WTC/Pentagon Attack ***FACT*** Thread

[Esprix]

Perhaps this doesn't belong in Great Debates, but I would like to see a thread that contains only facts about the wave of terrorist attacks, and links to the stories they came from. No opinions, no attacks, no tirades, no finger-pointing, no memoriams, no condolences - just pure information about the attacks (even rumors, if they're coming from credible news sources). This would be helpful for those of us who would like to see the facts as reported without having to wade through discussions and debates surrounding the events.

A great starting place I found was, of course, the timeline provided by cnn.com (I abbreviate it here):

• 8:45 a.m.: A large plane, possibly a hijacked airliner, crashes into the south World Trade Center
  
• 9:03 a.m.: A second plane, apparently a passenger jet, crashes into the north World Trade Center.
  
• 9:17 a.m.: The FAA shuts down all New York City area airports.
  
• 9:21 a.m.: New York City Port Authority orders all bridges and tunnels in the New York City area closed
  
• 9:30 a.m.: Bush, speaking in Florida, says the country has suffered an "apparent terrorist attack."
  
• 9:40 a.m.: The FAA halts all flight operations at U.S. airports.
  
• 9:43 a.m.: An aircraft crashes into the Pentagon.
  
• 9:45 a.m.: The White House evacuates.
  
• 9:57 a.m.: Bush departs from Florida.
  
• 10:05 a.m.: The south tower of the World Trade Center collapses.
  
• 10:10 a.m.: United Airlines Flight 93 crashes in Somerset County, Pennsylvania, southeast of Pittsburgh.
  
• 10:10 a.m.: A portion of the Pentagon collapses.
  
• 10:13 a.m.: The United Nations building evacuates.
  
• 10:22 a.m.: The State and Justice departments and the World Bank are evacuated.
  
• 10:24 a.m.: The FAA reports that all inbound transatlantic aircraft flying into the United States are being diverted to Canada.
  
• 10:28 a.m.: The World Trade Center's north tower collapses.
  
• 10:45 a.m.: All federal office buildings in Washington are evacuated.
  
• 10:54 a.m.: Israel evacuates all diplomatic missions.
  
• 10:57 a.m.: New York state government offices are closed.
  
• 11:02 a.m.: New York Mayor Rudy Guiliani orders an evacuation of the area south of Canal Street.
  
• 11:16 a.m.: The CDC is preparing bioterrorism teams... in a precautionary move.
  
• 11:18 a.m.: American Airlines reports it has lost two aircraft [flight 11, a Boeing 767 flying from Boston to Los Angeles and flight 77, a Boeing 757 en route from Washington's Dulles Airport to Los Angeles]... Flight 11 is believed to be one of the planes that crashed into the World Trade Center.
  
• 11:26 a.m.: United Airlines reports that United Flight 93, en route from Newark, New Jersey, to San Francisco, has crashed in Pennsylvania, southeast of Pittsburgh.
  
• 11:59 a.m.: United Airlines confirms that Flight 175, from Boston to Los Angeles, has crashed with 56 passengers and nine crew members aboard.
  
• 12:04 p.m.: Los Angeles International Airport... is evacuated.
  
• 12:15 p.m.: The INS puts U.S. borders with Canada and Mexico on the highest state of alert.
  
• 12:15 p.m: San Francisco International Airport is evacuated and shut down.
  
• 12:30 p.m.: The FAA says 50 flights are in U.S. airspace, but none are reporting any problems.
  
• 1:04 p.m.: Bush says military is on high alert worldwide. He says, "Make no mistake, the United States will hunt down and punish those responsible for these cowardly acts."
  
• 1:27 p.m.: A state of emergency is declared by the city of Washington.
  
• 1:44 p.m.: The Pentagon says five battleships and two aircraft carriers will head to positions in the New York area and along the East Coast.

Let's post the latest updates here as we find them from our fine news sources so we all can keep up to date on this tragedy. If you want to comment on any of the actions posted here, there are plenty of other GD and Pit and MPSIMS threads in which you may participate.

Mods, if this was an inappropriate thread or in an inappropriate forum, please move or close it at your discretion.

Esprix

[Qwertyasdfg]

My school got the announcement about a state of emergency much earlier than that, around 10:20 or so is when they announced that.

Also, I heard something about a bomb in NYU Hospital. Was that a rumor? Did it go off?

[andros]

1:04 p.m.: Bush says military is on high alert worldwide. He says, "Make no mistake, the United States will hunt down and punish those responsible for these cowardly acts."

He makes this statement after landing at Barksdale AFB in Louisiana. All but three members of the Air Force One press corps exit AF1, which proceeds under heavy escort to SAC Headquarters at Offut AFB in Nebraska.

As of 5:15 pm EDT, the President is en route to Washington, and the White House says he will address the nation this evening.

[headshok]

#7 WTC just collapsed. ~5:20 EDT.

[Esprix]

I'm not sure if that was an address or a toll, but I did just hear on the radio that at least seven other buildings around the World Trade Center towers have collapsed. I'm also hearing that rescue workers and firefighters cannot get within two blocks of the towers because of falling concrete from what remains of the structures.

Esprix

[Hodge]

~6:00PM Kabul, Afghanistan is now under missile attack.

Hodge

[Esprix]

Also hearing overseas reports of explosions in Kabul, the capital of Afghanistan. Unclear if they're somehow related and/or retaliatory or not.

Esprix

[El_Kabong]

6:00PM EDT -- Various locations in Kabul, Afghanistan apparently under aerial attack (CNN).

[Esprix]

Also hearing reports that government officials are saying Bin-Laden is their "number one suspect."

Esprix

[Esprix]

Hearing now from ABC news on the radio:

One of the passengers on the plane that crashed into the Pentagon (United flight #93) was Barbara Olsen, wife of Solicitor General Ted Olsen. She made two cell phone calls to him from the plane saying that at least two hijackers used box-cutter knives to stab attendants to gain access to the cockpit, then threaten passengers and herd them into the back of the plane. The plane alleged was circling over the Pentagon, as if waiting for something, and then crashed.

Esprix

[Sam Stone]

The White House has issued a statement saying the explosions in Kabul are not the result of U.S. action.

[andros]

6:40 pm EDT, President Bush has landed at Andrews AFB.

[ExTank]

I had heard that there were additional fires/explosions about the D.C. area, some near the White House. Can anyone else confirm/deny this?

[thinksnow]

The plane alleged was circling over the Pentagon, as if waiting for something, and then crashed.

I heard/saw that the plane was under a normal route, making it just into Eastern Ohio before making a u-turn and heading East. It was on a direct path towards the White House until it veered sharply and crashed directly into the Pentagon.

[Psi Cop]

Bush is supposed to address the nation at 8:30 PM Eastern.

On the Washington front (I live a few miles outside), the Metro is bypassing stations around the Pentagon and National airport. The Beltway (as of a few hours ago) was extremely crowded, backed up in excess of four hours. Union Station is, in essence, closed. Amtrak, as well as other major rail companies around here, have cancelled all service from there.

-Psi Cop

[erislover]

Originally posted by ExTank
I had heard that there were additional fires/explosions about the D.C. area, some near the White House. Can anyone else confirm/deny this?

Last I read, around 4PM, was that this was an unfounded rumor. Except ananova.com reports that there was a car bomb at the State House.

[Sterra]

I heard that the car bomb at the state house was also an unfounded rumor from CNN.

[DKW]

If you work in or otherwise have to commute to a federal building in any part of the country, expect delays. I rememeber the exact same thing happening after the Oklahoma City bombing (for the next several months, everyone who wanted to get into the Prince Kuhio building had to sign in). This is just standard procedure.

My father, who works at a naval base (non-military position; he hasn't seen active duty in decades) didn't go to work today, but I think he just didn't feel like fighting through traffic and security (which can get really bad; one time it took me over three hours to get to a military base due to a bomb threat). The schools, thank goodness, are still open, but air traffic has been completely shut down and will probably remain that way for at least a few days.

For the most part, however, my part of the globe hasn't been too drastically hit. Thus far, we've responded peacefully and should return to normal sooner rather than later. I know it's cliche, but sometimes we really are lucky we live Hawaii.

[tdn]

Not seen on TV, not seen on the web, but heard from 2 IRL people: There was a 5th plane, not yet landed, and not yet identified. I heard this around 14:30 EDT, which, if consistant with the MO, would have kept it in the friendly skies for about 6 hours. Evidently, the location of the plane remained undisclosed.

Also: 20:30 EDT, Dubya delivers his official address to the nation. It lasts for all of 4 minutes.

[Dryfreeze]

I also heard the report of the 5th plane, after the falling of the 4th plane in pen.
I heard it was being escorted by f-16 but after that nothing. . .no further information.

[PeeQueue]

I received an email from my wife at 8:41 checking in to see if I was OK after the first plane hit. Either my clock is wrong or their's is. I thought mine was fast if anything.

She works across the street from 2 WTC, and I work in 4 WTC.

PeeQueue

[IzzyR]

Can't guarantee this, but I just heard on the radio that two guys were arrested near the Meadowlands Complex, with a truckload of explosives, heading for the George Washington Bridge.

[PeeQueue]

Well, just to put in my 2 unsubstantiated cents, I just heard the same thing.

My first thought was maybe the "small time" terrorists are using this as an opportunity to get in their licks.

PeeQueue

[Jack Batty]

Disturbing items picked up from CNN - blame them for any inaccuracies:

200 NYC Firefighters feared dead.
78 NYC Police officers missing; presumed dead.
At least 800 dead at the Pentagon. Earlier they said 100. It has since been updated.
Cell phone calls have been reported coming from the collapsed World Trade Center towers!

I am still freaked out about the whole ordeal.

[IzzyR]

Update: Mayor Giuliani says "three men in a van" were stopped, but with no explosives.

I imagine they were not stopped for speeding, but it's unclear what the significance of it is, if any.

[tracer]

Jack Batty wrote:

Cell phone calls have been reported coming from the collapsed World Trade Center towers!

I'll bet at least some of those calls are prank calls. It's easy to call somebody up on a cell phone from anywhere in the world and say, "I'm trapped in the World Trade Center!". It's a lot harder to triangulate on that cell phone's actual position.

[ruadh]

Yeah, but are the calls going to the NYPD, or are people calling their friends and relatives to tell them they're trapped?

[Esprix]

Another view of the second plane crashing into the north tower has been released, from underneath and within maybe two blocks, but facing in the same direction as the plane was going, so you actually see (and hear) it go into the building (in addition to the one that was seen from underneath right as the plane hit, but from the side). That is one creepy video.

Also saw an additional video of 7 WTC collapsing, similar to the way the other two went.

Esprix

[k.os]

The hospitals/rescuers have all the blood they need. All of their requirements have been met. They are turning back people giving blood now. I have heard this repeatedly, both on FOX news and on CNN. This at least is good news.

[k.os]

Actually this report I saw ran again and the person was talking about the St-Vincent's (sp?) hospital, not the whole effort, but I sincerely hope other hospitals are in similar situations. They said some people waited up to 5 hours to give blood. This renews my hope in some way. This day has just been so unreal.

[Opus1]

Looks like we've identified (and caught) some of the bastards responsible for this:

http://www.bostonherald.com/news/loc...tk09122001.htm

http://www.ananova.com/news/story/sm...atestheadlines

Bin Laden's definitely involved.

[tracer]

k.os wrote:

The hospitals/rescuers have all the blood they need. All of their requirements have been met. They are turning back people giving blood now.

They will not, however, be turning back blood donors a while from now. The need for blood is going to be ongoing, for several days at the least.

And just wait'll they start pulling out more injured folks from the remains of the WTC....

[zenith]

A Moslem group from Pakistan have claimed responsibity, US official aren't buying the claim.
Fire fighters on the scene have said they don't think there is much chance of finding people alive, but you can always have hope.
A man on the plane that went down in Pennsylvania called his wife to say goodbye. He told her they were all going to die but that he and other passengers were going to try and do something.

[absoul]

Originally posted by tracer
Jack Batty wrote:

I'll bet at least some of those calls are prank calls. It's easy to call somebody up on a cell phone from anywhere in the world and say, "I'm trapped in the World Trade Center!". It's a lot harder to triangulate on that cell phone's actual position.

It's a little bit more gruesome than that...

People who suspect their loved ones are trapped in the rubble are calling the missing peoples cell phones in hope that the ringing will bring rescue workers to them. It gives me chills to imagine.

[Doc Nickel]

Friend of mine works at an NYC hospital. Blood is STILL NEEDED! They started turning away donors since they had run out of collection bags.

Donors are STILL NEEDED at other locations that can still accept donations and have the equipment to do so.

The Jacob Javits Center has been converted to a temporary morgue.

[pulykamell]

What exactly did happen with that f-16 that was escorting a jet. I remember hearing a report about it here in Hungary about an hour or so after the WTC was hit, and then absolutely no follow-ups on it. I know one speculation was that it shot down the jet near Pittsburg, but all military sources have denied that. So what's the follow-up?

[Nymysys]

Police have seized a rented car containing Arabic-language flight training manuals at Logan International Airport, a source told the newspaper

Okay, does this seem fishy to anyone else? We've got a mastermind operation that the experts say probably cost scads of money and took months, if not years to plan, and they leave a How To Fly manual in a car parked at an airport? An Arabic How To Fly guide?

I've said it before, I'll say it again. Does not compute to me.

[pulykamell]

Nym- yeah, that jumped out at me, too. I thought perhaps I was the only one. Not only did I think it's a rather weird piece of evidence to leave behind, but, um, shouldn't they already know this sort of stuff pretty much inside out before attempting such an operation, rather than burning the midnight oil, studying at the last minute?

[Freedom]

I did just hear on the radio that at least seven other buildings around the World Trade Center towers have collapsed.

Only three buildings have collapsed. The third building was building #7, so that is probably where the confusion came from.


Has anyone heard anything new about the fifth plane?

My wife and I were watching Japanese television (muted) because we had been wathcing TV all day and they had different video. They had a chart that was obviously for the hijacked planes because they had the same death tolls next to the planes. They had 5 planes listed, although their plane #4 didn't have all the information about it that the others did.


In the news conference about the white truck with explosives, the police commisioner of NYC said that three men were arrested, but there were no explosives on the truck. He also said that there had been an APB put out on the truck and they had been specifically looking for it. He said the APB originated from the FBI, but couldn't say why.


Rumors I would like to put to rest:


Has anyone heard any follow-up on early reports that the USAF shot down one of the planes?

What's the deal with the car bomb at the state department?

Who bombed Kabul?

[Philster]

The "fifth" plane never existed. Although the last of the planes that landed in Denver had a F-16 riding near-by as the plane landed.

There is video of the FIRST plane hitting the WTC. I was amazed. Someone on the street had a camera and heard a jetliner, turned to focus on the WTC and caught the first impact. I saw this on ABC around 11pm EDT. ABC had all the angles, plus the FIRST plane.

The first plane came in wings even (no roll), at what appeared to be a sharp angle of descent.

[pulykamell]

Anyone interested can go to CNN's website to see the video of the first plane.

[Dinsdale]

http://www.cnn.com/2001/US/09/12/search/
Six firefighters and one policeman reportedly resued from the rubble this a.m., alive but severely burned.
Hopefully there will be more.

[Tamerlane]

Freedom: Just some supposition ( sorry to toss it in a fact thread, but I think it is relevant and not necessarily misleading since I'm not reporting it as a rumor ), but re: Who bombed Kabul? - Yesterday it was reported that Ahmed Shah Massoud, the most important rebel leader in Afghanistan, fell prey to an assaination attempt that had Osama bin Laden's modus operandi written all over it. The rebels are insisting he survived and is being treated, but most Western sources are of the opinion that he's dead and the rebels are trying to cover while they re-group.

Massoud was the most effective field commander and far and away the most charismatic leader among the rebels. Without him, they may well disintegrate. It would be natural for the Taliban to take advantage of his death by launching a full-on offensive.

I'm guessing ( and only guessing ) that the rebels attacked Kabul. Either out of vengeance or as a spoiler attack to pre-empt a Taliban offensive.

[tiny ham]

Originally posted by pulykamell
Anyone interested can go to CNN's website to see the video of the first plane.

Not that I haven't seen enough footage to give me nightmares for a lifetime, but what section of cnn.com was this video in? I looked at the chronology video and didn't see it.

jarbaby

[IzzyR]

Originally posted by Tamerlane
I'm guessing ( and only guessing ) that the rebels attacked Kabul.

The rebels themselves have denied it. The Taliban themselves say it was an explosion at a munitions storage place.

[pulykamell]

jarbabyj right under the headline story on the main page "Bush:An Act of War" there's two hyperlinks. One reads "Video:First WTC attack" and the second is "Video:Second WTC attack."

I can't link you to it, since it's a java script. (At least I don't think I can.)

[Tamerlane]

Izzy: Thanks for the correction . Though I found my little hypothesis a lot more interesting - Stupid facts .

- Tamerlane

[tiny ham]

Originally posted by pulykamell
jarbabyj right under the headline story on the main page "Bush:An Act of War" there's two hyperlinks. One reads "Video:First WTC attack" and the second is "Video:Second WTC attack."

thanks...I think. If I never see any footage of that day again it will be too soon.

jarbaby

[pulykamell]

Since this is a rumor thread, there was a brief rumor here in Budapest that the Sears Tower had gotten hit. I called the folks back home to discover that, thankfully, this had simply been somebody down the line exaggerating the Sears Tower evacuation. Not that the World Trade Center isn't enough, but it would be just that much weirder realizing that being in Chicago a month ago would be the last time I would have seen a building I grew up with.

[Dinsdale]

Just got off the phone with one of my best friends. Tho I have no independent verification, my friend has never lied to me before.

He works in Jersey City, on the river, right across from the WTC. He got to work right after the 1st attack. He said they opened their blinds, and saw the second attack and everything that followed.

I asked, "did you actually see the 2d plane before it hit?" He said, "Dude, it was like if you looked out your window right now and there was a 767 right there." Said it basically flew between his building and the next one. Just before impact, it veered upward, thereby hitting the building with a larger profile. Said it looked like it took out 10 stories with the immediate impact.

He said he was having a hard time coming to grips with the number of people he saw die yesterday. He said he saw at least 20 people jump/fall. And then saw the buildings both come down.

Said there were 2 major triage centers, one on the pier outside his bldg, and one right next to the WTS. The one close to the towers is where so many rescue workers lost their lives when the bldgs collapsed.

He said they were down on the pier outside their bldg as police boats were unloading dead and wounded, and a formation of military jets came overhead. Two peeled off and flew low over the pier, and the 1000 or so people spontaneously broke into a cheer. Said it was incredibly heartwarming, but seemed surreal, like something out of a movie.

It took him forever to walk/hitch home to Brooklyn, and he was told not to come into work until called.

Says there is an incredible amount of anger in Brooklyn today, and says he would not wish to be of middle eastern ethnicity. Reports violence in Brooklyn. Says Palestinians were "celebrating", and someone fired into the crowd, killing at least 1.

As I said, I have no verification, but thought this might give a slightly different insight.