# Where were you?



## fma08 (Sep 11, 2009)

For me, 8th Grade History class. Another teacher walked in and whispered to our instructor. We then followed him out to another room to watch the news. I saw the towers fall that day.

Where were you on 9/11?


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## dmc2007 (Sep 11, 2009)

5th grade gym class.  4th and 5th grades were escorted into the auditorium where we were told there had been "a few plane crashes."  No one was to go home without a parent picking them up.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fvj6zdWLUuk


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## Mountain Res-Q (Sep 11, 2009)

18 y/o.  Just finished upy my MFR and was in EMT and taking Rope Rescue Courses when it happened...  At that time I was working as a Vet Tech an I woke up that morning to go to work and it the first attack was on the news...  by the time I got to work the second tower was hit...  We had a radio in Surgery, where I spent most of my time... and I was listening as the towers fell...


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## Akulahawk (Sep 11, 2009)

I was at home that morning. I saw the 2nd hit live. I knew then that this was no ordinary event. I got dressed, and headed into work... over the protests of my better half. It wasn't until a while later, after I got to work, that it was realized that only 4 planes were involved, and all were accounted for.
*
NEVER FORGET*


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## guardian528 (Sep 11, 2009)

at home, eating breakfast, getting ready for school. dad was in the bathroom getting ready for work and i shouted something to him to the extent of "some building just got hit by a plane!"

went to school and we just sat in the classroom and watched the news all day. . .


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## Pudge40 (Sep 11, 2009)

I was in 4th grade. Was there about 45 minutes before the first plane hit. We also then watched the news the rest of the day. Not that I understood what was going on at that time though.


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## surname_levi (Sep 11, 2009)

10th grade in english class. other than the tragic incident, i remember people hyped up on the Nostradamus nonsense


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## berkeman (Sep 11, 2009)

Just arrived at work in Silicon Valley, Cali (rode in on a sportbike, no radio).  I'm one of the principle leads of our work volley ERT group, so I was contacted pretty quickly.  We were far enough away from the focus of the attacks that we didn't need to activate, but the news and that day changed everything.  

RIP, firefighters, LEOs, and other public servants who lost their lives.  It could have been us.  It will not be us going forward.


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## Ridryder911 (Sep 11, 2009)

Laying in bed, girlfriend (another flight nurse) called and exclaimed of the initial going ons. I told her to calm down Cessna type planes routinely crashed into tall buildings. Turned on the t.v. to witness the second crash. She asked me what I thought... I exclaimed.."war". 

We were grounded for two days and then were allowed to fly at Lifeguard status. I remember how eerie the skies were as there was no radio traffic or jet flumes from other planes and no other aircraft lights in the skies. 

My pilot was Italian but had a Russian type brogue dialect and asked if we would talk on the radio for him, as he thought as well it might not be in our best interest to have a deep foreign accent on the radio as well. 

Nothing like an F-14 pulling beside you fully loaded and a AWAC above you describing that you have 3 souls on board and demanding your SSN now! Afterwards, being cleared (which seemed like an eternity) knowing & grasping the seriousness and surveillance our country has. 

R/r 911


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## VCEMT (Sep 11, 2009)

Quite honestly, I was asleep.


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## medichopeful (Sep 11, 2009)

When it happened, I was in school.  I was only there for half a day, as that was how my schedule was.

I actually found out when my father picked me up.  He asked me if I knew what was going on.  I hadn't found out yet, but if I remember correctly, I answered that we were at war.  Somehow I just knew.


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## mikie (Sep 11, 2009)

Middle school; was taking those standardized tests everybody dreaded.


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## Epi-do (Sep 11, 2009)

I was at the firehouse.  I had worked the night shift on the medic and was getting off shift.  We had turned the TV on right after the first plane hit.  Everyone at the firehouse was mesmerized by what was happeneing on the TV in front of us.  Some of the guys were members of Task Force 1 and were rushing to get their stuff together and leave so they could see their families before being deployed to Ground Zero. 

After I got home, I woke my husband up, who had been sleeping and told him what happened.  At first he didn't believe me, and I had to convince him to get up and come to the television.  We sat in front of the TV together until he had to go to work that afternoon, and I then continued to watch by myself.

One of the things I will never forget was going back into the firehouse on my next shift and how quiet/subdued everyone there was.  There was absolutely none of the horseplay and joking around that typically would go on around the firehouse.


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## Dominion (Sep 11, 2009)

I was in 10th grade, classes were about to change.  I was in Military History, part of our Marine Corps ROTC program.  Me and another classmate had just changed from our charlies to our dress blues for a honor guard service.  Major (the lead 'instructor') came into the room and just turned on the news for us.  We sat and watched in silence for nearly an hour before they had us change to next class.  Watched news all day till we went home, we ended up canceling the honor guard service.


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## Mountain Res-Q (Sep 11, 2009)

I find it interesting the number of people here that were in grade school and such when 9-11 happened... hard to believe it was 8 years ago...  Makes me wonder if 9-11 holds the same meaning in the eyes of the younger ones here and around the nation... It would be like any of us feeling extreme pain over Pearl Harbor...  It was so long ago and none of us witnessed it personally...  Speaking personally, even at the age of 18 and in College, 9-11 didn't have the impact on me that it did just a few years latter...  On the other hand, how can anyone in emergency services not review that day and reflect on the bravery and inner strength of those rescuers there and then actually forget what that sacrafice means?


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## fma08 (Sep 11, 2009)

Mountain Res-Q said:


> I find it interesting the number of people here that were in grade school and such when 9-11 happened... hard to believe it was 8 years ago...  Makes me wonder if 9-11 holds the same meaning in the eyes of the younger ones here and around the nation... It would be like any of us feeling extreme pain over Pearl Harbor...  It was so long ago and none of us witnessed it personally...  Speaking personally, even at the age of 18 and in College, 9-11 didn't have the impact on me that it did just a few years latter...  On the other hand, how can anyone in emergency services not review that day and reflect on the bravery and inner strength of those rescuers there and then actually forget what that sacrafice means?



I think that for now, it's kind of our generation's Pearl Harbor or Kennedy Assassination.


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## Dominion (Sep 11, 2009)

fma08 said:


> I think that for now, it's kind of our generation's Pearl Harbor or Kennedy Assassination.



I agree.  While my mom can remember where she was when Kennedy was assassinated she doesn't have as deep of a response as others because she was young.  It's similar to how many young people (myself included) who witnessed it and weren't attached to it in someway don't have the same emotional response as someone who was older or already working in EMS and Fire.  Additionally I didn't start into EMS until I was 20 so much of that interaction was already gone by the time I got into it.  It's just not as emotionally impacting to me.  I recognize the magnitude of the situation but it doesn't go much beyond that.


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## Cory (Sep 11, 2009)

Hmm, well, I was in second grade. Had just had gym class. I got outside, and my dad met me to drive me home. I got in the car and he asked meif I knew what the World Trade Center was. I said no, and he explained that it was a big building in New Yourk, and it had been hit by planes. I stayed up watching the news all night totaly mezmorized by it all, somehow understanding it ver well, and I blabbed to everyone about it the next day (the school wasn't going to mention it even on the day after)

A few months later, at Christmas we went to New York. We visited ground zero, we went all over. My parents were extremely open about it, I even remember saying to them that I didn't want them to keep things from me.

I still remember looking at ground zero that year, we got close to the WTC subway, everything was so destroyed. It fascinated me, and only now does it really haunt me.


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## rescue99 (Sep 11, 2009)

fma08 said:


> For me, 8th Grade History class. Another teacher walked in and whispered to our instructor. We then followed him out to another room to watch the news. I saw the towers fall that day.
> 
> Where were you on 9/11?



On duty. We had been ordered to our stations to stock MCI containers. 
The entire metro area was put on high alert then assigned to street corners for almost 2 weeks. Although we've been put on orange alert more times than I can recall, the area here has always been pretty quiet.

My partner was from Jersey, right across the bridge. Poor guy was an upset wreck until he made contact with his folks that day.


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## medicp94dao (Sep 11, 2009)

i was woke up by my sister yelling we were being attacked.... ( i had just recently re-enlisted in the Army ) and thought she was messing with me... I turned on the tv and at that same moment my Company First Seargent called and told me i needed to come in......


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## dmc2007 (Sep 12, 2009)

I might have been young (a few days past 10 years old), but man do I remember how bad that day was.  I remember the feeling of absolute hopelessness, the not knowing if anything would ever be the same.  I remember classmates crying wondering if they would ever see their parents again.  Some of them didn't.


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## TransportJockey (Sep 12, 2009)

I was in 8th grade. Home sick just had the TV on for background noise when I saw it


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## Shishkabob (Sep 12, 2009)

7th grade art class... drawing a tiger.  Didn't really think much of it because when they said a plane hit, I was thinking a tiny Cessna.  That is, until we got to leave school early.

Went home, turned on the tv, and the very first image I saw was someone jumping out of one of the towers.


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## akflightmedic (Sep 12, 2009)

Guess I will weigh in as one of the old fogies...

I was at Station 10, everyone was outside still doing rig checks, I came inside to grab some paperwork and we always had the news on in the station. I saw the reports of the first impact and watched the second...I was too mesmerized to say anything. When the seriousness of it dawned on me, I stuck my head out the bay door and told everyone to come inside now...they sensed the urgency and piled in.

We then started dialing, notified HQ, other stations...not many had heard yet. We then went into full station lock down (county wide) and the DMAT team was put on standby ready to deploy.

Remainder of the day was somber and filled with news watching. Ironically, 911 calls were few that day, which in retrospect seems odd. Were people delaying or not calling 911 due to being engrossed in live news coverage?


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## EMTinNEPA (Sep 12, 2009)

I was in 8th grade.  I was in Spanish class when the first plane hit.  I then went to Sex Ed (not trying to be funny, I really was in Sex Ed) and was in there when the second plane hit.  At the very end of Sex Ed, a teacher I didn't know came in and whispered to our teacher and then our teacher announced to the class that there had been a bombing in New York City (we knew virtually no details at the time).  Went to my next class (ironically, Contemporary World Events) and the rest of the day was spent watching the news.


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## lightsandsirens5 (Sep 12, 2009)

Lived in San Diego at the time and I was 12 years old. We were eating breakfast when my grandma called right after the first plane hit and told my dad what was going on. Dad then told us there had been a terrible accident in New York, briefly telling us youngsters what was going on. (The little anyone knew at that point.) Seemed like a few minutes later Grammie called back and I remember my dad started crying as she talked. When he hung up and told us about the second plane and how it was an attack, I remember asking if he was going to have to leave for war. (He was a Navy SEAL.) I don't remember his reply. But I do remember watching the news the rest of the day. I also remember when we found out the pentagon had been hit. Coming from a military family, I knew several men that worked there. One was killed, but several others were miraculously out of their offices. All worked on the side that was hit. One had left to get a cup of coffee. Another one's office was being renovated and he was in a temporary trailer office in a parking lot.


I remember a few days later seeing a pic in the paper of several Middle Eastern looking kids holding a picture of the second tower being hit and apparently cheering. I just started crying and got really angry. I'll never forget that picture.


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## JeffDHMC (Sep 12, 2009)

On the way home after dropping kids off at day care so I could sleep after my deep night shift. Caught the 1st hit on the radio, saw 2nd hit live.


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## fortsmithman (Sep 12, 2009)

I was 34 at the time and at home in bed listening to my radio.  When I heard it I went to the living room and turned on the TV.  I then called my boss at work for him to turn on the TV in the office.  I also called my cousin and told him to turn on his TV as well.


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## HotelCo (Sep 12, 2009)

I was in the car, on the way back to school from the doctors. I was listening to the radio, and somehow heard it while flipping. I didn't think anything of it (partly because I had no idea what the World Trade Centers were). My mom and I went home and watched the news and it finally hit me. Went back to school, and the rest of the day was filled with ignorance. None of my classmates knew what happened until I told them. The teachers did their best to just play it off, but you could sense there was something wrong in the air.


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## flhtci01 (Sep 12, 2009)

I was an Operations supervisor at a nuclear power plant.  Some of the operators listening to a radio heard a small plane crashed into one of the towers.  When the second one crashed into the second tower, I informed the head of Security that something was happening.


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## SuperstarInTheMaking (Sep 12, 2009)

I was in 11th grade headed into my 2nd class of the day and my teacher had it on the TV. I saw the second plane hit and we were all sent home around noon.

May we never forget the incredible loss of life that day and the brave souls who made the ultimate sacrifice.


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## nomofica (Sep 12, 2009)

Grade 6, about to leave for school. Stayed home that whole morning watching it with my big sis.

Even though being as young as I was, and  quite a few of us were, I remember that day very clearly. I still have the images of the second plane hitting the tower burned into my mind. 

I remember. I will always remember.


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## DV_EMT (Sep 12, 2009)

7th grade.... I was rousted about by my dad (about 6 am I recall) who forced me to come into the living room and "watch history in the making"


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## fiddlesticks (Sep 12, 2009)

i was in grade 12 english class. and one of my friends came in and told me then we watched it on the tvs in the classrooms for the rest of the day.


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## MSDeltaFlt (Sep 12, 2009)

On my day off from respiratory when a my ex called and we talked for hours watching the whole thing.  All I can say is... wow.


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## JonTullos (Sep 12, 2009)

I was doing nights on a top 40 radio station back then.  I was sleeping in (as usual) and my clock radio finally went off.  The station's morning show was talking about how something had happened in NYC and they were still trying to find out exactly what.  Couple of minutes later they said they had seen a video of a plane hitting one of the towers.  I ran to my TV and shortly after I got to see the second plane hit.  I stayed glued to my TV until I finally decided to go to the station in case they needed help.  It was an unreal feeling and one I hope I never, ever, have again.


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## emt_angel25 (Sep 12, 2009)

when the first plane hit i was getting ready to pull into the college parking lot. when the second hit i was on my way to class.......we all sat in shock when they fell


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## mycrofft (Sep 12, 2009)

*Getting ready for work (Pacific DST)*

Heard report of collision on NPR, turned on the tv while getting dressed. Second impact was while I was pulling on my first pant leg, I knew it wasn't an accident and wondered what other targets might be lined up. 
My third thought was "Who"...and I discarded Muslims due to the indiscriminate targetting and high liklihood of killing women and children.

We watched the towers fall while we were at work, the facility was locked down. I was still in the USAF retired reserve and started mentally assembling my GO bag.


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## VFFforpeople (Sep 12, 2009)

7th grade, brushing my teeth when my sister screamed come see this!! It looks cool!! (young I know). At first I thought it was for a new movie or something so we sat and watched and comment on how real it looked...then about 45sec-1min went by...and it clicked, this isnt a movie. The school I was going to (private) wouldnt let us watch or listen to the radio. All I could think about was wishing I was 18 and enlisting...and for the first time...feel exposed and weakend, like I lost my walls.


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## Tincanfireman (Sep 13, 2009)

I was working at the newly completed multi-national Combined Air Operations Center at Prince Sultan Air Base near Al Kharj, Saudi Arabia. I was an E-7 (MSgt) in the US Air Force. It was just after 3 pm and we had planes in the air conducting operations supporting Operation Southern Watch over Iraq. As usual, we had CNN displayed on one of the huge information walls. I was at my desk in another part of the CAOC when we got word of the first hit. I went out onto the operations floor just in time to see the tail of the second plane disappearing into the tower. After the initial reaction, you could of heard a pin drop on the floor. As word spread, the room became more crowded as additional behind the scenes folks showed up to watch the TV coverage. Finally, the boss got on the PA and reminded us that we still had planes in the air over "Indian Territory", (Iraq) and that if we couldn't be quiet, he'd clear the area. We already knew that our lives as Air Force members had changed, and we also knew we were going to be on the point of the spear for quite awhile. I made a quick (unauthorized) call to my wife to let her know I was OK, but that she might not hear from me as frequently for a couple weeks. Ironically, I had return plane tickets in hand for my planned flight home on September 12th. Needless to say, I missed that flight (and many more) before I finally made it home in late November. Here's a picture of the ops floor (most of the screens are blank due to the fact that the whole place is classified; they had to sanitize the screens for this picture)


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## paccookie (Sep 13, 2009)

I was on the way to work, had just dropped my child off at my grandma's house.  I heard about the first plane on the way to work, turned on the radio at work and heard about the second plane.  Drug the tv down the hall into the office and watched the news the rest of the morning.  I was 21.


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## EMT11KDL (Sep 13, 2009)

I was making breakfast before I went to school, had the news on waiting for the weather until everything happened.


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## Archymomma (Sep 13, 2009)

I was at work, a co-worker was bringing the car around so we could load our climbing gear. He came into the building and said there was something on the radio about an airplane hitting one of the twin towers. We finally got a news page to load on the computer and found out what happened.


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## RDUNNE (Sep 13, 2009)

i was in 6th grade. it was still early in california when the first plane hit but my mom was up at the time and had the news on. she ran and got my dad and he woke me up to let me know that i was going to see what war was when i turned 18. i remember every detail about that morning except for what pajamas i was wearing.


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## Canoeman (Sep 13, 2009)

I rememember this like it happened today. I was home off shift doing some bills and checkbook stuff and was listening to the news. First one plane then another. My crew and I were on rotation for Disaster Team Response. I knew we were going to get called. I becan calling my crew and got ready. No sooner than I finished tying my boots the big bosses called me. We are going to the Twin Towers. 

We sent two rigs from Cental New York and joined 22 others in the mission. We arrived to Chelsey to stage about noon on 9/12. We sat for about an two hours then my crew began doing a few calls in the system. FF cut fingers, washing out eyes, neb treatments, but in was obvious within a few more hours that there were no true surviours and we all wept. 

I can at least say that we got to ground zero and walked in the cement dust covered absolutely everythin. It ended up all over our boots and cloths.  I was able to bring home a small piece of metal from tower two and a story that I can tell my grandkids. 

I took those boots off when I finally got back home. They are in a nice display case now right next to my desk.

Canoeman


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## Seaglass (Sep 13, 2009)

8th grade history class, DC. Another teacher came in, and whispered something to the regular teacher. We were told we'd be staying there until further notice and to hand in our cell phones. The few of us who had them refused, but they weren't working anyways. Sirens everywhere. Finally we were told planes had hit the Pentagon and Trade Center. A lot of us were freaking out and crying. Eventually I learned that everyone I was close to was safe, but a few of my classmates weren't as lucky.

Later on, some of us and our families made dinner and brought it to the still-burning Pentagon. We wound up getting lost in all the security, but finally found a crew to give it to. I haven't forgotten the expressions on their faces. There was smoke everywhere, and it smelled awful. It was all very surreal.


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## Aidey (Sep 14, 2009)

I was a sophomore in high school, so I was 15. We lived a few time zones behind NY, so it was super early when it happened. My aunt in MI called us after the first plane hit. The phone ringing woke me up, and I knew it had to be bad news because it was so early, and the last time anyone called that early was when my grandfather had died. 

We watched it happen on TV until I had to leave for school. When I got to school we spent most of the day watching the footage in the library. My parents had a lot of anxiety about it because my dad grew up in NYC, and most of his family still lives there. It took hours to get through to his sister, only to be informed his cousin was in one of the towers and no one had heard from him. We found out later he was fine, and the insane nutcase had gotten out, and then gone back in get some lady's purse (he was pretty low in the building, I think in the 20ish floor range, but still). There was some reason the purse was really important, but I can't remember what it is now.


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## silver (Sep 14, 2009)

6th grade art class. I knew something was up, but they didn't say anything in school (since so many of the kids parents work there and at least 1 died that day) however I left school and was home minutes after the first tower fell. Couldn't get to my mom for hours since the cell phone network collapsed, she didnt come home till 11pm because the hospital was in a state of emergency.
Don't think we even had class for that entire week after it. 

so sad.


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## Lifeguards For Life (Sep 14, 2009)

i was in 5th grade, walking to class, it was on the news when i walked through the door


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## thegreypilgrim (Sep 18, 2009)

I was in 10th grade. It was early in the morning so I hadn't left for school yet. I remember stumbling out of my bedroom into the kitchen and having my mom say something like, "We're under attack. Planes are crashing into the World Trade Center." Before I had even mentally processed what she said to me I looked at the TV and saw the 2nd plane hit live. I didn't eat breakfast or anything that morning (I don't even think I took a shower...), and was completely transfixed to the TV. I witnessed the first tower collapse just before my mom finally took my brother & I to school.

I remember all we did at school that day was rotate from class to class and watch the news. I remember I had a particularly crotchety and overall unpleasant substitute teacher in English class that day who essentially told us we (meaning us males in the class...because according to this guy only men fight wars...) were all going to get drafted and die in the war against whatever country did this to us.  Charming right? Well anyway, that's my story.


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## dragonjbynight (Sep 18, 2009)

Sleeping...I worked second shift at Maine General Medical Center. I caught it on the radio when i woke up and began listening in. It wasn't long after that I started getting calls from some of my buddies on WTVL fire. When i got to the hospital i found it eerily empty. We went to diversionary status because so many doctors had already left for NYC. When I went to the station house the next morning I remember the drivers talking about several of the call firefighters heading there to assist with S&R. I remember thinking that it was surreal. When i think back to it, I can still remember watching a tv every chance i could that evening, every nurses station was tuned in, every patient watching. It was the quietest night I had ever seen in the Hospital.


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## dragonjbynight (Sep 18, 2009)

Mountain Res-Q said:


> I find it interesting the number of people here that were in grade school and such when 9-11 happened... hard to believe it was 8 years ago...



I agree. It doesn't seem like it was long enough ago for people to have been young kids, though I guess thats a part of getting older, sure doesn't feel it though.


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## bunkie (Sep 18, 2009)

Was in Arkansas with extended family to testify on a custody case. Was sleeping on the pull out when someone came running in the house screaming "We're going to war! We've been attacked!" She sat down on the edge of the bed I was on and hit the TV. We watched the first building smoking as the media tried to figure out what was happening. We watched the second plane hit the tower. I'll never forget it flying in from the edge of the screen and smacking straight into the tower. *We watched it all*. The chaos in the streets, the debris, the people walking out of it, the people jumping from the windows. It will forever be etched in my mind. I'll never forget 9/11.


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## MIkePrekopa (Sep 19, 2009)

6th grade Geography class... 4th row from the door, 3rd seat from the front. Our teacher's daughter was supposed to be taking a trip to the towers. Our teacher left and one of the librarians came in to baby sit... erm, teach... We were told there was a plane crash, but thats it. Got home and flipped on the news to see what happened. I don't remember if it was 2nd or 3rd period, but i think 2nd. Without doing the math, I think I was 11 at the time.


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## Medic One (Sep 19, 2009)

I was working for my service OT on Medic 7....We just cleared back in service and walked in to the breaking news....

That night my wife got ordered into work (she is an ER Doc/Med Examiner for the State of CT)

I was held over and sent to Greenwich, CT to the CT staging area...thats as far as I made it...I am glad I never got to the scene...I lost a friend there..I knew he was working on Rescue 3 that day...it was a horrible day for me knowing what his family was about to deal with.


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## EMT Fan15 (Sep 19, 2009)

I was at School, just as announcements were comming on, I was age 6-in first grade. It was my brother';s Senior year. My parents chose to pick my brother up first-which was 15 20 minute drive to the Highschool I just enrolled into this year, then they picked me up half an hour later. We all went home, and just sat there watching the news  all day..I think that was actully, my first assume that i wanted to be an EMT, I still do want to. i enrolled into a health-related job Club, and will be doing volenteer work at hospitals, sports clinics, or Doctor's offices, honestly, I have butterflys for it. Never liked Hospitals. As clumsy as I maybe, never went to the hospital for an injury since I was 5. And past the age of five, i've probably done alot of damage. Not proud, but..x)


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