9/11 As It Happened

Each year on 9/11, many may feel the need to get into the time machine that YouTube and other online sources give us and return to that morning.

I do not need to do that.

On September 11, 2001, I was working for The News-Gazette in Champaign, Illinois, and I first heard reports on the radio, then watched the second plane hit live on television.

Some people immediately started working on the story. Most were transfixed by the events in New York City.

Then, a bit before lunchtime, we got a call at the front desk from an unknown caller who said, “Your building is not safe,” in a Middle Eastern accent. No one followed protocol. They rushed us out of the building and into the parking lots several feet away. We watched more brave firemen and bomb squad members enter our building and do a complete search from top to bottom.

And we waited for the building to explode.

It didn’t. It was likely a prank. We all ended up just going home, and for days we just watched the news.

There were a lot of shell-shocked people and a small surge of patriotism over the days and weeks afterward.

I can remember the day and the people who lost their lives without reliving or revisiting that morning. If you feel the need, I highly recommend watching this breakdown on YouTube.