The September 11th Attacks

Contributed by Dan Sheldon

9/11 Summary
 

            Tuesday September 11, 2001 will forever be remembered as a day that has changed the lives of Americans forever.  The day began as any other ordinary day in New York City, Washington D.C., and in Shanksville, Pennsylvania; until 8:42 am.  A group of men on four separate jet planes hijacked their individual plane and were determined to cause sheer terror for the American public.  Each plane was making a transcontinental flight, filled with 20,000 gallons of aviation fuel.  At 8:42 am, American Airlines flight 11 hit the northern tower (1 World Trades Center), and only twenty-one minutes later, United Airlines Flight 175 struck the southern tower (2 World Trades Center).  Nearly forty minutes later, a third hijacked plane hit the western face of the Pentagon in Washington D.C.  Next, World Trade Center 2 collapsed, followed by World Trade Center 1, trapping/killing thousands of innocent people.  The fourth flight never reached its destination because a few passengers retaliated against the hijackers and forced the plane to crash in Shanksville, Pennsylvania.  In addition World Trade Center 7 collapsed because of falling debris from the twin towers. 
 

            The nineteen men believed to have hijacked the four jets are believed to have been members of Al-Qaeda, a terrorist group in the Middle East.  Al-Qaeda’s leader was believed to be Osama Bin Laden, who has since been killed by American Navy Seals.  Al-Qaeda was shielded by the conservative Islamic group that had controlled much of Afghanistan, the Taliban.   Al-Qaeda has trained many men not only in weapons training and combat training, but also how to blend in with western culture.  This has led to members of Al-Qaeda to be spread across 60 nations around the globe.  Al-Qaeda’s biggest enemy has been the imperialistic United States because they threatened their takeover of Islamic dominated land in the Middle East. 

Interview:

Below is an interview with my mother, Laurie Sheldon, about her memories of the 9/11 attacks.

 Question: Before we begin, tell me about yourself

My name is Laurie Sheldon, I am 52 years old.  I am the mother of two children.  I went to Arthur L. Johnson High School and then received my BA from Rutgers University and my MPA from American Military University. 

Question: What comes to mind when you think about the events that occurred on 9/11/01?

Sadness and a true loss of security- Although wars have been occurring in prior years, it was never here in the United States – and on such a large scale was something that I never thought I would see in my lifetime.

Question: Where were you during the attack? What were you doing?

I had taken Daniel to his second day of kindergarten, dropped Katie at pre-school and then was going to work at Trinitas Hospital in Elizabeth when I saw the burning building in NYC while driving down Westfield Avenue.

Question: What was your initial reaction when you realized this was not an accident but an attack?
Disbelief.  At first I heard on the radio that a plane crashed into the World Trade Center and I     though it must have been a small plane, and thought it was so sad.  Once I arrived at the        Paramedic unit, the TV was on and we were watching and realized it was a jet.  We knew       instantly it wasn’t an accident and our pagers were going off.  Some of my co-workers serve             on the NJ Urban Task Force and they were being dispatched to the city to aid in the rescue                 efforts. 

I called my husband to see where he was and make sure he was okay and knew what was          happening.  We made a decision to get our children from school and meet at his parents               house.  I also called my parents and siblings to check in.  Due to the cell towers being down,                reaching everyone was quite hard and frustrating.
 

I also thought of my friends who worked in the financial district and was praying they were         okay.

Question: How were you able to assist the paramedics in preparing for this disaster?

When we were watching the events unfold and realized how large the incident was, we began             to check response kits, added extra supplies to the paramedic trucks and put together extra IV kits.  We called in additional responders and were dispatching units to Liberty State Park.
 

Question: How were you able to keep your focus while at work with the stress of the situation?

Having been in EMS for a number of years, the initial reaction is to act. - to do something.  We   also work as a team so as we were prepping, we could   discuss the situations and monitor   emergency channels. Often is in the time when tasks are completed that the stress hits you.

Question: Were you concerned about the safety of your family because this attack happened so close to where you live?

Absolutely.   Living so close to the incident as well as airports made me feel very uneasy as          to what else could still occur.  I knew my children were safe (I called while making the IVs), I couldn't wait to be done at work so I could have everyone all together in one place.

I was able to leave work by 11:00 am and went straight to St John the Apostle for Daniel (my      husband was getting Katie). So many others were there and pulling their children out of  school.  I knew he was safe and right down the hall from me and didn't want to alarm him. Since the church is on the same floor, I went into church to say some prayers – once of the priests (Fr. Joe) was there and had led a few prayers as well. 

Question:  Since your children were young at the time, how did you plan on explaining this situation to them?

Although young at the time, they knew something was wrong.  At their grandparents we tried to keep them occupied with activities in another room away from where the television was  broadcasting. When they asked, we told them there was a terrible plane accident and many people were hurt and needed our prayers.
 

Question: How has this experience changed your life?

I found that with every terrible incident there are so many stories of people trying to help and care for each other.  I think we sometimes forget how great we can be.  It prompted so many people to commit to volunteerism and to look beyond themselves to serve others.

It also made me take stock of what is most important to me, and not to take things for granted.  I still teach EMS education and always show a slideshow created by the NY/NJ Port          Authority Police Department that shows the horrors of that day and as a remembrance of     just how important the work they are training for is.

For more information, please see ....

Smutz, Kat. "History in an Hour." History in an Hour. N.p., n.d. Web. 12 Feb. 2013. http://www.historyinanhour.com/2011/09/11/911-summary/.

 

"9/11 Facts Timeline." 9/11 Facts Timeline. N.p., n.d. Web. 12 Feb. 2013. http://www.wanttoknow.info/9-11cover-up10pg.
 

"Remembering 9/11." National Geographic. National Geographic, n.d. Web. 12 Feb. 2013. http://www.nationalgeographic.com/remembering-9-11/.
 

"9/11 Memorial Timeline." 9/11 Memorial Timeline. N.p., n.d. Web. 12 Feb. 2013. http://timeline.national911memorial.org/.
 

"9/11 Facts." 9/11 Facts. N.p., n.d. Web. 12 Feb. 2013. http://www.911-facts.info/english.html.