initial damage of structural columns, caused the towers to collapse. Five other buildings, part of the World Trade Center, also fell due to the towers coming down. 

 

The Pentagon

The Pentagon, headquarters of the U.S Department of Defense, was also struck by American Airline Flight 77. All 64 passengers and 125 people in the Pentagon were killed as a result. The youngest victim was three year old Dana Falkenburg. 

 

The Goal

It is thought that because the terrorist group al-Qaeda didn’t have the strength to fight or attack the American military, they chose to target symbolic structures instead. The terrorist group wanted to instill fear in Americans and weaken the United States, hoping to further accelerate their beliefs and political agenda in the Middle East. 15 of the terrorists were from Saudi Arabia, two from the United Arab Emirates, one from Egypt, and one from Lebanon. 

 

The response from 

the United States

Former President George Busch, in a speech joint with a session of Congress, he stated “Any nation that continues to harbor or support terrorism will be regarded by the United States as a hostile regime.” the U.S. Government demanded the Taliban hand over terrorists and close training camps associated with al-Qaeda, but they refused. The U.S. responded with “Operation Enduring Freedom” officially launching on October 7, 2001. 

 

Operation Enduring Freedom

American and british bombing forces marked the beginning of a long war against al-Qaeda and Taliban forces in Afghanistan. At first, the Taliban was stripped from power and al-Qaeda suffered extreme losses, however due to Afghan corruption and lack of infrastructure, the war continued. 

In early May of 2011, U.S Navy Seals conducted a raid in Abbottabad, Pakistan, targeting Osama Bin Laden’s compound. They killed al-Qaeda leader Osama Bin Laden, who is also credited with planning the 9/11 attacks on the U.S.

Operation Enduring Freedom officially ended in December 2014, although forces stayed to train Afghan security forces. 

On August 30, 2021, all forces were withdrawn from Afghanistan. 

 

9/11 Memorials

A 9/11 memorial is located at the World Trade Center in New York, and features stories told through media, narratives, and artifacts. 

The Pentagon Memorial is located outside and features all names of the those who passed inscribed. 

 

A local story

A story printed in the Times Plain Dealer September 19, 2001, written by Ken Becker, details a harrowing tale about the daughter and granddaughter of a local Chester couple escaping the destruction of the World Trade Center. 

The granddaughter had an apartment “kitty-corner” to the World Trade Center, and her mother, Sharon Murphy Hoverman, daughter of Kenneth and Elsie Murphy was visiting from her home in Connecticut. 

“A piece of the plane hit the apartment building” and Sharon, her daughter, and the daughter’s roommate went outside to see what was going on. They heard to second plane hit the tower and “the doorman and police officers told them to run for their lives.”

As they ran, debris and smoke fowled, causing them to”lay down and breath the air through grates” in the street, as to not inhale the dust and smoke. 

The pair was able to make it to Hudson River and were taken aboard a boat with hundreds of other people seeking shelter. 

When things settled, they made their way back to apartment to find it impossible to get to. Unable to reach the Murphy’s via phone, Sharon sent an email reassuring her parents that her and her daughter were okay.