#5 Ground Zero: Twenty years after

I was in my fourth month as a newly-married man in 2001 when one night in the Philippines, I learned in a CNN breaking news that the Twin Towers in New York City collapsed due to terrorist attacks. The September 11 tragedy impacted the U.S. and the world on immigration and the war on terrorism and brought many enduring legacies. While the internet is ubiquitous with horrible images depicting the turn of events at Ground Zero during 9/11, many of today's generations are unaware of what happened. Today, on the 20th anniversary of the bombings, we had the opportunity to revisit the historic site and commemorate the lives of those who perished.

 

The Oculus: The transportation and shopping hub near the 911 Memorial. People visiting the Memorial emerge from this magnificent architecture.

The entrance to the 911 Memorial grounds (left). The crowd flock to the pools (right). The 9/11 Memorial and Museum estimates a daily average of 9,000 visitors from all 50 states and 170 countries who travel to the Museum alone.

 

Flowers and American flags were offered to the victims by their family members.

The highjacked American Airlines (AA) Flight 175 was the carrier that crashed into the South Tower, which eventually collapsed within 10 seconds. "9/11" refers to the four coordinated Al-Qaeda terrorist group attacks on the North Tower (AA Flight 11), South Tower, the Pentagon in Virginia (AA Flight 77), and United Airlines Flight 93 that crashed in Pennsylvania after passengers fought back against the terrorists on board. 

The Fire Department of New York lost 343 members while responding to the scene on the day of the attack.

 

The Survivor Tree. According to the marker, this Callery pear tree was discovered in the middle of the wreckage of the 9/11 attacks. Its bark was charred from fires, and many branches were reduced to stumps. However, it was still bearing leaves showing signs of life. It was brought to a nursery to be taken care of, then in December 2010, replanted into the 9/11 Memorial, where it thrives continuously.

The map of the 9/11 Memorial ground where the Twin Towers originally situated. Their spots are now replaced by the South Pool and North Pool.

 

The South Pool (left) during the day and the North Pool during the night (right).

Almost 3,000 lives were lost during the September 11, 2001 attacks (New York only), including children, pregnant women, and people of different nationalities and ethnicities.

 

The One World Trade Center during the day (left) and night (right). The tallest and main building among the four towers planned for redevelopment of the World Trade Center in lower Manhattan.

The entrance to the 9/11 Museum contains the different artifacts that tell the story of 9/11. The regular admission for adults is $26 but accessible to the public on Mondays between 3:30-5:00 PM. It's also accessible to special groups such as 9/11 family members, responders, and the U.S. military.

The pools at night. The lights in the pool illuminate the inscribed names of the deceased.

The annual Tribute in Light on the night of 9/11/2021

Visit the 9/11/ Memorial and Museum Q&A to learn more. God bless America.