THE NATION FRIDAY, SEPTEMBER 9, 2011
3
NEWS 9/11 ATTACKS...TEN YEARS AFTER
a changed world
QUICK TAKES 20 people pulled from the rubble alive 20 people were pulled from the rubble alive. Among those pulled out were John McLoughlin and William Jimeno, two Port Authority policemen, who were rescued after being buried in debris around a freight elevator for about 13 and 21 hours.
Britons second worst hit It wasn’t just Americans who fell victim to the attacks at both the World Trade Center and The Pentagon. More than 80 nationalities suffered at least one loss from the day’s horrific events, including Japanese, Irish, British, Australian, New Zealanders, Swiss, Indian, Mexican, Brazilian, South African and Canadian. Out of 372 foreign fatalities, 67 people of British nationality died. Ron DiFrancesco managed to escape from collapsing South Tower
Fires raged for 99 days It took 99 days for the fires at Ground Zero to be extinguished completely. At 8.46am on September 11, the fires started as the first plane hit the North Tower. The remaining fires were eventually put out on 19 December.
A third skyscraper fell A third skyscraper World Trade Centre (WTC) Building 7 – a 47-story building and one of the largest in downtown Manhattan fell during the attacks. It went largely unnoticed in the media because it hadn’t been hit by a plane.
Coded messages
•In the beginning (see picture on the left), the World Trade Centre was a beauty to behold. It was a pride of the Manhattan part of the great New York city and hosted many businesses in which citizens of no less than ninety countries eked their livelihood. But, some ten years ago, terrorists rammed aircraft into its towers (see picture above). The good news: by next year, (see picture on the right) the 1,776 feet (541m) One World Trade Centre will reignite the WTC magic. Initially planned not to be more than 50 floors, the carcass of the 70th floor is now ready. All things being equal, the building known as One World Trade Centre will be completed. It will become the tallest building in North America. Adjacent to the new WTC is the National September 11 Memorial & Museum scheduled to open on Sunday.
Attacks changed the world, says last survivor
•DiFrancesco
R
ON DiFrancesco, a Canadian who is now 47, is believed to be the last person out of the South Tower of
the World Trade Centre before it collapsed. According to some reports, he was one of only four people to escape from above the 81st floor. He is alive but DiFrancesco’s whole mentality has changed. He is constantly on alert, even when there is no imminent threat. “Whenever I go into a building or a room, I need to know where the exit is, because that day I wasn’t in control, and I almost didn’t make it out. It’s a bit obsessive I think, but it’s changed the way I think and the way I act.
“For me, being so close to death, I don’t fear dying or moving on. When I was almost down and out, I did see the light, and I was prepared to go, but I’m here. … If I was to die tomorrow, I would hate leaving my wife and kids, but I don’t fear dying now,” he said. He added: “When I see tall buildings and planes, it jogs my memory. Loud noises (and chaos) really bother me. I’m a little claustrophobic, so when (I’m) in a big crowd, it gets to me a lot. I also find screaming and yelling
really gets to me.” A decade later, survivor’s guilt still weighs heavily on him. “It was a living hell. I was mere seconds from death. ... I didn’t know I was going to get out. I will carry with me to my grave whether I should have taken somebody with me. I still harbour a lot of guilt,” he said. He added: “Time does heal a bit, but it doesn’t make you forget what happened. And I think, for our generation, it’s our marking point in history. It changed the world that day.”
The attacks left me powerless, says Bush
F
ORMER US President George W Bush has spoken of the moment he heard about the September 11 terror attacks ten years ago. Speaking to the National Geographic channel, in his only interview before the anniversary, he described how he felt on that day. He was informed by his chief of staff that New York’s Twin Towers had been hit by passenger jets while he was taking part in a reading session with schoolchildren. His initial response has been criticised, but Mr Bush defended himself. “I made the decision not to jump up immediately. I wanted to project a sense of calm. I did not want to leave the classroom and rattle the kids. I wanted to project a sense of calm.”
•Osama
•Bush
Mr Bush said he was then “whisked away” from the school in his armoured limousine. “I remember thinking the first plane was likely an accident, the second one an attack and the third a declaration of war,” he said.
Mr Bush talked of his frustration at being kept away from the White House for his own safety. “I said what the hell are you talking about? I am the president of the United States, we are going back. I need to be there,” he said.
“The most powerless I ever felt was when I was watching people jumping to their deaths on TV and there was nothing I could do about it.” The former leader also said he felt a sense of “closure” and “gratitude that justice had been done” when he heard American forces had killed Osama Bin Laden - who was responsible for planning the attacks. He said he experienced no pleasure when he heard about the death of the al-Qaeda leader. He said: “To us certainly there was no sense of jubilation (and) certainly no sense of happiness. “ The full interview, which is part of a documentary on the attacks, will be aired by the National Geographic channel on Sunday.
It is claimed that one of the 9/11 conspirators - Abu Abdul Rahman sent a coded love post on an Internet chat room to his “German girlfriend” weeks before the attack, who turned out to be fellow 9/11 conspirator Ramzi Binalshibh. The message allegedly read: “The first semester commences in three weeks. Two high schools (Twin Towers) and two universities (Washington DC targets) ... This summer will surely be hot ...19 (the eventual number of hijackers) certificates for private education and four exams (the number of planes used). Regards to the professor. Goodbye.”
A company’s many losses Global financial services firm Cantor Fitzgerald was the worst business affected by the 9/11 attacks. It lost 658 out of its 960-strong workforce.
WTC steel was sold What did the US authorities do with the 185,101 tons of steel left at Ground Zero? They recycled it. The ‘9/11 Research’ website shows that the bulk of the steel was shipped to China and India. The Chinese firm Baosteel purchased 50,000 tonnes at a rate of $120 (£73) per ton. The rest of the steel was used for memorial material across all 50 states.
Plane engine survives crash According to Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA), a single engine from one of the planes that struck the Twin Towers miraculously survived the plane crash and the explosion and collapse of the Towers.
19 terrorists, four planes 19 al-Qaeda terrorists hijacked four US passenger planes and ploughed them into the Twin Towers and the Pentagon. A fourth plane allegedly heading straight for Capitol Hill or the White House crashed in a field in rural Pennsylvania, killing all onboard. Fifteen of the men were from Saudi Arabia, two from the United Arab Emirates, one (Atta) from Egypt, and one from Lebanon. Enter Guatanamo Bay The attacks gave birth to Guantanamo Bay detention camp where US holds inmates defined as, “illegal enemy combatants.”