I remember the breaking news on television at around 9 p.m. Hong Kong Time on September 11, 2001. The camera lens stayed for long on a burning skyscraper, later two, from a long distance. Smoke was coming out of the building. Later on I learned that the twin towers of World Trade Centre in New York City were attacked by two hijacked passenger planes.These are the facts of the attacks (from Wikipedia) on that single day:
Early on the morning of September 11, 2001, 19 hijackers took control of four commercial airliners en route to San Francisco or Los Angeles after takeoffs from Boston, Newark, and Washington, D.C. Planes with long flights were intentionally selected for hijacking because they would be heavily fueled.
The four flights involved were:
[1]American Airlines Flight 11 (from Boston to Los Angeles)
[2]American Airlines Flight 77 (from Washington to Los Angeles)
[3]United Airlines Flight 93 (from Newark to San Francisco)
[4]United Airlines Flight 175 (from Boston to Los Angeles)
At 8:46 a.m., 5 hijackers crashed American Airlines Flight 11 into the World Trade Center's North Tower (1 WTC), and at 9:03 a.m., another 5 hijackers crashed United Airlines Flight 175 into the South Tower (2 WTC).
5 hijackers flew American Airlines Flight 77 into the Pentagon at 9:37 a.m.
A fourth flight, United Airlines Flight 93, under the control of 4 hijackers, eventually crashed near Shanksville, Pennsylvania, southeast of Pittsburgh at 10:03 a.m. after the passengers fought the hijackers. Flight 93's ultimate target is believed to have been either the Capitol or the White House. Flight 93's cockpit voice recorder revealed crew and passengers attempted to seize control of the plane from the hijackers after learning through phone calls that similarly hijacked planes had been crashed into buildings that morning. Once it became evident to the hijackers that the passengers might regain control of the plane, one hijacker ordered another to roll the plane and intentionally crash it. Soon afterward, Flight 93 crashed into a field near Shanksville.
Three buildings in the World Trade Center Complex collapsed due to structural failure. The South Tower collapsed at 9:59 a.m. after burning for 56 minutes in a fire caused by the impact of United Airlines Flight 175. The North Tower collapsed at 10:28 a.m. after burning for 102 minutes. When the North Tower collapsed, debris fell on the nearby 7 World Trade Center building (7 WTC), damaging it and starting fires. These fires burned for hours, compromising the building's structural integrity, and 7 WTC collapsed at 5:21 p.m. The Pentagon also sustained major damage.
I can feel the pain in the hearts of families of the victims and those who sacrificed themselves to save people from the burning twin towers and at the burning section of the Pentagon. Tribute should be paid to those heroes that fought against the terrorists on Flight 93 plane, thus avoiding it from attacking the White House.
1 comment:
It is very sad.
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