At what time did the first tower of the World Trade Center fall on September 11?
Ben Swann
Swann has questioned whether 7 World Trade Center collapsed on September 11, 2001, the way authorities said it did. See also 9/11 conspiracy theories. The National Institute of Standards and Technology  (NIST) investigated the events of 7 World Trade Center. NIST determined that diesel fuel did not play an important role, nor did the structural damage from the collapse of the Twin Towers. Fires burned out of control during the afternoon, buckling critical columns, and ultimately causing the building to fall downward as a single unit. The fires, which were fueled by office contents and burned for seven hours, along with the lack of water, were the key reasons for the collapse. This made the old 7 WTC the only steel skyscraper at the time to have collapsed from fire. The NIST report found no evidence supporting the conspiracy theories that 7 World Trade Center was brought down by controlled demolition.
History of the United States
On September 11, 2001 ("9/11"), the United States was struck by a terrorist attack when 19 al-Qaeda hijackers commandeered four airliners to be used in suicide attacks and intentionally crashed two into both twin towers of the World Trade Center and the third into the Pentagon, killing 2,937 victims—206 aboard the three airliners, 2,606 who were in the World Trade Center and on the ground, and 125 who were in the Pentagon. The fourth plane was re-taken by the passengers and crew of the aircraft. While they were not able to land the plane safely, they were able to re-take control of the aircraft and crash it into an empty field in Pennsylvania, killing all 44 people including the four terrorists on board, thereby saving whatever target the terrorists were aiming for. Within two hours, both Twin Towers of the World Trade Center completely collapsed causing massive damage to the surrounding area and blanketing Lower Manhattan in toxic dust clouds. All in all, a total of 2,977 victims perished in the attacks. In response, President George W. Bush on September 20 announced a "War on Terror". On October 7, 2001, the United States and NATO then invaded Afghanistan to oust the Taliban regime, which had provided safe haven to al-Qaeda and its leader Osama bin Laden.
Timeline for the day of the September 11 attacks
10:28:22: The North Tower of the World Trade Center collapses, 1 hour and 42 minutes after the impact of Flight 11. The Marriott Hotel, located at the base of the two towers, is also destroyed.
Casualties of the September 11 attacks
Before the Twin Towers collapsed, an estimated 200 people fell to their deaths from the burning towers, landing on the streets and rooftops of adjacent buildings hundreds of feet below at a speed of almost 150 miles per hour—sufficient to cause instantaneous death upon impact, but insufficient to cause unconsciousness throughout the actual fall. Most of those who fell from the World Trade Center had jumped from the North Tower. To witnesses upon the ground, many of the people falling from the towers seemed to have deliberately jumped to their deaths, including the person whose photograph became known as the Falling Man. The NIST report officially describes the deaths of 104 jumpers but states that this figure likely understates the true number of those who died in this manner. The sight and sound of these individuals falling from the towers, then "smashing like eggs on the ground" horrified and traumatized many witnesses. The jumpers' death certificates state the cause of death as "blunt trauma" due to homicide. Some of the occupants of each tower above its point of impact made their way upward toward the roof in hope of helicopter rescue, only to find the roof access doors locked. Port Authority officers attempted to unlock the doors but control systems would not let them; in any case, thick smoke and intense heat would have prevented rescue helicopters from landing.
Impending Death
On September 11, 2001, four commercial aircraft were hijacked and deliberately crashed as part of a coordinated attack on the United States by Al-Qaeda terrorists. Two, American Airlines Flight 11 and United Airlines Flight 175, were crashed into the North and South Tower of the World Trade Center at 8:46 a.m. and 9:03 a.m. respectively. Both towers collapsed in less than two hours because of structural failure caused by the weakening of their support beams from the intense fire; the South Tower at 9:59 a.m., and the North Tower at 10:28 a.m.
Ground zero
During the September 11, 2001 attacks, two aircraft hijacked by 10 al-Qaeda terrorists flew into the North and South Towers of the World Trade Center in New York City, causing massive damage and starting fires that caused the weakened 110-story skyscrapers to collapse. The destroyed World Trade Center site soon became known as "ground zero." Rescue workers also used the phrase "The Pile", referring to the pile of rubble that was left after the buildings collapsed. 
Even after the site was cleaned up and construction on the new One World Trade Center and the National September 11 Memorial & Museum were well under way, the term was still frequently used to refer to the site, as when opponents of the Park51 project that was to be located two blocks away from the site labeled it the "Ground Zero mosque."
Empire State Building
The World Trade Center's twin towers started construction in 1966. The following year, the Ostankino Tower succeeded the Empire State Building as the tallest freestanding structure in the world. In 1970, the Empire State surrendered its position as the world's tallest building, when the still under construction North Tower of the World Trade Center surpassed it, on October 19; the North Tower was topped out, on December 23, 1970.
Impending Death
Impending Death is a photograph taken by freelance photographer Thomas Dallal on September 11, 2001. The photograph depicts the North Tower (1 WTC) of the World Trade Center, on fire after being struck by American Airlines Flight 11 at 8:46 AM, and shortly before its collapse at 10:28 AM. Visible in the photograph are numerous people trapped in the upper floors of the building, hanging out of windows because of the intense smoke and heat. They were unable to escape because all of the stairwells and elevators above the 91st floor were severed by Flight 11's impact.
Empire State Building
With the destruction of the World Trade Center in the September 11 attacks in 2001, the Empire State Building again became the tallest building in New York City, but was only the second-tallest building in the Americas after the Willis Tower in Chicago. As a result of the attacks, transmissions from nearly all of the city's commercial television and FM radio stations were again broadcast from the Empire State Building. The attacks also led to an increase in security due to persistent terror threats against New York City landmarks.
World Trade Center (1973–2001)
The cleanup and recovery process at the World Trade Center site took eight months, during which the remains of the other buildings were demolished. The World Trade Center complex was rebuilt over more than a decade. The site is being rebuilt with six new skyscrapers, while a memorial to those killed in the attacks, a new rapid transit hub, and an elevated park were all opened. One World Trade Center, the tallest building in the Western Hemisphere at , is the lead building for the new complex, having been completed in November 2014.
Timeline for the day of the September 11 attacks
9:59:00: The South Tower of the World Trade Center collapses, 56 minutes after the impact of Flight 175.
One World Trade Center
In January 2008, two cranes were moved onto the site. Construction of the tower's concrete core, which began after the cranes arrived, reached street level by May 17. However, construction of the base was not finished until two years later, after which construction of the office floors began, and the first glass windows were subsequently installed; during 2010, floors were constructed at a rate of about one per week. An advanced "cocoon" scaffolding system was installed to protect workers from falling, and was the first such safety system installed on a steel structure in the city. The tower reached 52 floors and was over tall by December 2010. The tower's steel frame was halfway complete by then, but grew to 82 floors by the tenth anniversary of the September 11 attacks, at which time its concrete flooring had reached 72 floors and the glass cladding had reached 56 floors.
Twin Towers 2
Team Twin Towers, on February 18, 2004, unveiled their architectural model of new twin towers at a news conference at the Marriott Financial Center Hotel (now New York Marriott Downtown) near the World Trade Center site. Team Twin Towers spokesman Jonathan Hakala says the original Twin Towers "were among Earth's few 'instantly recognizable' landmarks." and "It was a magnificent structure to see going up", recalls Artie Vignapiano, who was a Port Authority landscape planner as the original World Trade Center was built. "When I worked on the 74th floor of Tower One, I used to tell people, 'You know what I get paid for? To look outside my window at the Statue of Liberty.'" He then went on to say, 'All of the people who worked on the buildings—10 out of 10—want them back.'"
Presidency of George W. Bush
On September 11, 2001, al-Qaeda terrorists hijacked four airliners and flew two them into the twin towers of the World Trade Center in New York City, destroying both 110-story skyscrapers. Another plane crashed into Pentagon, while the final plane was brought down in Pennsylvania following a struggle between the terrorists and the aircraft's passengers. The attacks had a profound effect on many Americans, who felt vulnerable to international attacks for the first time since the end of the Cold War. Appearing on national television on the night of the attacks, Bush promised to punish those who had aided the attacks, stating, "we will make no distinction between the terrorists who committed these acts and those who harbor them." In the following days, Bush urged the public to renounce hate crimes and discrimination against Muslim-Americans and Arab-Americans. He also declared a "War on Terror", instituting new domestic and foreign policies in an effort to prevent future terrorist attacks.
9/11 conspiracy theories
In 2010, the "International Center for 9/11 Studies," a private organization that is said to be sympathetic to conspiracy theories, successfully sued for the release of videos collected by NIST of the attacks and aftermath. According to the German daily "Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung", the videos that were published shortly before the ninth anniversary of the attacks provide "new food for conspiracy theorists." Many of the videos show images of 7 World Trade Center, a skyscraper in the vicinity of the WTC towers that also collapsed on September 11, 2001. Eyewitnesses have repeatedly reported explosions happening before the collapse of both of the towers, while experts consider these theories to be unreasonable.
7 World Trade Center
After the North Tower collapsed, some firefighters entered 7 World Trade Center to search the building. They attempted to extinguish small pockets of fire, but low water pressure hindered their efforts. Over the course of the day, fires burned out of control on several floors of 7 World Trade Center, the flames visible on the east side of the building. During the afternoon, the fire was also seen on floors 6–10, 13–14, 19–22, and 29–30. In particular, the fires on floors 7 through 9 and 11 through 13 continued to burn out of control during the afternoon. At approximately 2:00 pm, firefighters noticed a bulge in the southwest corner of 7 World Trade Center between the 10th and 13th floors, a sign that the building was unstable and might collapse. During the afternoon, firefighters also heard creaking sounds coming from the building. Around 3:30 pm, FDNY Chief Daniel A. Nigro decided to halt rescue operations, surface removal, and searches along the surface of the debris near 7 World Trade Center and evacuate the area due to concerns for the safety of personnel. The fire expanded the girders of the building, causing some to lose their structural integrity. This led column number 79, a critical column supporting a large part of the 13th floor, to buckle, causing the floors above it to collapse to the fifth floor; however, this could not be seen from outside the building. The structure also developed cracks in the facade just before the entire building started to fall. According to FEMA, this collapse started at 5:20:33 pm EDT when the east mechanical penthouse started crumbling. Differing times are given as to what time the building completely collapsed: at 5:21:10 pm EDT according to FEMA, and at 5:20:52 pm EDT according to NIST. There were no casualties associated with the collapse. NIST found no evidence to support conspiracy theories such as the collapse being the result of explosives; it found that a combination of factors including physical damage, fire and the building's unusual construction set off a chain-reaction collapse.
List of tenants in 2 World Trade Center
The address of this building was 2 World Trade Center with the WTC complex having its own ZIP code of 10048. It was destroyed along with the North Tower (1 World Trade Center) in the September 11 attacks. The South Tower was the second tower to be struck, at 9:03 a.m., and the first tower to collapse, at 9:59 a.m. Of the 2,977 victims killed in the attacks, 614 were in or above the South Tower impact zone. At the National September 11 Memorial & Museum, the southern pool marks the spot where the South Tower stood.
History of New York City (1978–present)
On September 11, 2001, Islamic terrorist hijackers linked to the jihadist organization Al-Qaeda piloted two hijacked passenger airliners into each of the twin 110 story World Trade Center towers. The airplanes, designated for transcontinental flights and therefore fully loaded with jet fuel, were hijacked mid-flight and intentionally crashed into the towers in the early morning hours of September 11. The crashes caused massive structural damage during impact, ripping gaping holes into the towers, and ignited raging fires, that caused both weakened towers to collapse in less than two hours. Together with a simultaneous attack on the Pentagon in Arlington, Virginia, and a failed plane hijacking that resulted in a plane crash in Shanksville, Pennsylvania, 2,977 victims died in the attacks.
World Trade Center (2001–present)
After years of delay and controversy, reconstruction at the World Trade Center site started. The new complex includes One World Trade Center, 3 World Trade Center, 4 World Trade Center, 7 World Trade Center, and one other high-rise office building being planned at 2 World Trade Center. The new World Trade Center complex also includes a museum and memorial, and a transportation hub similar in size to Grand Central Terminal. 7 World Trade Center opened on May 23, 2006, making it the first of five skyscrapers to have been completed in the World Trade Center complex. 4 World Trade Center, the first building completed as part of the site's master plan, opened on November 12, 2013. The National September 11 Museum opened on May 21, 2014, and the memorial opened on September 11, 2011. One World Trade Center was opened on November 3, 2014. The World Trade Center Transportation Hub opened to the public on March 4, 2016, and 3 World Trade Center opened on June 11, 2018. 2 World Trade Center's full construction was placed on hold in 2009, with a new design announced in 2015.
One World Trade Center
The top floor of One World Trade Center is above ground level, along with a parapet; this is identical to the roof height of the original One World Trade Center. The tower's spire brings it to a pinnacle height of , a figure intended to symbolize the year 1776, when the United States Declaration of Independence was signed. When the spire is included in the building's height, as stated by the Council on Tall Buildings and Urban Habitat (CTBUH), One World Trade Center surpasses the height of Taipei 101 (), is the world's tallest all-office building, and the sixth-tallest skyscraper in the world, behind the Burj Khalifa, Abraj Al Bait, Shanghai Tower, Ping An Finance Centre and Lotte World Tower.
Empire State Building
The Empire State Building stood as the world's tallest building for nearly 40 years until the completion of the World Trade Center's North Tower in Lower Manhattan in late 1970. Following the September 11 attacks in 2001, it was again the tallest building in New York until the new One World Trade Center was completed in April 2012.
PATH (rail system)
The World Trade Center station in Lower Manhattan, under the World Trade Center, is one of PATH's two New York terminals. The first station at the site, which replaced the old Hudson Terminal at the same place in 1971, was destroyed during the September 11 attacks, when the Twin Towers above it collapsed. Just prior to the collapse, the station was closed and any passengers in the station were evacuated.
Collapse of the World Trade Center
As the collapse progressed, dust and debris could be seen shooting out of the windows several floors below the advancing destruction, caused by the sudden rush of air from the upper levels. The first fragments of the outer walls of the collapsed North Tower struck the ground 11 seconds after the collapse started, and parts of the South Tower after 9 seconds. The lower portions of both buildings' cores (60 stories of WTC 1 and 40 stories of WTC 2) remained standing for up to 25 seconds after the start of the initial collapse before they too collapsed.
One World Trade Center
One World Trade Center's steel structure topped out at the nominal 104th floor, with a total height of , in August 2012. The tower's spire was then shipped from Quebec to New York in November 2012, and the first section of the spire was hoisted to the top of the tower on December 12, 2012, and was installed on January 15, 2013. By March 2013, two sections of the spire had been installed. The spire's completion was scheduled for April 29, 2013, but bad weather delayed the delivery of the final pieces. On May 10, 2013, the final piece of the spire was lifted to the top of One World Trade Center, bringing the tower to its full height of , and making it the fourth-tallest building in the world at the time. In subsequent months, the exterior elevator shaft was removed; the podium glass, interior decorations, and other finishings were being installed; and installation of concrete flooring and steel fittings was completed.
The Falling Man
The Falling Man is a photograph taken by Associated Press photographer Richard Drew of a man falling from the North Tower of the World Trade Center at 9:41:15 a.m. during the September 11 attacks in New York City. The subject of the image, whose identity remains uncertain, was one of the people trapped on the upper floors of the skyscraper who either fell searching for safety or jumped to escape the fire and smoke.
Collapse of the World Trade Center
As the fires continued to burn, occupants trapped in the upper floors of the South Tower provided information about conditions to 9-1-1 dispatchers. At 9:37 a.m., an occupant on the 105th floor of the South Tower reported that floors beneath him "in the 90-something floor" had collapsed. The New York City Police Department aviation unit also relayed information about the deteriorating condition of the buildings to police commanders. Only 14 people escaped from above the impact zone of the South Tower after it was hit (including Stanley Praimnath, who saw the plane coming at him), and only four from the floors above it. They escaped via Stairwell A, the only stairwell which had been left intact after the impact. Numerous police hotline operators who received calls from individuals inside the South Tower were not well informed of the situation as it rapidly unfolded. Many operators told callers not to descend the tower on their own, even though it is now believed that Stairwell A was most likely passable at and above the point of impact. At 9:52 a.m., the NYPD aviation unit reported over the radio that "large pieces may be falling from the top of WTC 2. Large pieces are hanging up there". With the warnings, the NYPD issued orders for its officers to evacuate. During the emergency response, there was minimal communication between the NYPD and the New York City Fire Department (FDNY), and overwhelmed 9-1-1 dispatchers did not pass along information to FDNY commanders on-scene. At 9:59 a.m., the South Tower collapsed, 56 minutes after being struck.
Lower Manhattan
On September 11, 2001, two of the four hijacked planes were flown into the Twin Towers of the original World Trade Center, and the towers collapsed. The 7 World Trade Center was not struck by a plane, but collapsed because of heavy debris falling from the impacts of planes and the collapse of the North Tower. The other buildings of the World Trade Center complex were damaged beyond repair and soon after demolished. The collapse of the Twin Towers caused extensive damage to surrounding buildings and skyscrapers in Lower Manhattan, and resulted in the deaths of 2,606 people, in addition to those on the planes. Many rescue workers and residents of the area also developed several life-threatening illnesses and some have since died.
2 World Trade Center
At 9:03 a.m. EDT on September 11, 2001, five terrorists crashed United Airlines Flight 175 into the southern facade of the South Tower. Three buildings in the World Trade Center complex, including 2 WTC, collapsed due to fire-induced structural failure. The light construction and hollow nature of the structures allowed the jet fuel to penetrate far inside the towers, igniting many large fires simultaneously over a wide area of the impacted floors. The fuel from the planes burned at most for a few minutes, but the contents of the buildings burned over the next hour to hour and a half. The fires might not have been as centrally positioned, nor as intense, had traditionally heavy high-rise construction been standing in the way of the aircraft. Debris and fuel would likely have remained mostly outside the buildings or concentrated in more peripheral areas away from the building cores, which would then not have become unique failure points. In this scenario, the towers might have stood far longer, perhaps indefinitely. The fires were hot enough to weaken the columns and cause floors to sag, pulling perimeter columns inward and reducing their ability to support the mass of the building above. The South Tower collapsed at 9:59 a.m. after burning for 56 minutes in the fire caused by the impact of United Airlines Flight 175 and the explosion of its fuel.
World Trade Center (2001–present)
The September 11 Museum opened to victims' families on April 15, 2014, and to the general public six days later. Temporary fences were removed around the memorial. At the same time, the September 11 Memorial discontinued the requirement for tickets in order to enter the memorial, not only providing pedestrian access to the future towers, but also a path through the site to the Memorial Plaza and surrounding streets. 3 WTC's construction resumed in August 2014, with projected completion by 2018. In September 2014, it was announced that the original plans for the Performing Arts Center had been canceled; construction had been slated to start in December 2014. The St. Nicholas Greek Orthodox Church's ground blessing ceremony and symbolic laying of the cornerstone took place at Liberty Park in October 2014, with construction expected to be completed within two years. One WTC opened on November 3, 2014, and the first 170 employees of anchor tenant Conde Nast began their work there. In June 2015, the designers of 3 WTC scrapped plans for the rooftop spire in order to standardize the roofs with 2 and 4 WTC. The spire planned for 2 WTC was also canceled as part of a new plan for the tower.
World Trade Center (2001–present)
7 World Trade Center stands off of Port Authority property. David Childs of Skidmore, Owings & Merrill designed the tower. The building is tall (plus one underground floor), making it the 28th-tallest in New York. It opened on May 23, 2006, achieving LEED gold status and being the first tower in the complex to reopen.A memorial called "Reflecting Absence" honors the victims of the September 11 attacks and the 1993 World Trade Center bombing. The memorial, designed by Peter Walker and Israeli-American architect Michael Arad, consists of a field of trees interrupted by the footprints of the twin towers. Pools of water fill the footprints, underneath which sits a memorial space whose walls bear the names of the victims. The slurry wall, which holds back the Hudson River in the west and was an integral part of Libeskind's proposal, remains exposed. Walker and Arad were selected from more than 5,000 entrants in the World Trade Center Site Memorial Competition in January 2004.
2 World Trade Center
When completed in 1973, 2 World Trade Center (the South Tower) became the second tallest building in the United States—outmatched only by its twin, 1 World Trade Center. The South Tower's rooftop observation deck was high and its indoor observation deck was high. The World Trade Center towers held the height record only briefly: the Willis Tower in Chicago, finished in , reached at the rooftop. Throughout its existence, however, the South Tower had more floors (at 110) than any other building. This number was not surpassed until the advent of the Burj Khalifa, which opened in 2010.
Timeline of the September 11 attacks
The September 11 attacks timeline is a chronological list of all the major events leading up to, during, and immediately following the terrorist attacks on New York and Washington that day. The timeline starts with the completion of the first World Trade Center tower in 1970 through the first anniversary of the attacks in 2002.
All times are in local time (EDT or UTC − 4).
World Trade Center (1973–2001)
When completed in 1972, 1 World Trade Center became the tallest building in the world for two years, surpassing the Empire State Building after a 40-year reign. The North Tower stood tall and featured a telecommunications antenna or mast that was added at the top of the roof in 1978 and stood tall. With the -tall antenna/mast, the highest point of the North Tower reached . Chicago's Sears Tower, finished in , reached at the rooftop. Throughout their existence, the WTC towers had more floors (at 110) than any other building. This number was not surpassed until the advent of the Burj Khalifa, which opened in 2010. Each tower had a total mass of around 500,000 tons.
The NIST World Trade Center Disaster Investigation
During the September 11th terrorist attacks, two jet airliners struck the Twin Towers of the World Trade Center (WTC), one to each tower. As a result, the two 110 stories-tall skyscrapers collapsed, causing complete destruction to the entire WTC complex and killing 2,997 people. The South Tower collapsed at 9:59 a.m. (EDT) after burning for approximately 56 minutes. 29 minutes later, the North Tower collapsed having burned for 102 minutes. When the North Tower collapsed, debris fell on the nearby 7 World Trade Center, damaging it and starting fires that burned for almost seven hours, compromising the building's structural integrity. Seven World Trade Center collapsed at 5:21 p.m. (EDT).
The Wall Street Journal
The "Journal" claims to have sent the first news report, on the Dow Jones wire, of a plane crashing into the World Trade Center on September 11, 2001. Its headquarters, at One World Financial Center, was severely damaged by the collapse of the World Trade Center just across the street. Top editors worried that they might miss publishing the first issue for the first time in the paper's 112-year history. They relocated to a makeshift office at an editor's home, while sending most of the staff to Dow Jones's South Brunswick, N.J., corporate campus, where the paper had established emergency editorial facilities soon after the 1993 World Trade Center bombing. The paper was on the stands the next day, albeit in scaled-down form. Perhaps the most compelling story in that day's edition was a first-hand account of the Twin Towers' collapse written by then-Foreign Editor (and current Washington bureau chief) John Bussey, who holed up in a ninth-floor Journal office, literally in the shadow of the towers, from where he phoned in live reports to CNBC as the towers burned. He narrowly escaped serious injury when the first tower collapsed, shattering all the windows in the "Journal" offices and filling them with dust and debris. The "Journal" won a 2002 Pulitzer Prize in Breaking News Reporting for that day's stories.
Donald Rumsfeld
The United States was attacked on September 11, 2001 by al Qaeda terrorists who hijacked commercial airliners and crashed them in coordinated strikes into both towers of the World Trade Center in Lower Manhattan, New York City and the Pentagon in Washington, D.C. The fourth plane crashed into a field in Shanksville, Pennsylvania, and its target was likely a prominent building in Washington, D.C., most probably either the Capitol Building or the White House. Within three hours of the start of the first hijacking and two hours after American Airlines Flight 11 struck the World Trade Center, Rumsfeld raised the defense condition signaling of the United States offensive readiness to DEFCON 3, the highest it had been since the Arab-Israeli war in 1973.
Timeline for the day of the September 11 attacks
9:03:00: Flight 175 crashes into the south face of the South Tower (2 WTC) of the World Trade Center, between floors 77 and 85. Parts of the plane, including the starboard engine, leave the building from its east and north sides, falling to the ground six blocks away.
Marriott World Trade Center
The Marriott World Trade Center was a 22-story steel-framed hotel building with 825 rooms. It was also known as World Trade Center 3 (WTC 3 or 3 WTC), the World Trade Center Hotel, the Vista Hotel and the Marriott Hotel. It opened in July 1981 as the Vista International Hotel and was located at 3 World Trade Center in Manhattan, New York City, with the World Trade Center complex having its own zip code of 10048. The hotel was destroyed beyond repair as a result of the terrorist attacks of September 11, 2001, after the collapse of the Twin Towers. The hotel was not replaced as part of the new World Trade Center complex, but does share its name with the new office tower.
Jimmy Roberts
Roberts' sister-in-law, Debbie Mayer, worked in the south tower on the 56th floor at New York City's World Trade Center. Immediately after American Airlines Flight 11 (the first aircraft of the September 11, 2001, attacks) struck the north tower, Mayer began going downstairs to leave the building. She had gotten to the 29th floor when the second aircraft struck, hitting the building she worked in. However, Mayer escaped safely before the towers collapsed.
Dennis Michael Lynch
On September 11, 2001, Lynch was in Manhattan, New York when terrorists flew two planes into the World Trade Center. In an interview with Megyn Kelly of Fox News, Lynch said he is one of the people seen running in the streets as the first tower collapsed.
130 Cedar Street
When the South Tower of the World Trade Center collapsed on September 11, 2001, 130 Cedar Street was completely ravaged. Hundreds of tons of fiery debris rained down onto the building. The top of the buildings northeast corner completely collapsed under the debris. A column section from WTC 2 penetrated the 10th floor roof slab. The projectile impacts also lit fires, which occurred primarily above the 9th floor. Fire damage was evident on the 11th and 12th floors in the northwest corner. The Amish Market located on the ground floor was completely destroyed and burned, later relocating further uptown. Several concrete columns were cracked, possibly from the impact. Several bays at the northeast corner were severely damaged from debris impact. After the attacks, the building was uninhabitable and lost all of its tenants.
Verizon Building
The south and east facades of the Verizon Building were heavily damaged in the September 11 attacks, from the collapse of the adjacent 7 World Trade Center, as well as the collapse of the Twin Towers. No fires were observed in the building on September 11.
World Trade Center (2001–present)
The buildings are among many created by the World Trade Centers Association. The original World Trade Center featured the landmark Twin Towers, which opened in 1973, and were the tallest buildings in the world at the time of their completion. They were destroyed on the morning of September 11, 2001, when al-Qaeda-affiliated hijackers flew two Boeing 767 jets into the complex in a coordinated act of terrorism. The attacks on the World Trade Center killed 2,753 people. The resulting collapse of the World Trade Center caused structural failure in the surrounding buildings as well. The process of cleaning up and recovery at the World Trade Center site took eight months, after which rebuilding of the site commenced.
1993 World Trade Center bombing
The 1993 World Trade Center bombing was a terrorist attack on the World Trade Center, carried out on February 26, 1993, when a truck bomb detonated below the North Tower of the World Trade Center in New York City. The urea nitrate–hydrogen gas enhanced device was intended to send the North Tower (Tower 1) crashing into the South Tower (Tower 2), bringing both towers down and killing tens of thousands of people. It failed to do so but killed six people and injured over a thousand.
Jo Moore
At 2:55pm BST (9:55am EDT) on 11 September 2001, after both World Trade Center towers had been hit in terrorist attacks, but before either tower had collapsed, Moore sent an email to the press office of her department which read:
Collapse of the World Trade Center
In April 1970, the New York City Department of Air Resources ordered contractors building the World Trade Center to stop the spraying of asbestos as an insulating material. Fireproofing was incorporated in the original construction and more was added after a fire in 1975 that spread to six floors before being extinguished. After the 1993 bombing, inspections found fireproofing to be deficient. The Port Authority was in the process of replacing it, but replacement had been completed on only 18 floors in 1 WTC, including all the floors affected by the aircraft impact and fires, and on 13 floors in 2 WTC, although only three of these floors (77, 78, and 85) were directly affected by the aircraft impact.
World Trade Center (2001–present)
The World Trade Center is a mostly completed complex of buildings in Lower Manhattan, New York City, U.S., replacing the original seven World Trade Center buildings on the same site that were destroyed in the September 11 attacks. The site is being rebuilt with up to six new skyscrapers, four of which have been completed; a memorial and museum to those killed in the attacks; an elevated park adjacent to the site, called Liberty Park; and a transportation hub. The 104-story One World Trade Center, the tallest building in the Western Hemisphere, is the lead building for the new complex.
Collapse of the World Trade Center
During the September 11th attacks, four teams of al-Qaeda terrorists hijacked four different jetliners. Two of these jetliners, both Boeing 767's, were hijacked after takeoff from Boston's Logan International Airport. In its final moments, American Airlines Flight 11 flew south over Manhattan and crashed at roughly into the north facade of the North Tower (WTC 1) at 8:46 am, impacting between the 93rd and 99th floors. Seventeen minutes later, United Airlines Flight 175 approached from the southwest, over New York Harbor, and crashed into the South Tower (WTC 2) south facade at 9:03 am between the 77th and 85th floors at . In addition to severing numerous load-bearing columns on the perimeter and inflicting other structural damage, the resulting explosions in each tower ignited of jet fuel along with office contents. According to NIST estimates, Flight 11 was carrying around when it hit the North Tower. Up to was instantly consumed in the initial fireball and a similar amount was consumed in the fireball outside the building. Approximately burnt inside the office spaces igniting combustibles. Flight 175 was carrying around when it hit the South Tower. Up to was instantly consumed in the initial fireball and up to was consumed in the fireball outside the building. More than was burnt in the office spaces. NIST estimated that each floor of both buildings contained around four pounds per square foot (60 tons per floor) of combustibles.
Architecture of New York City
The World Trade Center's twin towers were the city's tallest buildings from 1973 until their destruction in the September 11 attacks. The towers rose 1,368 feet (417 m) and 1,362 feet (415 m) respectively, both 110 Floors. The North Tower's 360 foot antenna housed most of the city's communications, while the South Tower was home to a popular observation deck. They were the tallest buildings in the world until Chicago's 1,454-foot Sears Tower was completed in 1974.
New York City
In the 1970s, job losses due to industrial restructuring caused New York City to suffer from economic problems and rising crime rates. While a resurgence in the financial industry greatly improved the city's economic health in the 1980s, New York's crime rate continued to increase through that decade and into the beginning of the 1990s. By the mid 1990s, crime rates started to drop dramatically due to revised police strategies, improving economic opportunities, gentrification, and new residents, both American transplants and new immigrants from Asia and Latin America. Important new sectors, such as Silicon Alley, emerged in the city's economy. New York's population reached all-time highs in the 2000 Census and then again in the 2010 Census.
The city suffered the bulk of the economic damage and largest loss of human life in the aftermath of the September 11, 2001 attacks. Two of the four airliners highjacked that day were flown into the twin towers of the World Trade Center, destroying them and killing 2,192 civilians, 343 firefighters, and 71 law enforcement officers. The North Tower was subsequently the tallest building ever to be destroyed and still is. The rebuilding of the area, has created a new One World Trade Center, and a 9/11 memorial and museum along with other new buildings and infrastructure. The World Trade Center PATH station, which had opened on July 19, 1909 as the Hudson Terminal, was also destroyed in the attack. A temporary station was built and opened on November 23, 2003. An permanent rail station designed by Santiago Calatrava, the World Trade Center Transportation Hub, the city's third-largest hub, was completed in 2016. The new One World Trade Center is the tallest skyscraper in the Western Hemisphere and the sixth-tallest building in the world by pinnacle height, with its spire reaching a symbolic in reference to the year of U.S. independence.
World Trade Center site
On the morning of September 11, 2001, Islamic terrorists affiliated with Al-Qaeda hijacked American Airlines Flight 11 and United Airlines Flight 175, both which were en route to Los Angeles, and intentionally crashed them into the two main towers of the World Trade Center. The towers collapsed within two hours of the collisions. 2,606 people, including 2,192 civilians, 71 law enforcement officers, and 343 firefighters, who were in the towers and in the surrounding area died in the attacks, as well as 147 civilians and the 10 hijackers aboard the two airliners. After the collapse of the World Trade Center, hospital workers and law enforcement officers began referring to the World Trade Center site as "Ground Zero".
9/11 conspiracy theories
The plane crashes and resulting fires caused the collapse of the World Trade Center. Controlled demolition conspiracy theories say the collapse of the North Tower, South Tower, or of 7 World Trade Center was caused by explosives installed in the buildings in advance.
World Trade Center controlled demolition conspiracy theories
Proponents of World Trade Center controlled demolition theories allege that 7 World Trade Center—a 47-story skyscraper that stood across Vesey Street north of the main part of the World Trade Center site—was intentionally destroyed with explosives. Unlike the Twin Towers, 7 World Trade Center was not hit by a plane, although it was hit by debris from the Twin Towers and was damaged by fires which burned for seven hours, until it collapsed completely at about 5:20 p.m. on the evening of September 11 (a new building has been erected on the site of the old and opened in May 2006). Several videos of the collapse event exist in the public domain, thus enabling comparative analysis from different angles of perspective. Proponents typically say the collapse of 7 World Trade Center was not mentioned in the 9/11 Commission Report and that the federal body charged with investigating the event, NIST, required seven years to conduct its investigation and issue a report.
Collapse of the World Trade Center
Some firefighters entered 7 World Trade Center to search the building. They attempted to extinguish small pockets of fire, but low water pressure hindered their efforts. Fires burned into the afternoon on the 11th and 12th floors of 7 World Trade Center, the flames visible on the east side of the building. During the afternoon, fire was also seen on floors 6–10, 13–14, 19–22, and 29–30. In particular, the fires on floors 7 through 9 and 11 through 13 continued to burn out of control during the afternoon. At approximately 2:00 pm, firefighters noticed a bulge in the southwest corner of 7 World Trade Center between the 10th and 13th floors, a sign that the building was unstable and might cave to one side or "collapse". During the afternoon, firefighters also heard creaking sounds coming from the building and issued uncertain reports about damage in the basement. Around 3:30 pm FDNY Chief Daniel A. Nigro decided to halt rescue operations, surface removal, and searches along the surface of the debris near 7 World Trade Center and evacuate the area due to concerns for the safety of personnel. At 5:20:33 pm EDT on September 11, 2001, 7 World Trade Center started to collapse, with the crumble of the east mechanical penthouse, while at 5:21:10 pm EDT the entire building collapsed completely. There were no casualties associated with the collapse.
September 11 attacks
One of the first memorials was the "Tribute in Light", an installation of 88 searchlights at the footprints of the World Trade Center towers. In New York City, the World Trade Center Site Memorial Competition was held to design an appropriate memorial on the site. The winning design, "Reflecting Absence", was selected in August 2006, and consists of a pair of reflecting pools in the footprints of the towers, surrounded by a list of the victims' names in an underground memorial space. The memorial was completed on September 11, 2011; a museum also opened on site on May 21, 2014.
World Trade Center (2001–present)
The original World Trade Center featured the landmark Twin Towers, which opened on April 4, 1973, and were the tallest buildings in the world at their completion. The other buildings in the complex included the Marriott World Trade Center (3 WTC), 4 WTC, 5 WTC, 6 WTC, and 7 WTC. Despite high financial expectations for the original complex, it did not become profitable until the 1980s. On July 24, 2001, the Port Authority finalized an agreement that leased the complex to Larry Silverstein, who already owned 7 WTC. For $3.2 billion, Silverstein received the legal right to operate the complex and site for 99 years. At the time, the World Trade Center only had a few notable tenants, and Silverstein wanted to improve the complex to make it more attractive to potential tenants.
200 Vesey Street
Due to its status as the tallest tower in the complex, the building was subject to scathing criticism at the time of its construction. In 1985, the New York Times published an article lambasting the tower. ‟Not too long ago, it was possible to gaze all the way from mid-Manhattan to the skies over the harbor. Now, that vista has been pierced by the American Express tower being built in the World Financial Center at Battery Park City. At the moment, the skyscraper resembles a gigantic, upended, rectilinear fish skeleton. As construction proceeds, however, and the floors fill in, there will be a solid wall where there was once a generous slice of sky."
Three World Financial Center was severely damaged by the falling debris when the World Trade Center towers collapsed on September 11, 2001. The building's southeast corner took heavy structural damage, though the effects were not enough to create a threat of collapse. The building had to be closed for repairs from September 11, 2001 until May 2002 as a result of damage sustained in the terrorist attacks.
List of tenants in 5 World Trade Center
Five World Trade Center, building 5 of the World Trade Center in New York City was completed in 1972 at a height of 118 ft (36 m). It was heavily damaged on the September 11, 2001 attacks by the collapse of the Twin Towers and was eventually demolished in December 2001.
The following is a list of tenants of 5 World Trade Center prior to its destruction:
5 World Trade Center
5 World Trade Center (5 WTC) was originally a steel-framed nine-story low-rise office building built in 1970–72 at New York City's World Trade Center. The building was designed by Minoru Yamasaki and Emery Roth & Sons. The 
structure was 118 ft (36 m) tall and had a black exterior. It suffered severe damage and partial collapse on its upper floors as a result of the September 11 attacks in 2001. The remaining structure was demolished by the Port Authority in December 2001, making way for reconstruction. The building was L-shaped and occupied the northeast corner of the World Trade Center site. Overall dimensions were , with an average area of per floor.
Six World Trade Center
Six World Trade Center was first proposed in 1968 as part of the original World Trade Center complex. The building was designed by Emery Roth & Sons, along with Yamasaki Associates. Construction was completed in 1973. The original Six World Trade Center was home to the U.S. Customs Service for the state of New York, from 1974 to 2001. It was a 537,693-square-foot (49,953-square-meter), eight-story building, the shortest in the World Trade Center complex. From the Austin J. Tobin Plaza level, on which the main structure was built, it had a height of 92 feet (28 m) but was 105 feet (32 m) above the actual ground level. It was demolished following the destruction of the World Trade Center during the September 11 attacks, when 10 al-Qaeda participants hijacked American Airlines Flight 11 and United Airlines Flight 175, crashing them into the Twin Towers. After burning for less than two hours, both 110-story towers collapsed. The collapse of the North Tower destroyed Six World Trade Center beyond repair, and the remnants of the building were pulled down using cables.
8:46
The time, 8:46, is the time when American Airlines Flight 11 crashed at about 466 mph into North Tower (1 WTC) of the World Trade Center, between floors 93 and 99.
Six World Trade Center
Six World Trade Center was an eight-story building in Lower Manhattan in New York City. It opened in 1973 and was the building in the World Trade Center complex that had the fewest stories. The building served as the U.S. Customs House for New York. It was destroyed in 2001 due to the collapse of the North Tower during the September 11 attacks; it is not set to be replaced as part of the new World Trade Center.
List of tenants in One World Trade Center
The original One World Trade Center (also known as the North Tower, Tower 1, Building One, or 1 WTC) was one of the Twin Towers of the original World Trade Center in New York City. It was completed in 1972, standing at a height of , and was the tallest building in the world until being surpassed by the Sears Tower in Chicago in 1973. It was distinguishable from its twin, the original Two World Trade Center, also known as the South Tower, by the telecommunications antenna on its roof. Including the antenna, the building stood at a total height of . The building's address was One World Trade Center, with the WTC complex having its own ZIP code of 10048 due to its large size.
Empire State Building
With the destruction of the World Trade Center in the September 11 attacks, the Empire State Building again became the tallest building in New York City, and the second-tallest building in the Americas, surpassed only by the Willis Tower in Chicago. The Empire State Building remained the tallest building in New York until the new One World Trade Center reached a greater height in April 2012. , it is the fourth-tallest building in New York City after One World Trade Center, 432 Park Avenue, and 30 Hudson Yards. It is the fifth-tallest completed skyscraper in the United States behind the two other tallest buildings in New York City, as well as the Willis Tower and Trump International Hotel and Tower in Chicago. The Empire State Building is the 28th-tallest in the world , the tallest being Burj Khalifa in Dubai. It is also the sixth-tallest freestanding structure in the Americas behind the five tallest buildings and the CN Tower.
Miami 2017 (Seen the Lights Go Out on Broadway)
Among the catastrophes that befall the city in the song is the destruction of its iconic skyscrapers. ""I saw the Empire State laid low"," the singer recalls. ""I watched the mighty skyline fall"." On September 11, 2001, planes hijacked by terrorists were crashed into the World Trade Center towers, the city's tallest buildings, causing them to collapse with a loss of almost 3,000 lives.
Timeline for the day of the September 11 attacks
9:11: The last PATH train leaves the World Trade Center. The station was vacant when the towers collapsed.
World Trade Center controlled demolition conspiracy theories
On September 11, the North Tower (1 WTC) was hit by American Airlines Flight 11 and the South Tower (2 WTC) was hit by United Airlines Flight 175, both Boeing 767 aircraft. The South Tower collapsed 56 minutes after the impact, and the North Tower collapsed 102 minutes after. An investigation by NIST concluded that the collapse was caused by a combination of damage to support columns and fire insulation from the aircraft impacts and the weakening of columns and floors by jet fuel ignited fires. NIST also found "no corroborating evidence for alternative hypotheses suggesting that the WTC towers were brought down by controlled demolition using explosives planted prior to September 11, 2001".
One World Trade Center
Before construction of the new tower began, Silverstein was involved in an insurance dispute regarding the tower. The terms of the lease agreement signed in 2001, for which Silverstein paid $14 million, gave Silverstein, as leaseholder, the right and obligation to rebuild the structures if they were destroyed. After the September 11 attacks, there were a series of disputes between Silverstein and insurance companies concerning the insurance policies that covered the original towers; this resulted in the construction of One World Trade Center being delayed. After a trial resulted, a verdict was given on April 29, 2004. The verdict was that ten of the insurers involved in the dispute were subject to the "one occurrence" interpretation, so their liability was limited to the face value of those policies. Three insurers were added to the second trial group. At that time, the jury was unable to reach a verdict on one insurer, Swiss Reinsurance, but it did so several days later on May 3, 2004, finding that this company was also subject to the "one occurrence" interpretation. Silverstein appealed the Swiss Reinsurance decision, but the appeal failed on October 19, 2006. The second trial resulted in a verdict on December 6, 2004. The jury determined that nine insurers were subject to the "two occurrences" interpretation, referring to the fact that two different planes had destroyed the towers during the September 11 attacks. They were therefore liable for a maximum of double the face value of those particular policies ($2.2 billion). The highest potential payout was $4.577 billion, for buildings 1, 2, 4, and 5.
World Trade Center (film)
On September 11, 2001, Port Authority Police Officers John McLoughlin and Will Jimeno are patrolling the Port Authority Bus Terminal in Midtown Manhattan when they see a plane fly dangerously low overhead. As all of the Police return to the station, they see on TV that the North Tower of the World Trade Center has been hit by the plane. Sergeant McLoughlin assigns many of the officers to assist in a precautionary evacuation attempt of the North Tower and they board a Metropolitan Transit Authority bus. On the bus, they hear reports that the South Tower is also hit by another plane. When they arrive at the World Trade Center, they realize the extent of the disaster, and see one of the victims jump out of the towers to certain death. The men proceed to get safety equipment from Building 5 and enter the concourse between the towers.
Timeline for the day of the September 11 attacks
8:46:40: Flight 11 crashes at roughly 466 mph (790 km/h or 219 m/s or 425 knots) into the north face of the North Tower (1 WTC) of the World Trade Center, between floors 93 and 99. The aircraft enters the tower intact. It plows to the building's core, severing all three gypsum-encased stairwells, dragging combustibles with it. A powerful shock wave travels down to the ground and up again. The combustibles and the remnants of the aircraft are ignited by the burning fuel. As the building lacks a traditional full cage frame and depends almost entirely on the strength of a narrow structural core running up the center, fire at the center of the impact zone is in a position to compromise the integrity of all internal columns. People below the severed stairwells start to evacuate, but no one above the impact zone is able to do so.
Casualties of the September 11 attacks
In the moments after Flight 11 struck the North Tower, the roughly 8,000 people on the floors below the point of impact (the 93rd to 99th floors) were faced with a harrowing scenario. The towers of the World Trade Center complex had not been designed to facilitate a mass evacuation of everybody in the buildings, and in each tower there were only three narrow stairwells descending to the ground level. Another hindrance to the evacuation of the World Trade Center was that as the planes struck, the force of the impact caused the buildings to shift enough to jam doors in their frames, and stairwells became blocked by broken wall boards, trapping dozens of people throughout the building, mostly on the floors closer to the impact zone. For those that were above the point of impact many were trapped within their offices, with one victim relaying to 911 after the first plane hit that the stairs were inaccessible for the 106th floor. At least 28 people were freed on the 86th and 89th floors by members of the Port Authority office workers who had to pry open jammed doors.
Timeline for the day of the September 11 attacks
10:28:22: The North Tower of the World Trade Center collapses. Due to the destruction of the gypsum-encased stairwells on the impact floors (most skyscraper stairwells are encased in reinforced concrete), no one who was above the impact zone in the North Tower escapes the collapse. The Marriott Hotel, located at the base of the two towers, is also destroyed. The second collapse is also viewed live on television and heard on radio. The North Tower collapses 1 hour, 42 minutes after the impact of Flight 11—the building had burned during the whole duration of the attacks. 7 World Trade Center burns after the collapse of the North Tower. New York City's 1010 WINS reports the collapse live as it happens, broadcasting a live phone call with a witness. On NBC News, Katie Couric says: "The other tower of the World Trade Center has just collapsed."
Michael McKee (broadcaster)
On September 11, 2001, McKee was at the World Trade Center when it was attacked, reporting from the scene until the towers fell.
September 11 attacks
The destruction of the World Trade Center and nearby infrastructure seriously harmed the economy of Lower Manhattan and had a significant effect on global markets, which resulted in the closing of Wall Street until September 17 and the civilian airspace in the U.S. and Canada until September 13. Many closings, evacuations, and cancellations followed, out of respect or fear of further attacks. Cleanup of the World Trade Center site was completed in May 2002, and the Pentagon was repaired within a year. On November 18, 2006, construction of One World Trade Center began at the World Trade Center site. The building was officially opened on November 3, 2014. Numerous memorials have been constructed, including the National September 11 Memorial & Museum in New York City, the Pentagon Memorial in Arlington County, Virginia, and the Flight 93 National Memorial in a field in Stonycreek Township near Shanksville, Pennsylvania.
Ramzi Yousef
The World Trade Center bombing was a terrorist attack that occurred on 26 February 1993, when a car bomb was detonated below Tower One of the World Trade Center in New York City, New York. The 1,500 lb (680 kg) urea nitrate-hydrogen gas enhanced device was intended to knock the North Tower (Tower 1) into the South Tower (Tower 2), to bring both towers down and kill thousands of people. It failed to do so, but killed six civilians and injured 1,042, including 919 civilians (including an EMS worker), 88 firefighters, and 35 police officers.
Aviation accidents and incidents
2,996: The deadliest aviation-related disaster of any kind, considering fatalities on both the aircraft and the ground, was the destruction of the World Trade Center in New York City on September 11, 2001. On that morning four aircraft traveling on transcontinental flights from East Coast airports to California were hijacked after takeoff, and used in four separate attacks against major American landmarks. American Airlines Flight 11 and United Airlines Flight 175 were intentionally crashed into the North and South Towers respectively of the World Trade Center, destroying both buildings in less than two hours. The World Trade Center crashes killed 2,753, the vast majority of fatalities being occupants of the World Trade Center towers or emergency personnel responding to the disaster. In addition, 184 were killed by American Airlines Flight 77, which crashed into The Pentagon (causing severe damage and partial destruction to the building's west side). 40 passengers were also killed when United Airlines Flight 93 crashed into a Somerset County Pennsylvania field after passengers fought back and prevented the hijackers from reaching their designated target. This brought the total number of casualties of the September 11 attacks to 2,996 (including the 19 terrorist hijackers). As deliberate terrorist acts, the 9/11 crashes were not classified as accidents, but as mass murder-suicide; these events were subsequently treated by the United States and the member nations of NATO as an act of war and terrorism.
New York (state)
On September 11, 2001, two of four hijacked planes were flown into the Twin Towers of the original World Trade Center in Lower Manhattan, and the towers collapsed. 7 World Trade Center also collapsed due to damage from fires. The other buildings of the World Trade Center complex were damaged beyond repair and demolished soon thereafter. The collapse of the Twin Towers caused extensive damage and resulted in the deaths of 2,753 victims, including 147 aboard the two planes. Since September 11, most of Lower Manhattan has been restored. In the years since, many rescue workers and residents of the area have developed several life-threatening illnesses, and some have died.
World Trade Center site
7 World Trade Center stands off of Port Authority property. David Childs of Skidmore, Owings & Merrill designed the tower. Construction of the new Trade Center began in 2002 and the building opened on May 23, 2006, achieving LEED gold status and being the first tower in the complex to reopen. The building is tall (plus one underground floor), making it the 28th-tallest in New York.
One World Trade Center
One World Trade Center (also known as One WTC, 1 World Trade Center, 1 WTC, or Freedom Tower) is the main building of the rebuilt World Trade Center complex in Lower Manhattan, New York City. One WTC is the tallest building in the United States, the tallest building in the Western Hemisphere, and the sixth-tallest in the world. The supertall structure has the same name as the North Tower of the original World Trade Center, which was destroyed in the terrorist attacks of September 11, 2001. The new skyscraper stands on the northwest corner of the World Trade Center site, on the site of the original 6 World Trade Center. The building is bounded by West Street to the west, Vesey Street to the north, Fulton Street to the south, and Washington Street to the east.
History of the world's tallest buildings
In this chart, time progresses from right to left. Note the early buildings that lost the title as their spires collapsed.
After the construction of the Home Insurance Building in Chicago in the 19th century, the incrementation in the height of skyscrapers began with the construction of the Chrysler Building, followed by the Empire State Building, in New York City. The Chrysler Building was the first building in the world to break the barrier, and the Empire State Building was the first building to have more than 100 floors. It stands at and has 102 floors. The next tallest skyscraper was the World Trade Center, which was completed in 1971. The north tower was and the south tall. It surpassed the height of the Empire State Building by . Two years later the Sears Tower was built in Chicago, standing at with 110 floors, surpassing the height of the World Trade Center by . The Petronas Towers rose 10 meters above the Sears Tower, standing at a height of and each having 88 floors.
History of New York (state)
Following the attacks, plans were announced to rebuild the World Trade Center site. 7 World Trade Center became the first World Trade Center skyscraper to be rebuilt in five years after the attacks. One World Trade Center, four more office towers, and a memorial to the casualties of the September 11 attacks are under construction as of 2011. One World Trade Center opened on November 3, 2014.
Construction of the World Trade Center
The topping out ceremony of the North Tower (1 World Trade Center) took place on December 23, 1970, while the South Tower (2 World Trade Center)'s ceremony occurred on July 19, 1971. The first tenants moved into the North Tower on December 15, 1970, and into the South Tower in January 1972. The buildings were dedicated on April 4, 1973; Tobin, who had resigned the year before, was absent from the ceremonies.
World Trade Center (2001–present)
These plans for improvement were never realized. On the morning of September 11, 2001, Al-Qaeda-affiliated hijackers flew two Boeing 767 jets into the Twin Towers in a coordinated act of terrorism. At 8:46 a.m. Eastern Time (ET), a team of five hijackers intentionally crashed American Airlines Flight 11 into the northern facade of the North Tower. At 9:03 a.m. ET, a second team of five hijackers intentionally crashed United Airlines Flight 175 into the southern facade of the South Tower. After burning for 56 minutes, the South Tower collapsed at 9:59 a.m. At 10:28 a.m., the North Tower collapsed, after burning for 102 minutes. The attacks on the World Trade Center killed 2,753 people. The resulting collapse caused structural failure in many of the surrounding buildings as well, and the entire complex was soon destroyed.
World Trade Center (2001–present)
By August 2011, One World Trade Center was at 80 stories with glass up to the 54th floor, Tower Four was up around 38 stories with glass up to the 15th floor, and the former Deutsche Bank Building had been completely dismantled, and the Port Authority was working on their Vehicle Security Center. The memorial officially opened to relatives of the deceased on September 11, 2011, and to the general public on September 12. Construction on 5 WTC's foundation also began in September 2011. By December 2011, 2 WTC's foundations were finished and assembly of the frame was started. Because numerous American and Chinese companies were "very interested" in leasing space at the complex, 2 WTC was likely to be finished earlier than expected.
Outline of the September 11 attacks
On the morning of September 11, 2001, 19 al-Qaeda terrorists hijacked four commercial passenger jet airliners, intentionally crashing two into the World Trade Center in New York City. The hijackers crashed a third airliner into the Pentagon. The fourth plane crashed in a field near Shanksville, Pennsylvania. Nearly 3,000 victims and the 19 hijackers died in the attacks.
The leader of al Qaeda, Osama bin Laden, eventually claimed responsibility for the attacks.The United States launched the War on Terror, invading Afghanistan.The US enacted the USA PATRIOT Act. Many other countries also strengthened their anti-terrorism legislation and expanded law enforcement powers.Some American stock exchanges stayed closed for the rest of the week following the attack and posted enormous losses on reopening, especially in the airline and insurance industries. The destruction of billions of dollars' worth of office space caused serious damage to the economy of Lower Manhattan.The Pentagon Memorial was built adjacent to the building. The rebuilding process has started on the World Trade Center site. In 2006, a new office tower was completed on the site of 7 World Trade Center. The new One World Trade Center was later built and was completed in 2014. Three more towers were originally expected to be built between 2007 and 2012 on the site, but are now delayed to 2018. Ground was broken for the Flight 93 National Memorial on November 8, 2009, and the first phase of construction is expected to be ready for the 10th anniversary of the attacks on September 11, 2011.
Timeline for the day of the September 11 attacks
5:20:27: The east penthouse on top of 7 World Trade Center crumbles apart.
One World Trade Center
By 9:59 a.m. (EDT), the South Tower collapsed after burning for approximately 56 minutes. After burning for 102 minutes, the North Tower collapsed due to structural failure at 10:28 a.m. (EDT). When the North Tower collapsed, debris fell on the nearby 7 World Trade Center, damaging it and starting fires. The fires burned for hours, compromising the building's structural integrity. Seven World Trade Center collapsed at 5:21 p.m. (EDT).
List of tallest buildings in New York City
The Empire State Building stood as the tallest building in the world from its completion until 1972, when the 110-story North Tower of the original World Trade Center was completed. At , The World Trade Center held the title until the completion of the 108-story Willis Tower (formerly known as the Sears Tower) in Chicago in 1974. The World Trade Center towers were destroyed by terrorist attacks in 2001, and the Empire State Building regained the title of tallest building in the city. It remained the tallest until April 2012, when the construction on One World Trade Center surpassed it. The fifth-tallest building in New York is the Bank of America Tower, which rises to , including its spire. If the Twin Towers were still standing today, they would be the third- and fourth-tallest buildings in the city, or second and third assuming the new buildings would not have been built. Only 432 Park Avenue is taller.
Outline of the September 11 attacks
The September 11 attacks were four coordinated suicide attacks upon the United States in New York City and the Washington, D.C., area on September 11, 2001. On that Tuesday morning, 19 terrorists from the Islamist militant group al-Qaeda hijacked four passenger jets. The hijackers intentionally crashed two planes, American Airlines Flight 11 and United Airlines Flight 175, into the Twin Towers of the World Trade Center in New York City; both towers collapsed within two hours. Hijackers crashed American Airlines Flight 77 into the Pentagon in Arlington, Virginia. The fourth jet, United Airlines Flight 93, crashed into a field near Shanksville, Pennsylvania, after passengers attempted to take control before it could reach the hijacker's intended target in Washington, D.C. Nearly 3,000 died in the attacks, and the 9/11 attacks have had broad and lasting consequences to military policy, politics, and foreign relations. Effects have also been seen in literature, film, and popular culture.
China World Trade Center Tower III
China World Trade Center Tower III is a supertall skyscraper with 81 floors, 4 underground floors, and 30 elevators in Beijing, China. It is the third phase of development of the China World Trade Center complex in Beijing's central business district of Chaoyang at the junction of the East Third Ring Road and Jianguomen Outer Street (Jian Guo Men Wai Dajie). The building topped out at on 29 October 2007 and completed in 2010. The building bears a resemblance to the original Twin Towers of the World Trade Center in New York City, which were destroyed in the September 11th, 2001 attacks. It is the tallest building in Beijing.
Empire State Building
The September 11 attacks in 2001 destroyed the World Trade Center and the broadcast centers atop it, leaving most of the city's stations without a station for ten days until a temporary tower was built in Alpine, New Jersey. By October 2001, nearly all of the city's commercial broadcast stations (both television and FM radio) were again transmitting from the top of the Empire State Building. In a report that Congress commissioned about the transition from analog television to digital television, it was stated that the placement of broadcast stations in the Empire State Building was considered "problematic" due to interference from other nearby towers. In comparison, the Congressional report stated that the former Twin Towers had very few buildings of comparable height nearby thus signals suffered little interference. In 2003, a few FM stations were relocated to the nearby Condé Nast Building to reduce the number of broadcast stations using the Empire State Building. Eleven television stations and twenty-two FM stations had signed 15-year leases in the building by May 2003. It was expected that a taller broadcast tower in Bayonne, New Jersey, or Governors Island, would be built in the meantime with the Empire State Building being used as a "backup" since signal transmissions from the building were generally of poorer quality.
Woolworth Building
Prior to the September 11 attacks, the World Trade Center was often photographed in such a way that the Woolworth Building could be seen between 1 and 2 World Trade Center. After the attacks occurred only a few blocks away, the building was without electricity, water and telephone service for a few weeks and had broken windows and a damaged top turret due to falling rubble. Increased post-attack security restricted access to most of the ornate lobby, previously a tourist attraction. "New York Times" reporter David W. Dunlap wrote in 2006 that a security guard had asked him to leave within twelve seconds of entering the Woolworth Building. However, there was renewed interest in restoring public access to the Woolworth Building during planning for the building's centennial celebrations. The lobby reopened to public tours in 2014, when Woolworth Tours started accommodating groups for 30- to 90-minute tours. The tours were part of a partnership between Cass Gilbert's great-granddaughter, Helen Post Curry, and Witkoff's vice president for development, Roy A. Suskin.
One World Trade Center
The building's architect is David Childs, whose firm Skidmore, Owings & Merrill (SOM) also designed the Burj Khalifa and the Willis Tower. The construction of below-ground utility relocations, footings, and foundations for the new building began on April 27, 2006. One World Trade Center became the tallest structure in New York City on April 30, 2012, when it surpassed the height of the Empire State Building. The tower's steel structure was topped out on August 30, 2012. On May 10, 2013, the final component of the skyscraper's spire was installed, making the building, including its spire, reach a total height of . Its height in feet is a deliberate reference to the year when the United States Declaration of Independence was signed. The building opened on November 3, 2014; the One World Observatory opened on May 29, 2015.
World Trade Center (Portland, Oregon)
Following the attacks on New York's World Trade Center on September 11, 2001, Portland's World Trade Center was evacuated. A new roof was installed on the building in 2008, and the next year sustainable landscaping was installed around the complex. In June 2010, a fire in the basement caused the building to be evacuated. Another fire damaged a stairwell in November 2011 when someone used a Molotov cocktail.
World Trade Center (2001–present)
In 2006, the Port Authority took over One World Trade Center's ownership from Silverstein Properties. The project's developer Tishman Construction Corporation was the construction manager at the time. On March 13, 2006, workers arrived at the World Trade Center site to remove remaining debris and start surveying work. This marked the official start of construction of the National September 11 Memorial & Museum, though not without controversy and concerns from some family members. In , the Port Authority and Larry Silverstein reached an agreement in which Silverstein ceded rights to develop Towers One and Five in exchange for financing with Liberty Bonds for Towers Two, Three, and Four. On , 2006, a ground-breaking ceremony was held for the Freedom Tower. The building was designed to be tall, the height of the original World Trade Center north tower, and its spire rises to the symbolic height of 1,776 feet (541 m), a reference to the year in which the United States Declaration of Independence was signed.
4 World Trade Center
The original 4 World Trade Center was a 9-story low-rise office building that was completed in 1975 that was 118 ft (36 m) tall and in the southeast corner of the site, in Lower Manhattan, New York City. The building's major tenants were Deutsche Bank (Floor 4, 5, and 6) and the New York Board of Trade (Floors 7, 8, and 9). The building's side facing Liberty Street housed the entrance to The Mall at the World Trade Center on the basement concourse level of the WTC. It was practically destroyed as a result of the collapse of the South Tower during the September 11 attacks and its remains were later demolished to make way for the construction of the new skyscrapers, Four World Trade Center and Three World Trade Center. 4 World Trade Center was home to five commodities exchanges on what was at the time one of the world's largest trading floors (featured in the Eddie Murphy movie "Trading Places").
Casualties of the September 11 attacks
1,402 people died at or above the floors of impact in the North Tower. According to the Commission Report, hundreds were killed instantly by the impact while the remainder of the fatalities were trapped above the impact zone and died after the tower collapsed. Although a few people would subsequently be found alive in the rubble following the collapse of the towers, none of these individuals were from above the impact zone. John P. O'Neill was a former assistant director of the FBI who assisted in the capture of 1993 World Trade Center bomber Ramzi Yousef and was the head of security at the World Trade Center when he was killed trying to rescue people from the North Tower. An additional 24 people officially remain listed as missing. Cantor Fitzgerald L.P., an investment bank on the 101st–105th floors of One World Trade Center, lost 658 employees, considerably more than any other employer. Marsh Inc., located immediately below Cantor Fitzgerald on floors 93–100 (the location of Flight 11's impact), lost 295 employees and 63 consultants. Risk Waters, a business organization, was holding a conference in Windows on the World at the time, with 81 people in attendance.
CN Tower
The Ostankino Tower was completed nine years before the CN Tower, and is only shorter. The parallels between the towers led to some concern that the CN Tower could be at risk of a similar tragedy. However, Canadian officials subsequently stated that it is "highly unlikely" that a similar disaster could occur at the CN Tower, as it has important safeguards that were not present in the Ostankino Tower. Specifically, officials cited:Officials also noted that the CN Tower has an excellent safety record, although there was an electrical fire in the antennae on August 16, 2017 — the tower's first fire. Moreover, other supertall structures built between 1967 and 1976 — such as the Willis Tower (formerly the Sears Tower), the World Trade Center (until its destruction on September 11, 2001), the Fernsehturm Berlin, the Aon Center, 875 North Michigan Avenue (formerly the John Hancock Center), and First Canadian Place — also have excellent safety records, which suggests that the Ostankino Tower accident was a rare safety failure, and that the likelihood of similar events occurring at other supertall structures is extremely low.
Lower Manhattan
The Lower Manhattan Development Corporation has consummated plans to rebuild downtown Manhattan by adding new streets, buildings, and office space. The National September 11 Memorial at the site was opened to the public on September 11, 2011, while the National September 11 Museum was officially inaugurated by President Barack Obama on May 15, 2014. As of the time of its opening in November 2014, the new One World Trade Center, formerly known as the "Freedom Tower", is the tallest skyscraper in the Western Hemisphere and the fourth-tallest in the world, at ; while other skyscrapers are under construction at the site.
Joelma Building
This happened less than two years after another deadly fire in downtown São Paulo, that of the Andraus Building. As of December 2015, the Joelma fire remains the third-worst skyscraper fire ever in terms of the death toll, after the collapse of the twin World Trade Center towers in New York City on September 11, 2001.
Timeline for the day of the September 11 attacks
Just a minute later, Sean Murtagh, CNN vice president of finance, in an on-air phone call, says from his office in the CNN New York bureau that a large passenger commercial jet was seen to hit the World Trade Center. Murtagh is the first network employee on the air. The first email bulletins of breaking news from CNN and MSNBC report "fire at tower of World Trade Center". Both CNN and MSNBC's websites receive such heavy traffic that many servers collapse. BBC News' website is active and shows a picture of the North Tower on fire. Minutes later, email news bulletins revise the reports of fire to a plane crash.