Where were you on 9/11 twenty-four years ago?

[+ Charlie]

On the morning of 9/11, I was in my home in Philadelphia, where my spouse was waiting for the van to take him to JFK for his flight to South Africa later in the day, to begin a scheduled  "Cape to Cairo" tour. The phone rang, and a somewhat upset-sounding young woman said, "We can't pick you up. The van has been cancelled." Surprised, I asked, "But how is he supposed to get to the airport?" "The airport has been shut down," she said, and hung up. Baffled, I looked at my spouse, and said, "I think we should turn on the news." We turned on the TV, just in time to see the first tower fall. (Ironically, my architect spouse and I were living in Manhattan when the towers were built, and had watched every day from our south-facing window in Chelsea as they rose against the horizon; we couldn't imagine them disappearing in our lifetime.)

[+ Vegas_Millennial]

I was at home on the West Coast, sitting in my car in the driveway.  I had just started the engine when my younger brother came out of the house to tell me our mother called and said the Pentagon had been attacked.  He went inside and turned on the television then came back and said, "it's not the Pentagon...a plane hit something called the World Trade Center".  Living on the West Coast, I had no idea what the World Trade Center was.  "Oh... Mom's exaggerating again," I said.  "It's not the Pentagon but just an ordinary building.  If the Pentagon had been attacked, then we would be at war." Then I drove to school.

At school, we usually listened to classical music on public radio during the first class of the day.  This day, the radio in class gave us the news of the events as they happened.  We didn't have access to television or the Internet in the classroom.  The south tower was hit sometime just before class started.  I remember the strong reaction of one of my classmates when the south tower fell.  He yelled and broke into tears.  He understood the magnitude of the tragedy, but I still didn't know what the World Trade Center was at that moment.

Classes were cancelled after my 2nd class of the day.  It wasn't until after I drove home and turned on the television that I saw what the World Trade Center was and realized the magnitude of the tragedy.

 

Edited Thursday at 07:56 PM by Vegas_Millennial
Spelling

[+ KensingtonHomo]

I was commuting to work. At the first stop in Manhattan, a few people got on and said the World Trade Center had been struck by a plane. Being cynical NYers, most seemed to assume it was an accident. At the next stop, more people got on who were very distressed - closer to the WTC - which is when it began to click that something terrible had happened. When I got off in Midtown, I exited the subway, and there was no traffic and no one on the street. It was about 8:55 am in midtown NYC. It was like 28 Days Later. I walked into my usual bagel store and first saw the footage. It was horrifying. I had a flip phone but all the lines were clogged. At my office, everyone was in the boardroom watching CNN when the second plane struck. I ran to my office and started calling people I knew who lived or worked near WTC. All my closest were safe, but I would later learn that a cousin who was a firefighter died in the Towers. After a couple of hours, we were all sent home. 

[jeezifonly]

West Coaster. I was planning on sleeping in on my free day after working quite late the night before. At roughly 6am we got a weird landline voicemail from a friend living in NY, telling us to not worry about her - she was in Columbus OH on business. ??

My husband turned on CNN, and woke me, saying 'we're under attack' and I remained glued to the TV for the day as he went to work.

On the 12th, I returned to work, stupefied like everyone else. I was on a show project with an international collection of artists and creatives, and I recall that feeling genuine support from non-Americans in the company was extremely helpful over the next couple of weeks. Schedules for the production and performances changed initially, but we all pressed on, feeling a little more bonded than usual at the end of a run. 

[+ Charlie]

2 hours ago, KensingtonHomo said:

I was commuting to work. At the first stop in Manhattan, a few people got on and said the World Trade Center had been struck by a plane. Being cynical NYers, most seemed to assume it was an accident. At the next stop, more people got on who were very distressed - closer to the WTC - which is when it began to click that something terrible had happened. When I got off in Midtown, I exited the subway, and there was no traffic and no one on the street. It was about 8:55 am in midtown NYC. It was like 28 Days Later. I walked into my usual bagel store and first saw the footage. It was horrifying. I had a flip phone but all the lines were clogged. At my office, everyone was in the boardroom watching CNN when the second plane struck. I ran to my office and started calling people I knew who lived or worked near WTC. All my closest were safe, but I would later learn that a cousin who was a firefighter died in the Towers. After a couple of hours, we were all sent home. 

I was concerned about the son of friends of mine, who worked at Windows on the World, but luckily he was still on his way to work when the plane hit, and he, too, learned about it when he got out of the subway. A couple of friends of mine who lived in a hi-rise nearby saw the whole sequence of events, and were traumatized by it for months afterwards. A current neighbor of mine was working in the Pentagon when it was hit by another plane that day, but luckily he was in a different part of the building and wasn't hurt.

[+ azdr0710]

living in the west (PDT/MST), I was asleep when the attacks first started......I didn't wake up until about 8 local time and didn't turn on my computer (no smart phones at the time) until about 11 local.....I usually go to NBC News as my home page and the front page had a huge "Day Of Terror" headline......didn't sleep well for a couple nights

[MikeBiDude]

Another west coaster here. I was at home, but picked up on it early on the local morning news. I was horribly drawn to the TV watching it on CNN.

Another thing I remember, I had to cancel a massage session I had with a new guy for later that day. He said “I hope you’re not canceling because of everything going on?” And I replied indeed that’s why I wasn’t going out and about SoCal that day.

[BSR]

Because I was working nights at the time, I usually woke up really late but for whatever reason that day woke up a bit before 9am.  I normally didn’t turn on the television right away but for whatever reason did that morning.  When I saw the footage of the first plane going into one of the towers, I thought it was the worst aviation accident in history.  Sure, that sounds crazy now, but I simply couldn’t conceive that such an act could be deliberate, intentional.  When the second plane struck, oh f*ck, that was no accident.

A friend called that afternoon and insisted we get together because she needed to unload, get her feelings out, even though she wasn’t even sure of exactly what she was feeling.  We went to our favorite bar, our version of Cheers.  The conversations with the other regulars were brief:  “Can you believe it?”  “No, I can’t.”

[Njguy2]

I was in my office at 55 Water Street (East River), 40th floor, the building was built to sway slightly in the wind given its location on the river and having been built on reclaimed land.  Was in early since I was finishing a presentation I was giving later in the day.  When the first plane hit - I heard the noise of the impact but couldn't see what occurred since my office space faced North.  Not soon thereafter I was noticing something flickering on my computer screen which faced the windows.  Turning and looking at the window there was paper and other debris were strongly floating in the air from the impact.   Walked the floor and stopped at the floor reception area but the TV hadn't reported what the impact was.   As people started arriving in the office, we gathered at the floor reception area and by then the news was reporting what occurred .  Not soon there after the second plane hit and the building really moved from the impact blast several blocks away.  Having worked in that building for almost 2 decades I've never felt it sway that much. With that occurring, the senior managers took a quick head count and told us to leave/go home.  Since the building is so close to the East river and quite exposed I got out of there.  Sent a quick email to my family and close friends  saying I was ok, grabbed my things then started walking uptown with the intent to go to Port Authority (catch a bus to NJ where I live).  Somewhere in Chinatown/Little Italy - the first tower and then second collapsed.   By the time I got up to midtown - the bus terminal was closed.  Thinking of my options I headed back downtown to Gramercy Park since one of my old roommates lived there.  Thankfully he was there and crashed that night at his apartment.   The next day - the PATH trains were running on a limited basis so took it to Hoboken terminal where I caught a bus to Summit; one of the guys on the bus was a co-worker of an investment banker I worked with and he gave me a lift to my car in Madison and from there - drove home.  

Separately two people I knew were flying back from Europe,  one friend's plane was rerouted back to Europe; and my boyfriend at the time was closer to the US and his plane was routed to land in Gander Newfoundland.  

[Smokey]

I was at work on the other side of New Jersey. Tried to follow events on our computers but our internet connection was overwhelmed; relied on reports from family members calling. My niece was performing with the NYC Ballet in Italy; the company had to wait a week before being able to return. My nephew, a police officer, was asked to go into the city to assist, but was told to turn around when he was halfway there since they were “locking down” access to Manhattan. My oldest brother and his partner were finishing packing and awaiting their ride to JFK airport; when the driver arrived they had to tell him what was happening and said they weren’t going anywhere. I remember a sense of disbelief and dread as well as concern for my scattered family members.

[BuffaloKyle]

I was in 10th grade English class. We just watched it on TV the rest of the school day in each class.

[mike carey]

2 hours ago, Njguy2 said:

and my boyfriend at the time was closer to the US and his plane was routed to land in Gander Newfoundland.

One of the thousands who 'came from away', whose story gave us a glimpse of the humanity that the day could have caused us to lose.

I worked in a Defence headquarters, and was at home having already gone to bed. I don't recall the time, maybe 11.30pm, I was awoken to a call from one of my guys who said, 'Boss you've got to turn the TV on'. I sat transfixed and horrified at the spectacle that was unfolding on the other side of the world. I knew it would change everything in my immediate future as we would be scrambling at work to understand what the ramifications would be for the Defence Force and even for the country. I didn't imagine that what happened that day would shape almost everything for the rest of my career.

[TonyDown]

Northern Cal.

My position had ended, so was between jobs.

I sat in my neighbor's living room watching the coverage for quite a while. 

Went for lunch with my neighbor.  Funny, I remember we had hot dogs.

 

[+ Pensant]

I remember it clearly. I was living in OC at the time and was up early. I had the week off since I was starting a new company and needed a break. I turned on CNN to check the markets and saw both towers collapse. I still have the Los Angeles Times headlines the next day in my desk. Like 10/7/2023, it was one of those major turning points.

Also, the wife of a former colleague, a physician, was on the flight from Boston to LA to visit her family. I saw Steve a few years later when he came to visit. So 1 degree of separation.

Edited Friday at 01:10 PM by Pensant

[+ Charlie]

11 hours ago, Njguy2 said:

I was in my office at 55 Water Street (East River), 40th floor, the building was built to sway slightly in the wind given its location on the river and having been built on reclaimed land.  Was in early since I was finishing a presentation I was giving later in the day.  When the first plane hit - I heard the noise of the impact but couldn't see what occurred since my office space faced North.  Not soon thereafter I was noticing something flickering on my computer screen which faced the windows.  Turning and looking at the window there was paper and other debris were strongly floating in the air from the impact.   Walked the floor and stopped at the floor reception area but the TV hadn't reported what the impact was.   As people started arriving in the office, we gathered at the floor reception area and by then the news was reporting what occurred .  Not soon there after the second plane hit and the building really moved from the impact blast several blocks away.  Having worked in that building for almost 2 decades I've never felt it sway that much. With that occurring, the senior managers took a quick head count and told us to leave/go home.  Since the building is so close to the East river and quite exposed I got out of there.  Sent a quick email to my family and close friends  saying I was ok, grabbed my things then started walking uptown with the intent to go to Port Authority (catch a bus to NJ where I live).  Somewhere in Chinatown/Little Italy - the first tower and then second collapsed.   By the time I got up to midtown - the bus terminal was closed.  Thinking of my options I headed back downtown to Gramercy Park since one of my old roommates lived there.  Thankfully he was there and crashed that night at his apartment.   The next day - the PATH trains were running on a limited basis so took it to Hoboken terminal where I caught a bus to Summit; one of the guys on the bus was a co-worker of an investment banker I worked with and he gave me a lift to my car in Madison and from there - drove home.  

Separately two people I knew were flying back from Europe,  one friend's plane was rerouted back to Europe; and my boyfriend at the time was closer to the US and his plane was routed to land in Gander Newfoundland.  

My best friend worked at a Wall Street firm. He was getting ready to leave for work when he got a call telling him to stay home, because they were afraid that the Stock Exchange might also be a target for some kind of attack.

[marylander1940]

I was home!

Wondering if a plane would follow 16th St or the Potomac on its way to the White House or the Capitol. 

[+ Lucky]

My best friend in high school was killed in the Pentagon attack.  I watched it all on TV and was stunned when the towers collapsed. The next day I was surprised that I could get so close to the downed towers. Debris was everywhere. At St. Vincent's, they  were still lined up in hopes of receiving survivors.

[spidir]

I was commuting to work in Southern California and listening to the news on the radio. I recall imagining that it was a small plane that struck a building in NYC before learning that a second airliner struck the World Trade Center. I spent that morning talking with family and watching the news with colleagues at work. I returned home and attended the candlelight vigil in my neighborhood. 

[+ DrownedBoy]

I just got to work (was in Springfield, the Illinois capitol) when my boss said a plane just crashed into the WTC.

I said, "Are you sh!tting me?"

We listened to it on the radio when one of the towers collapsed. Then we pulled up Yahoo! (which was a decent news source then) to find out the rest.

My folks near O'Hare said it was the quietest day ever, since they grounded all flights in the U.S.

[+ purplekow]

In 2001, I lived in Middletown NJ and owned a walk in medical facility.  I was supposed to attend a conference in Las Vegas and the original flight I had was at 9 05 AM out of Newark.  I changed to a later flight, 11:20 AM.  The 9:05 flight which I did not take, had several colleagues and had taken off and then circled for 6 hours waiting to land.  The passengers on that plane were not informed of what had happened and they were all questioned by government officials when they exited the plane.  I was driving to Newark airport and saw the second plane hit the tower.  I turned around and headed to my office in case people coming back to NJ needed medical attention.  The air was thick with black smoke and an acrid odor that made it difficult to breath.  As it turned out, the wind was blowing debris across the river and pretty much over my office.  Many hours later, the first people came in for medical attention.  Many people in Middletown worked at the World Trade Center and the Middletown train station had about 75 cars which were not picked up for many days.  I forget the exact number of residents of Middletown killed, but it was the highest of any neighborhood out of NYC.  

For days and then weeks, people came in with respiratory complaints and anxiety and depression.  I was shocked then and horrified now that Christine Whitman, the former governor of New Jersey made the announcement that people could return to the area safely with a day or two.  The foul odor lingered and debris flew around for about a week.  

The stories told to me then still bring tears to my eyes when I think of them.  The most surprising information concerned the people screaming as they came down the stairs trying to escape.  I never heard the news mention it and for some reason I did not consider that as likely to happen.   In my mind it was an orderly evacuation and the news did little to dissuade us of that notion.  The people with whom  I spoke, and there were more than 100 of them,  who came down the steps, certainly had a different take on it. 

A patient i had seen the day before and who had come in with a cold asked if it was okay for him to go to work. He was a chef at the Windows on the World and with my permission, he returned to work but never returned nome.  September 10th was just another work day and another patient with a cold.  September 11th was gut wrenching  and the effects on  that area of NJ were as devastating as one can imagine.  

Edited 5 hours ago by purplekow

[Luv2play]

That day was as impactful in most of Canada as in the US since those of us who live in Eastern Canada share the same time zone as Nee York and experience the same daily routines in real time.

I was on my way to my family doctor for an appointment at 9:15 and shortly before 9 the car radio announced that the BBC was reporting a plane had struck the WTC. When I got to the doctor’s office no one in the waiting room seemed aware but when I got back from seeing the doctor there was a buzz. 

On returning home I watched the second plane hit the north tower. I knew then this meant war. 

[soloyo215]

I was teaching a computer class at a Tech School in Perth Amboy, New Jersey. One of my students saw it in MSN News and told us in class. Later we could see the smoke from the Raritan Bay. We all saw online when the second tower collapsed. I felt guilty later because the first thing that came to mind was noting the physics of it, how "beautifully" the structure collapsed as it is expected from its structural design, without thinking about the people in the building.

I used to hang out at the one an only little corner of the towers that stood, where the Borders bookstore was.