Approximately 10:30 a.m. EST Emotions spill over into violence at a two-hour protest by several hundred to a thousand firefighters near City Hall, beginning at West and Chambers Streets, to protest Giuliani's October 31st ruling to reduce the number of firefighters permitted at the World Trade Center site from 64 to 25. After firefighter Mike Heffernan, brother of John Heffernan, retired fire captain Bill Butler, father of Tommy Butler, and Kevin E. Gallagher, the president of the Uniformed Firefighters Association, speak, the assembled protesters push aside a barricade and begin walking south down West Street. At the next barricade the police move in, punches are thrown, and firefighters handcuffed. Both sides shout for understanding, and the conflict quickly subsides. The firefighters then march out to the applause of construction workers, the protest breaking up around 12:30 p.m.
12 firefighters (including four ranking fire officers and one fire marshal) are arrested and taken to the 28th Precinct station house in central Harlem. 5 police officers are injured, two with black eyes and facial trauma, three with neck, shoulder and back injuries.
American Airlines Flight 587, moments before taking off on its final flight. The crash of Flight 587, which was as a result of pilot error, resulted in renewed fears of terrorist activity.
Approximately 9:16 a.m.EST -American Airlines Flight 587 crashes inBelle Harbor, Queens,New York. 265 people, 260 on the plane, are killed.[1] Originally thought to be terrorism and claimed as a victory by Al-Qaeda, an NTSB investigation finds the cause of the crash to bepilot error as a result of misuse of the aircraft'srudder; theAirbus A300 had taken off moments after aJapan AirlinesBoeing 747 had taken off from the same runway atJohn F. Kennedy International Airport, which caused the Airbus A300 to be affected by the 747'swake turbulence. In an attempt to fight against the turbulence, the first officer repeatedly and aggressively moved the plane's rudder from extreme left to right, inflicting enoughmetal fatigue to cause the entirevertical stabiliser to shear off, rendering the aircraft uncontrollable. As a precaution, the Empire State Building and UN headquarters are evacuated. Months later,Abderraouf Jdey is named by Al-Qaeda operativeMohammed Jabarah as the person responsible for the disaster, but this cannot be confirmed by any source investigating the crash.
At theopening ceremony of the2002 Winter Olympics inSalt Lake City, a tattered American flag recovered from the World Trade Center site is carried into the stadium by American athletes, members of the Port Authority police, and members of the New York City police and fire departments.[4]
TheTribute in Light project begins. The project goes for a month and is re-launched on September 11, 2003, to mark the second anniversary of the attack. The Tribute in Light is now done every year on September 11.[5][6][7]
The last steel beam standing at theWorld Trade Center site is cut down and placed on aflatbed truck in a quiet ceremony, marking the end of the clean up at Ground Zero.[8]
TheNew York City Medical Examiner releases an updated list ofWorld Trade Center casualties. There were 2,819 killed or missing, 4 less than the Police Department list which had been the best official tally publicly released. One name removed was that of a woman who had been listed under both her maiden and married names. The other three were of people reported missing once by people who had since not been in contact with New York City officials.
The Newark Star-Ledger reports that George V. Sims is alive.[11] By this point at least 7 people on the August 19 list have been found; there are now 2,812 killed or presumed dead.
The New York City Medical Examiner releases a new list of World Trade Center deaths. The new list has 22 fewer names than the previous one. The death toll now stands at 2801, including the dead on the airplanes but not the 10 hijackers.
Remembrance services are held throughout the USA for the first time it becomes an annual event.
The ceremony atNew York City, broadcast throughout the world, falls an hour behind schedule, but is well attended. The ceremony included the reading out of the names of all the persons who died there (on both the planes and the World Trade Center) and the recitals of American historical speeches such as theGettysburg Address. Moments of silence are observed at 8:46 a.m. and 9:03 a.m., the moments when the two planes struck the two towers, and church bells ring at 9:59 a.m. and 10:29 a.m., the moment at which the South and North towers respectively collapsed. Foreign dignitaries gather inBattery Park for the lighting of the eternal flame at sunset. PresidentGeorge W. Bush addresses the nation fromEllis Island an hour and a half after the lighting of the eternal flame.
The private ceremony atThe Pentagon is also well-attended, and included thePresident amongst its participants. A prayer is said at the end that referred toTodd Beamer's "Let's roll" remark.
The public ceremony atShanksville also had a large turnout. It included two flybys and a release of doves. President George W. Bush attends a private follow up service for the families of Flight 93's victims in the afternoon.
InKarachi, wanted terroristRamzi bin al-Shibh (also known as Ramzi Omar) is among five alleged terrorists captured by Pakistani authorities at aDefence Housing Authority estate. Bin al-Shibh is wanted by US authorities in relation to the September 11 attacks. His capture does not become public knowledge for two days, but photographs featuring him being led away blindfolded are published on the day.
Daniel Libeskind's design is announced as the winner and future occupant of the formerWorld Trade Center site. The design includes an office building and aWedge of Light which will honor the victims of theterrorist attacks by shutting down its lights between 8:46AM and 10:28AM EST every September 11. It will also use the WTC's foundations.[12]
Between the hours of 8:30 a.m. and midnight on September 11, 2006, onCNN, viewers could watch CNN footage of the attacks, as it happened as it was broadcast on that day. At 8:49 a.m. ET, duringAmerican Morning, CNN rebroadcast the first minute of its coverage, as it was the moment it broke the news.[16]
MSNBC broadcasts nationalNBC News coverage from 8:52 to 12:00 ET, branding it as a "Living History Event". They would do it again annually since then.
Osama bin Laden, the founder of the terrorist organizational-Qaeda who was responsible for the September 11 attacks, iskilled by U.S. Navy SEALs inAbbottabad, Pakistan. The death of bin Laden is announced by the President of the United StatesBarack Obama in a nationwide address.[25][26]
Ceremonies are held across the United States and the world to mark the tenth anniversary of the attacks. TheNational September 11 Memorial at the World Trade Center site is dedicated in a ceremony attended by President Obama, former President Bush, their respective First Ladies, and several federal, state, and local government officials. One day earlier, theFlight 93 National Memorial inShanksville, Pennsylvania was inaugurated in a ceremony attended by Vice PresidentJoe Biden.[27]
TheNFL also saw its first Sunday set of games be scheduled for the first time following the attacks. There was initial speculation that both New York based teams would play against each other, as they were scheduled to play that season. Instead, theNew York Giants visited theWashington Redskins as the marquee matchup that Sunday. Meanwhile, theDallas Cowboys visited theNew York Jets later that night. Moments of silence were held before each game’s kickoff.
Khalid Sheikh Mohammed and five other alleged conspirators of the September 11 attacks are arraigned by a U.S. military court presided by ColonelJames L. Pohl.[28]
Construction of the new One World Trade Center is completed with the installation of the spire at 1,776 feet, making it the tallest building in both the United States and the Western Hemisphere.[31]
The museum at the National September 11 Memorial at the World Trade Center site, which includes a repository for unidentified remains from the attacks, is inaugurated during a private ceremony with victims' families and friends. The facility is opened to the public six days later.[33]
After numerous delays,St. Nicholas Greek Orthodox Church is partially reopened and illuminated for an outdoor memorial service ahead of 20th anniversary commemorations the follow day.[42]
Ceremonies are held across the United States and the world to commemorate the 20th anniversary of the attacks. President Joe Biden, First LadyJill Biden, former presidents Bill Clinton and Barack Obama accompanied with their respective spouses, and several federal, state, local officials attend a remembrance ceremony at the National September 11 Memorial & Museum in New York.[43] Vice PresidentKamala Harris and former president George W. Bush speak at a memorial service held the Flight 93 National Memorial in Somerset County, Pennsylvania.[43] Secretary of DefenseLloyd Austin and Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of StaffMark Milley also preside over a memorial service at the Pentagon Memorial, which was held concurrently with the aforementioned events.[44]
The second emir of Al-Qaeda,Ayman al-Zawahiri, who helped plan the September 11 attacks, iskilled in a drone strike at his home inKabul, Afghanistan. President Biden announces al-Zawahiri's death in a statement the day after on August 1.[45]
