by We can all remember where we were and what we were doing that day in 2001. That was nineteen years ago. Seems like a long time ago and yet it doesn’t. For the families that lost loved ones that day this is still an ever present loss that they live with daily. Lets not forget to say a prayer for these families today. Also it wasn’t just the people in the planes, or the world trade center, or the Pentagon but the men and women who responded to rescue and help that also lost their lives which continue to this day. Here are some facts about 9/11 that you may not know.
The last fires at Ground Zero weren’t extinguished completely until December 19, 2001.
The Central Intelligence Agency had told Clinton that “Bin Ladin was Preparing to Hijack US Aircraft and Other Attacks.” CIA updated the President on December 4, 1998, in his Daily Brief saying that he was planning to hijack planes to gain the release of Yousef and other terrorists.
On February 26, 1993, a bomb was planted in a van parked in the WTC’s underground parking. The bomb exploded killing six people and wounding more than 1,000. “Ramzi Yousef, the Sunni extremist who planted the bomb, said later that he had hoped to kill 250,000 people.”
Over 185,101 tons of steel left at Ground Zero was used in memorials across the US, but some was also sold to China and India.
Three skyscrapers fell in New York
US tried multiple times to kill Osama bin Laden before 9/11. CIA and other agencies developed a plan to capture bin Laden in early 1998, the report said. That was delayed and then revived, but it was hampered by concerns from military officials about relying on Afghan tribal leaders. Then-national security adviser Sandy Berger was concerned about what would be done with bin Laden if he was captured and whether the evidence against him could lead to a criminal conviction in a US court.
Passengers on planes provide critical information. Passengers on four hijacked flights American 11, United 175, American 77 and United 93 had called their family members and friends from their cellphones to report the hijacking. This helped the authorities to understand why they couldn’t track the hijacked planes.
