What Happened

The Twin Towers were two of New York City’s most famous skyscrapers. The towers were built in 1973, and they were knocked down in 2001. They stood for 38 years. They stood where the two pools are today. They represent where the two towers were. They are two fountains. 2,996 people died at the Twin Towers. A terrorist group called Al-Qaeda was behind the 9/11 attacks. They do not like the United States. The group was led by Osama bin Laden. He was killed by a team of US Navy seals in 2011.

They also hit the side of the Pentagon because that was also a big landmark of the USA. Only 27 people died there, and it was fixable. You can go to Washington, D.C., and you can see it there. Also, a plane was coming from Newark Airport going to San Francisco, but it was hijacked, and that was going to go into the White House or the Capitol, but it took too long. Passengers attacked the hijackers, who crashed the plane in Shanksville. The crash killed 40 people, including the crew members. The Pentagon is the main office for the military, and if that got knocked down, then that could’ve been even bigger than the Twin Towers when they came down.

The Story

The first attack was from the same terrorist group (Al-Qaeda). Ramzi Yousef rented a van and parked it in the garage of the North Tower, and the van was filled with bombs. They hoped that it would blow up the South Tower, but it didn’t work. That attack happened in 1993. So, it took eight years for them to plan 9/11, which happened in 2001.

The Timeline

At 7:59 am on September 11, 2001, flight number 11 was going from Boston’s Logan Airport to Los Angeles. The reason why all of the flights were going to the west coast is because the more fuel that is used, the bigger the fire. Flight 175, coming from Boston’s Logan Airport, was also going to Los Angeles. Another flight, number 77, was leaving from Washington, D.C.’s Dulles International Airport and going to Los Angeles. Finally, at 8:41 am, Flight 93 took off, coming from New York’s Newark Airport going to San Francisco. Five minutes later, at 8:46 am, Flight 11 smashed into the North Tower. Then 17 minutes later, at 9:03 am, Flight 175 crashed into the South Tower. 34 minutes later, at 9:37 am, Flight 77 crashed into the Pentagon. Finally, 26 minutes later, at 10:03 am, Flight 93 crashed into a field in Shanksville, Pennsylvania.

What Will Happen Now?

I think that the World Trade Center will be a big part to New York City. There is the 9/11 Memorial, The Oculus, One World Trade Center, Greenfield Mall, Two World Trade Center, and Three World Trade Center, and there is still more to come. Also, it’s not hard to get there. There are 12 subways that are connected to the Oculus and one that leads you straight to One World Trade Center, and also the PATH train from Jersey City. Also, it is on one out of the two highways in New York City (the West Side Highway). I think that the World Trade Center is going to become a big landmark of New York City and Manhattan. I think that it will be a big trademark of New York City and Manhattan.

One World Trade Center

One World Trade Center is one of the tallest buildings in the world! The World Trade Center is one hundred and four stories tall, and it is one thousand seven hundred seventy-six feet tall. If you don’t believe me, you can see it for yourself. Tours are available! For a standard trip it is 34 dollars, for an ungraded experience it is 44 dollars, and it is 54 dollars for the best experience. It’s a great view of Manhattan from the highest point in the city (great pictures!). But don’t be worried to see it. The city is doing everything they can do to keep it safe, because it cost 2.3 billion dollars and they don’t want to waste that money. I don’t think that the World Trade Center is coming down anytime soon. It is pretty new. It opened in 2014. So far, the city says that it was a good investment.

Two World Trade Center

Two World Trade Center is going to be One World Trade Center’s big brother. It will be one of the tallest residential buildings in the US. Two World Trade Center is a futuristic building. It might not be done by 2023 because they haven’t even started the building and the process. They’re still coming up with designs for the building. But I don’t think you’ll be living there if you aren’t rich or you haven’t won the lottery.

The Oculus

You might think from outside that it’s just a cool design, but inside it is a very big mall. There are more than 30 stores in the mall and 12 trains connecting to it. The Oculus was finished on March 3, 2016, and it was built because there is another mall on the other side of the street (Brookfield Place). People have been waiting a long time for something like this to be in New York City. Plans for the Oculus began in 2003. People thought that it would never come to life, so when it opened, everyone was very happy! The Oculus is one of the three malls in Manhattan. The other two are the Time Warner Center and Brookfield Place. So that’s what the Oculus is. It is bigger than the Time Warner Center. That’s what I know about The Oculus. People like the Oculus because it’s connected to the PATH and subway trains.

Brookfield Place

Brookfield Place is a large mall in Downtown Manhattan. It is the biggest mall in New York City. It has more than fifty stores in it. It also has a huge food court with great food. Brookfield Mall opened on March 25, 2015, about a year before the Oculus opened. People call Brookfield Place the Oculus’s brother. The Brookfield Mall also holds private events. The mall is known for the great food court because they have more than 20 restaurants. People love it for their dumplings and pizza. Everything is great there! But they were planning for it to hold more stores, and when it it was constructed that’s when they realized it couldn’t, so they made the Oculus. Some stores there are the same ones in the Oculus. They are trying to have more stores there, but everyone wants the Oculus because it connected to the PATH and subway trains. But it is connected to the 9/11 Memorial. It is just a huge mall overall. It has a lot of stores!

The Pools

Each year on September 11, thousands of people crowd around the memorial pools to cry together about the horrible deaths that occured. All 2,996 names are engraved on the rims of the pools. Pools lay where the towers stood, and also if this happens to One and Two and Three World Trade Center, then it is designed so that the building will fall into the pools. It took seven years to make the pools, three for the South Tower because it wasn’t as wide as the North Tower because more people worked in the North Tower, and it was also taller, and it had the garage under it. So many people go there all the time to see their former friends and family. So many people come there every day that they needed to make sections for everybody by last name. There are 450 sections, 30 people in each section.

The Survivor Tree

The Survivor Tree is a tree that survived the 9/11 attacks. The tree only had its stem left. They took it to the Bronx Zoo, and it took more than six years to regrow. It was ready in time for the new grand opening, and people loved seeing it. I am wondering how the leaves on this tree are always green, in all seasons. What I’m thinking is that maybe they are fake leaves because they never fall, and they never change the color. Even when the seasons change, they stay green as grass. I wonder if it was at the zoo for so long because they needed to put the fake ones on it and make sure when it is a wind storm or a snow storm, they don’t fly away. I think all the roots were wiped away from the attack, and you can’t put new veins in a tree when the stem is only left. So, I think that they are fake leaves, and they don’t even feel real at all. I say that they did that for the media, and so it will be known as the Survivor Tree.

How We Honor Loved Ones

People from all over the world honor their loved ones who died in 9/11. In NYC, streets are named after people who lived on those streets. This happens even in Japan, France, Mexico, and England. People were affected by this all over the world because so many people lost so many family members. Marianne Simone was one of the people who died in the attack.

There was a firefighter that was a first responder, and he unfortunately died. His name was Paul R. Martini, and there was a street named after him. Many more people are honored all over the world because of this event. Even in China. Maybe one day it will become a national holiday all over the world. I think that all of us should take a very good lesson away from this unfortunate event. At airports, security got much tighter. This was a big lesson for people all over the world.

Bibliography

O’Connor, Jim. What were the Twin Towers?

“9/11 Timeline.” The History channel website. https://www.history.com/topics/21st-century/911-timeline-video

“9/11 memorial timeline.” The 9/11 memorial website.

https://timeline.911memorial.org/#Timeline/2

“2nd Plane Hitting WTC – LIVE News Coverage – 9/11.” BoulevaradeTV, youtube.com