Grand Central Narrative

For Mike Cross, September 11 was a different story. He started out his day by going to work for Planning Systems Incorporated in Stephenville until he heard about “a plane that crashed into a tower, you didn’t know it was a terrorist attack.” Mike’s office had an irregular approach to the situation, nobody made a big deal about it. Nobody went home. “It seemed like a far off distant place of New York.” Before 9/11, “Terrorism wasn’t in the vocabulary.” After the attack, nothing went back to the way it was before. “Everything was looked through the lens of terrorism.” The trust between fellow men and coworkers was gone, lost in the past. “Everyone was viewed as suspicious… and

It was nearly 10 years ago that a bright September day was darkened by the worst attack on the American people in our history. The images of 9/11 are seared into our national memory -- hijacked planes cutting through a cloudless September sky; the Twin Towers collapsing to the ground; black smoke billowing up from the Pentagon; the wreckage of Flight 93 in Shanksville, Pennsylvania, where the actions of heroic citizens saved even more heartbreak and destruction.

On the morning of September 11, 2001, two planes hijacked by al-Qaeda terrorists crashed into the symbol of military and capitalism; the World Trade Center (History.com). This attack killed approximately 3,000 people (History.com). One other plane crashed into the Pentagon and 125 people lost their lives in that attack (History.com). That day, referred to as 9/11, left a stain in the hearts and minds of many Americans. These attacks brought out the hero in a great deal of people, but many heroes died on that day, and those heroes will never be forgotten. Because of this tragic event, millions of American citizens were injured or have had to endure the lasting effects of post-traumatic stress disorder (History.com). This awful event is our hope for the future because it taught us we need to combat terrorism better and we are still fighting this battle today (History.com).

The thundering sound of the bomb blast could be heard for miles. Men, women, and children run frantically in order to find shelter, being blinding by the massive amounts of dust that have caused the sky to turn yellow. Mothers are scavenging for their children, who were playing games outside, now stuck deep in the rubble of buildings that have collapsed on top of them. Houses have been destroyed, families have been obliterated and innocent lives have been lost. For many around the world, situations like these have become a part of everyday life. In A Pure, High Note of Anguish, author Barbara Kingsolver describes the confusion and questions that arose after the terrorist attacks in New York City on September 11th. 9/11 was the largest terrorist

On September 11th, 2001, a horrific act of terror struck our nation to the core. Fear, devastating and humbling, lodged into our blessed lives. Over 2,800 American civilians were murdered in cold blood when two planes were hijacked and flown directly into the twin towers (Anderson 3). This atrocious event caused the entire country to mourn for its loss, and as American citizens, it is impossible to ignore the destruction of such an event.

Imagine a cloud of black smoke covering the sky of your hometown or having to make the choice if you should jump to your death out of a skyscraper because if you didn’t, then you would burn alive. Imagine calling your husband while on a plane while knowing that will be the last time you tell him you love him. Imagine the fear you would feel not knowing if your loved ones survived a terrorist attack. This nightmare on an imaginations became a terrible reality for New Yorkers and American citizens. On September 11, 2001, four aircrafts were hijacked by Al-Qaeda terrorists. Two of the aircrafts flew into the twin towers in New York City, one aircraft crashed into the Pentagon, and the fourth aircraft crashed into a field in Pennsylvania. These terrorist attacks that took place on September 11 resulted in many casualties, an increase in airport security, and the United States invading Afghanistan and the Middle East.

September 11, 2001 is a day that shook the United States to its core. Millions of Americans felt the pain, the loss, and the anger that came with the attack on their nation. It was a day of mourning, and when it comes to days of mourning it is difficult putting one’s pain into words. However, Leonard Pitts Jr. was able to move past the emotion. He put into his words, not only his own feelings, but the feelings of an entire nation. Pitts conveys the emotion felt after the terror attacks in his essay “Sept. 12, 2001: We’ll go forward from this moment” through his mournful, angry, and righteous tone.

September 11, 2001 (herein referred to as 9/11) was a day in American history, which will be remembered as the most horrific attack on American soil. This attack, carried out by nineteen Islamic extremists, was associated with al-Qaeda, and involved the hijacking of four airplanes. Two of those airplanes were hijacked and flown directly into the World Trade Center in New York City, New York. The third plane’s target was the Pentagon in Washington D.C., and the fourth plane was brought down in Pennsylvania where it is believed the passengers aboard fought the hijackers. This horrific day in history cost over 3,000 people their lives, and was labeled the worst attack on American soil since the attack on Pearl Harbor during World War II.

A bright, yellow sun smiled down from a picturesque blue sky, as a slight breeze made its way through the maze of skyscrapers in New York City on a cool Tuesday morning. Who could have guessed a morning as benevolent as this could be a source of such inexplicable cruelty? This particular day in September of 2001 would change the world forever. Without warning, an explosion rang out. A puff of black smoke bellowed upward from the north tower of the World Trade Centers. An unpleasant silence ensued. As the bystanders below tried to make sense of what they had just seen, a woman let out a bloodcurdling scream, then another did the same, and then another, until the sounds of the individuals blended together to create one indistinguishable cry of fear.

It was the morning of September 11, 2001 in New York City. I woke up at 6:00 am to put my uniform on and say goodbye to my wife and children as I head off to work. The morning started off just fine, the sun was shining the skies were blue, and traffic was heavy as businessmen and women were headed to work. I work with Brooklyn’s Ladder Company No. 157 as a firefighter. I went into work and greeted my friend George johnson who is also a firefighter. It was around 8:47 when I got the call that they were dispatching us and telling us to head to the north tower because there was an attack. When I heard the news I was in shock and couldn't believe it, but I knew what had to be done. I remember running into that building and all I could think about was am i going to make it out to see my family again, my main goal was to stay safe, and help as many people as

Just like every Tuesday, Jane got up and ready for work. She got up at her usual time, about six AM, had a cup of coffee before she got her kids up and ready for school. As she’s helping her three year old daughter brush her teeth, Jane’s husband came in and said his final goodbyes to his wife. Sadly, neither Jane nor her husband knew that though. After about 7:45 AM Jane had her kids dropped off at school or preschool and was now on her way to work at The World Trade Center. September 11th use to be just a normal day in September until terrible events happened; these events changed America’s homeland security, started a war, and a memorial in New York.

September 11th, 2001 was a very traumatic time for the United States. On that day planes were hijacked and flown into the World Trade Center and caused the Twin Towers to collapse (“11 Facts”). Along with the Twin Towers collapsing, the Pentagon building in Washington, DC was hit with a plane and another plane crashed down near Shanksville, Pennsylvania (“11 Facts”). On United Flight 93, the plane that crashed in Pennsylvania, passengers became aware of the hijacking and tried to fight the hijackers to regain control of the plane (“11 Facts”). So many people were killed and within all those people, several of them were either police officers or fire fighters (“11

You’re a fireman ready at any moment for the walls to collapse, you don’t know when but what matters is the 2 men you are carrying on your back to safety. You have lost all communication but know that you are in a life and death situation, you think of your family and all the people who are counting on you to stay alive. On September 11th, 2001 terrorism struck America. This event became a nationally recognized day and remembered by all Americans. Many people and even children can tell you exactly where they were when the tragedy occurred. On this day many men and women stepped up and became heroes. September 11th, 2001 was a devastating and tragic event in the history of the United States of America by resolving all the affects America became much stronger and turned fire fighters into American heroes and left a legacy that is to be remembered for generations to come.

On September 11, 2001, the nation suffered a traumatic event in which impacted the world’s perspective on terrorism and violence that will last for generations to come. In the early hours of a calm Tuesday morning business was flowing as usual. The World Trade Center symbolized power and wealth of America, leading it to be the most prominent target to hit in order to cause deadly destruction. An eyewitness of the event, Ed Hashey described the first explosion that took place. He states, “Before you knew it, it was 8:40 a.m. and I was at the World Trade Center station at Cortland Street. I got off the train, walked up to the street exit, and right as I saw daylight, I heard a huge explosion and then many pieces of metal debris, some the size of car hoods, were falling all around me and a very large crowd of people” (Source 9). No one at the time understood what was happening, the nation was in a state of shock. This passenger airplane turned out to be American Airlines, Flight 11 which came out of Boston, Massachusetts from Logan International Airport (Source 1). The original route was heading to upstate New York when suddenly it was hijacked by terrorists which then controlled the plane to come down towards the city, specifically Manhattan in an aim to hit the World Trade Center. Everyone believed that it was a true accident and a tragedy, but to Ed Hashey he stated, “At that point the police ordered a mass evacuation, and I remember thinking this was a terrorist act. It was just too coincidental to be anything else” (Source 9). The worse was only yet to come.

September 11, 2001 is a day that no American will ever forget. That day has left a mark on each an everyone of us. That day is commonly known as ‘9/11’ and was the longest day in New York City. Everyone needs to know the dangers of each day, no matter if you see if coming or not. No one on that day know what life changing experience they would go through. Shortly after arriving to work in September 11, 2001, the attacks took place. Flights 11, 77, 93, and 175 were hijacked early in the morning and the crashed occurred shortly after. Not only were the Twin Towers hit that day, but the Pentagon and a field in Pennsylvania were hit. There are many survivors who shared their incredible stories. They addressed what was going throughout their minds