Strike USA

September 11, 2001

Attack on America

• 8:45 AM ET, - a highjacked aircraft is deliberately crashed into the North Tower of the World Trade Center, Manhattan, New York.
• 9:03 AM - 18 minutes later a second aircraft is crashed into the South Tower of the World Trade Center.
• 9:18 AM - The FAA shuts down all New York area airports.
• 9:20 AM - President Bush breaks from reading to school children in Florida to denounce the perpetrators of terrorist attacks just made on the USA.
• 9:21 AM - All tunnels and bridges linking Manhattan Island and the mainland are closed.
• 9:40 AM - The FAA grounds all domestic flights in the USA. Flights in the air are required to land at the nearest suitable airport.
• 9:45 AM - In Washington DC an aircraft is deliberately crashed into the side of the Pentagon, the nerve center of the US Department of Defense.
• 10:00 AM - The South Tower of the World Trade Center collapses.
• 10:05 AM - The White House, Washington DC, is evacuated.
• 10:10 AM - A portion of the Pentagon collapses due to fire damage.
• 10:22 AM - A car bomb is reported exploding outside the State Department, the US foreign affairs office in Washington DC. (Subsequent reports say this was a false alarm).
• 10:25 AM - The FAA diverts all International flights bound for the USA to other countries - i.e. Canada, etc.
• 10:28 AM - In New York, the North Tower of the World Trade Center collapses.
• 10:48 AM - A plane crashes in Somerset County, Pennsylvania, about 80 miles south-east of Pittsburgh.
• 11:04 AM - The United Nations building on Manhattan Island is evacuated.

Aircraft

• American Airlines Flight AA11, a Boeing 767 bound from Boston to Los Angeles. High jacked and crashed into the North Tower of the WTC. 81 passengers, 11 crew on board.
• United Airlines Flight UA175, a Boeing 767 bound from Boston to Los Angeles. High jacked and crashed into the South Tower of the WTC.
• American Airlines Flight AA77, a Boeing 757 bound from Dulles, Washington to Los Angeles. Unaccounted for, but presumed crashed into the Pentagon.
• United Airlines Flight UA93, a Boeing 757 bound from Newark, NY to San Francisco. Crashed into the ground near Shanksville 80 miles south of Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania.
• Another aircraft was reported to have crashed near Camp David, the presidential retreat in the forests of Maryland. Camp David is across the State line in Maryland a short distance to the south of Shanksville, so these two reports were about the same plane.
•  A radio report said that a man on the plane had used a telephone to dial 911. He told the police that his aircraft had been highjacked and that this was not a hoax call.

Lockdown Mode

• President Bush flies from Florida to Barksdale Air force Base, Louisiana. He advises that US military around the world have been placed on High Alert.
• The President and Congressional Leaders move to undisclosed sites. The President goes to the Strategic Command Centre, Nebraska.
• Five battleships leave New York harbor and deploy offshore in defense of the city.
• Also, two aircraft carriers USS George Washington and USS Kennedy based at Newport News, Virginia are deployed to take up defensive positions near New York.
• All government buildings are evacuated. The CIA move their headquarters to a secret location.
• The Governor of Maryland declares a state of emergency. Schools close early.
• Penn Station, NY is closed. No rail traffic moves out.
• BWI (Baltimore Washington International) airport closes and takes incoming flights only.
• The New York Stock Exchange (housed in a building adjacent to the World Trade Center) does not open.
•  Gas leaks are reported in New York streets.
• The Governor of New York postpones the election for Mayor of New York.
• In Chicago the highest building in America, the Sears Tower, is evacuated and closed.
• In New York biological warfare units are prepared for deployment.
• The US-Mexico border is closed.
• The US-Canada border is closed.
• Disney World evacuates and closes its entertainment facilities in Florida.
• The Kennedy Space Center in Florida is evacuated and closed.
• Canada closes airports.
• Los Angeles airport is evacuated and closed.
• The Governor of New York declares a State of Emergency.
• The National Guard is activated.

Reactions

• Britain: Support from Prime Minister Tony Blair.
• Taleban, Afghanistan: Sympathy with children, hope for justice in courts.
• Isama Bin Laden: Nil.
• Date is anniversary of Camp David accord, and attack on Israeli athletes in Munich.
• Palestine: Yasser Arafat expresses horror. However, there is dancing in the streets.

Poetry

I am very pleased to share with you some poetry posted to the Internet.

The Binch
By: SaxonDawg
Date: September 13, 2001

Every U down in Uville liked U.S. a lot,
But the Binch, who lived Far East of Uville, did not
The Binch hated U.S! the whole U.S. way!
Now don't ask me why, for nobody can say,
It could be his turban was screwed on too tight.
Or the sun from the desert had beaten too bright
But I think that the most likely reason of all
May have been that his heart was two sizes too small.

But, Whatever the reason, his heart or his turban,
He stood facing Uville, the part that was urban.
"They're doing their business," he snarled from his perch.
"They're raising their families! They're going to church!
They're leading the world, and their empire is thriving,
I MUST keep the S's and U's from surviving!"

Tomorrow, he knew, all the U's and the S's,
Would put on their pants and their shirts and their dresses,
They'd go to their offices, playgrounds and schools,
And abide by their U and S values and rules,

And then they'd do something he liked least of all,
Every U down in U-ville, the tall and the small,
Would stand all united, each U and each S,
And they'd sing Uville's anthem, "God bless us! God bless!"
All around their Twin Towers of Uville, they'd stand,
and their voices would drown every sound in the land.

"I must stop that singing," Binch said with a smirk,
And he had an idea--an idea that might work!
The Binch stole some U airplanes in U morning hours,
And crashed them right into the Uville Twin Towers.
"They'll wake to disaster!" he snickered, so sour,
"And how can they sing when they can't find a tower?"

The Binch cocked his ear as they woke from their sleeping,
All set to enjoy their U-wailing and weeping,
Instead he heard something that started quite low,
And it built up quite slow, but it started to grow--
And the Binch heard the most unpredictable thing...
And he couldn't believe it--they started to sing!

He stared down at U-ville, not trusting his eyes,
What he saw was a shocking, disgusting surprise!
Every U down in U-ville, the tall and the small,
Was singing! Without any towers at all!
He HADN'T stopped U-Ville from singing! It sung!
For down deep in the hearts of the old and the young,
Those Twin Towers were standing,
          -- called Hope and called Pride,
And you can't smash the towers we hold deep inside.

So we circle the sites where our heroes did fall,
With a hand in each hand of the tall and the small,
And we mourn for our losses while knowing we'll cope,
For we still have inside that U-Pride and U-Hope.

For America means a bit more than tall towers,
It means more than wealth or political powers,
It's more than our enemies ever could guess,
So may God bless America! Bless us! God bless!

Are these just nice words to make people feel good?

I have stood with Americans at the start of big events. They sing! With their hand on their hearts!

The day after the Strike on America I was amazed to see how flags flourished on cars and houses - they were everywhere. And so I witnessed the day the flag stores ran out of flags. Just saying!

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