My personal memory of 9-11.

[Majer]

I was driving up the NY state Thruway working as an armored truck guard when we heard about the first plane on the radio. We had to do a pick up at the Albany toll plaza and mentioned it to the supervisor there. She turned on the TV they had and we were watching the news and saw the 2nd plane hit. we were in shock at what happened,I won't repeat what I said. We finished up the stop and went on to the Albany terminal and called into the main office. We were told to finish up ASAP and to get back. We had to stop on  the way back to fuel up and I must have had 2 dozen people asking me where they could go to give blood, or was there anything they could do to help(Our uniforms looked a lot like NY state police) I told people to check with the local Red Cross and hightailed it back to the terminal.The roads were pretty much deserted. I found out a couple days later that a Guard from an other company was killed when the towers fell as well as a guy I went to school with(he was a NYcity Fireman) It is a day that I will never forget.

[Timothy]

I have a good friend, his youngest is my Godchild, who's an FAA Controller.  Ten years ago, he was working Cleveland Center having just transferred there from Logan in Boston.

He still won't discuss that day...Imagine watching it all happen sitting there unable to do a darn thing!

[TAB]

I spent most of the day at the local airport.  I was taking my dad and his then wife to the airport for a trip to vegas.

Sucked.

[tt11758]

I spent most of the day at the local airport.  I was taking my dad and his then wife to the airport for a trip to vegas.

Sucked.

Not as bad as it sucked for the people on the 4 ill-fated planes, the folks in the Pentagon and the Trade Center, and all of their families and friends.

[twyacht]

Was leaving the shop for a marine service call in Ocean Isle Beach 1 hour south from Wilmington, N.C.  The work truck radio was all I had to go with. They interrupted when the first plane hit, than went back to regular programming.

That all changed with the second tower being struck. Stopped at the local Ocean Isle Kwik-Stop, and asked what was going on, no real answers and no TV.

Continued to the boat, and turned on the salon TV, no cable or satellite, just marine rabbit ears. Could only get CBS kinda fuzzy. Watched the first tower fall by myself, sitting on the couch of someone else's yacht, and cried. Called my wife. Than the second tower fell. Never will forget the images of those that chose to jump.

Than the reports from the Pentagon being struck, than a crash in a field in Pennsylvania. Than the work cell rang, and our boss was calling us all back to get home and go be with our families, as no one knew the extent or magnitude of how much more could happen.

The news driving home was very hard to listen to. All flights ordered to land at the nearest airport, rumors of a few planes ignoring the order. POTUS on Air Force One, with fighter escorts. D.C. evacuated.  Military ordered to shoot down non-compliant aircraft. Manhattan being evacuated and on lock down. ( I asked my self "How the **** do you evacuate NYC?)

Never will forget driving the hour back to Wilmington. Very scared, shocked, stunned, pissed, and sad.

Those memories about September 11th, 2001, I will never forget for the rest of my life. 

[Sponsor]

[blackwolfe]

I was on my way to a conference in Northern Lower Michigan when I heard the report of the first plane hitting the tower.  The intial report was that it was a small plane.  I recalled that the Empire state building had been struck several times in the past, and I thought perhaps there had been some fog or fowl weather that may have contributed to the crash.  Moments later came the announcement that a second plane had hit and I knew we were being attacked.  I called into my work and they were unaware of the incident.  By this time more updates and better information was being disclosed including that all flights had been grounded and the air space was closed.  Shortly after I was near Grand Rapids and observed a jet in the air and another that appeared to have just taken off.  I wondered if these were more hijackings.  I continued to check in with work and the other employees were gathered around one old radio with poor reception and bemoaning the fact we had no TV at work.  As I drove further north I saw fighter jets patroling several times.  I finally arrived at the conference center and checked in.  Almost everyone was glued to TV.  There was some discussion about canceling the conference, but that was decided against.  One of the organizers that was invloved in making that decesion had a FDNY brother that was unaccounted for at that time, but eventually proved to be safe.  At the end of the conference 3 or 4 days later I met a woman in a gun store from the Soo in Michigan.  Her husband worked for the Border Patrol and had been working non stop since 9-11.  Much of that time remains a numbed blur.

[MLC]

I was at work at the 2nd Marine Aircraft Wing.  Somebody said "Somebody flew a plane into the twin towers in New York," so we all gathered around a tv and watched.  As long as I live, I will never forget the second plane hitting the tower, and Katie Couric saying "Oh my God, there's something wrong with the radar system,"  I looked at the guy next to me and said "It was Osama bin Laden," and I knew we were going to war.

 My wife was in the obgyn section at the Naval hospital.  There are 20 or so military wives at various stages of pregnancy and thereby at various stages of hormonally imbalanced lunacy, and one of the female hospital staff walks in and says "The world trade center was just attacked, your husbands are going to war" and turned around and walked off like she just announced the score of a baseball game.

[Combat Diver]

I was in Germany on my way back to Panzer Kaserne just outside Stuttgart.  Went up to my S-2 section (intel) and the whole staff was glued to CNN.  We knew that there was going to be payback and we started getting ready.  I've only been on US soil 3 of the last 10 yrs.  Two more weeks left here in Astan.


CD

[Pathfinder]

A day none of us will ever forget.

I was on my way to work. I did not watch TV ion the morning back then, and was plugged into my iPod on the Chicago El on the the way to work. I unplugged in the elevator at the downtown office building in Chicago as 2 women were discussing the plane that hit the WTC. First I heard of it. I remember thinking about the B-25 that hit the Empire State Building back in WWII.

I then walked out on the floor of the office to find everyone in the conference room or watching CNN on their computers. Odd. I logged in and brought up FoxNews - I remember noticing that Internet response time was very slow. I watched for a few minutes, knowing this was no accident - you do not fly an airliner in downtown NYC, it is not allowed, and besides all of the airports are well outside Manhattan. And you certainly do not fly at an altitude below the tops of the buildings. This was not an accident. At that point the second plane hit, my growing anger turned to rage - a cold, hard rage that has not abated.

Since Chicago was "assumed" to be a target, they closed the office (the bank thought it be liable if we all got killed in their building) and sent us home. That El ride was the longest I can remember, even though clock-wise it was not longer than normal. When I got home, I set weaponry by each of the doors with magazines and spare ammo and waited for my son to get home from school shortly after I got there.

The reasons my rage has not abated include:

1. we coddle the very people who did this; when I sit on a plane in Minneapolis after having to go through brainless and utterly pointless "security" groping by TSA, and then see ragheads on the tarmac handling luggage, yeah, I get pissed

2. the .govs at every level of this country but especially the Feds, have perverted 9/11 to further the effort to have complete and total dominion over the citizens through the passage of vile and clearly unconstitutional laws; we have thrown the American Republic out in our lifetime - 9/11 didn't start it but it allowed those who would destroy us to further weaken us.

Look now at the 9/11 programs - all hosted and sponsored by the .govs, and you have to be "invited" to attend - ala Bloomberg's refusal to invite the First Responders, clergy and even the victim' families, to the "official" programs. But the damn mooslims will no doubt have front row seat.

Our country is clearly f..ked, and no one - no one!!! - is doing a damn thing about it.


PS: CD - stay safe, come home safe, enjoy your freedom. And thank you for serving and protecting us.

[Timothy]

PS: CD - stay safe, come home safe, enjoy your freedom. And thank you for serving and protecting us.

Well said and seconded....