9/11/01: A day that shook the U. S.

Throughout the history of the United States there have been certain events that remain etched in the memories of Americans.

Events such as the surprise bombing attack on Pearl Harbor on Dec. 7, 1941 or the assassination of President John F. Kennedy on Nov. 22, 1963 to name two memorable ones.

People living at those times are either no longer around, or now at least 60 to 70 years of age, or older.

One event that is more current took place on Sept. 11, 2001 and anyone 23 years or younger have grown up only reading about it in history books, just as Pearl Harbor or the Kennedy assassination.

Of course, the event being referred to involves the day when commercial airliners, overtaken by terrorists, flew purposefully into the World Trade Center in New York City and a section of the Pentagon in Washington D.C.

Recalling the day, it was like any other day in September as people across the country were going about the usual type of business for this time of the year.

Schools were back in session and football season had just started, and Americans were anticipating the end of summer and the beginning of the fall season.

The day was clear, cool and sunny on that September morning, but it changed drastically at 8:46 a.m. (EST) when American Airline Flight 11, bound from Boston, Massachusetts to Los Angeles, California, flew into the North Tower of the World Trade Center in New York City.

At first many thought it was a major airline accident, but only 17 minutes later, many watched in disbelief when a second airliner, United Airlines Flight 175, also enroute from Boston to Los Angeles crashed into the South Tower of the WTC.

The terror continued when less than an hour later a third airliner, American Airlines Flight 77 from Washington Dulles airport to Los Angeles, flew into the west side of the Pentagon at 9:37 a.m. (EST).

The horror of the morning was not over when it was determined that a fourth airliner, American Airlines Flight 93, headed from Newark, New Jersey to San Francisco, California, had rerouted its flight and was returning to Washington D.C. with the intention of flying into the White House or the Capitol.

However, when the passengers of AA Flight 93 heard of the previous events, and the fact that their plane had been hijacked, they united and overtook the plane.

Sadly, the plane crashed at 10:03 a.m. (EST) in a field in Shanksville, Pennsylvania and all the brave passengers perished.

The heroics of those brave individuals prevented the terrorists from having total success and perhaps played a significant part of uniting this country in the War on Terror that followed this tragic day.

As these events unfolded, U.S. citizens throughout the nation experienced a vast array of emotions ranging from surprise, fear, sadness, disgust and anger as they came to realize the country was under attack.

In all, nearly 3,000 lives were lost including 343 New York City firefighters and 60 NYPD officers.

Many families lost a father, mother, child, or other relatives as well as friends that day and left the country in a feeling of sadness.

The horrific day attack was caused by Al-Queda Islamic jihadists and mastermind by its leader, Osama Bin Laden.

Ten years later, on May 2, 2011, Bin Laden was located and eliminated by Navy Seal Team Six.

September 11 has become known as Patriot Day, where our country commemorates the tragic day.

Although Patriot Day is not a federal holiday, the U.S. Flag is flown at half staff and many observe a moment of silence at 8:46 a.m. EST to mark the time when the first plane flew into the World Trade Center.

It’s hard to believe that a whole generation was not even on this earth when this tragic event shook the world, and they as well as all who were here, should be reminded and never forget. It should always remain in our minds.