September 11, 2001: “Today: Less humid. Sunshine. High 79.”

6:00 AM: Polls open in New York City for primary elections.

7:59 AM: American Airlines Flight 11 [carrying 87 innocent people, including crew, excluding hijackers] takes off from Boston’s Logan International Airport for Los Angeles.

8:00 AM: New York City public schools open for the fourth day of the school year.

8:14 AM: United Airlines Flight 175 [carrying 60 innocent people, including crew, excluding hijackers] takes off from Boston’s Logan International Airport for Los Angeles.

8:20 AM: American Airlines Flight 77 [carrying 59 innocent, including crew, excluding hijacker] takes off from Washington, DC’s Dulles International Airport for Los Angeles.

8:42 AM: United Airlines Flight 93 [carrying 44 innocent people, including crew, excluding hijackers] departs 42 minutes late from Newark International Airport for San Francisco.

8:46 AM: After receiving a call from the Federal Aviation Administration’s Boston control center that Flight 11 has been hijacked, the Northeast Air Defense Sector (NEADS) scrambles two military jets to the New York area from Otis Air National Guard Base, Cape Cod.

8:46:40 AM: Hijackers crash American Airlines Flight 11, a Boeing 767 carrying 92 innocent people, into floors 94 to 98 of 1 World Trade Center, the North Tower.

8:46 AM: The Fire Department of New York (FDNY) receives the first report of a plane crash into the North Tower. Evacuation in the North and South Towers begins.

9:00 AM: The Fire Department of New York (FDNY), the New York Police Department (NYPD) and the Port Authority Police Department (PAPD) are at their highest mobilization levels. Port Authority civilian staff and all on-duty WTC response staff have mobilized.

9:03 AM: Hijackers crash United Airlines Flight 175 into floors 78 to 84 of 2 World Trade Center, the South Tower.

9:15 AM: Officials begin closing New York City bridges and tunnels to all but emergency vehicles and pedestrians.

9:25 AM: The Federal Aviation Administration orders the first ever nationwide ground-stop, prohibiting the take-off of flights. Northeast Air Defense Sector (NEADS) jets establish combat air patrol over Manhattan.

9:30 AM: The New York Stock Exchange does not open at its scheduled time. Instead, its employees evacuate.

9:37 AM: Hijackers crash American Airlines Flight 77 into the Pentagon.

9:40 AM: The Federal Aviation Administration orders all 4,546 planes in North American airspace to land at the nearest airport.

By 9:45 AM: Evacuations are underway at the United States Capitol, the White House, the Empire State Building, the United Nations, the Kennedy Space Center, Disney World and major sites across the United States.

9:59 AM: 2 WTC, the South Tower, collapses in 9 seconds.

10:03 AM: Hijackers crash United Airlines Flight 93 in a field in Shanksville, Pennsylvania, after passengers launch a counter-attack to seize control of the aircraft.

10:28 AM: 1 WTC, the North Tower, collapses in 11 seconds. All 16 acres of the World Trade Center site are in ruins. A rescue and recovery effort begins immediately at the WTC Site.

10:30 AM: New York Governor George E. Pataki declares a state of emergency in New York State.

11:02 AM: New York City Mayor Rudolph Giuliani orders the evacuation of all of Lower Manhattan below Canal Street, including workers, residents, tourists, and school children.

1:27 PM: A State of Emergency is declared in Washington, DC.

2:35 PM: New York City Mayor Rudolph Giuliani holds a press conference at the New York City Police Academy. When asked, the Mayor states: “The number of casualties will be more than any of us can bear.”

5:20 PM: 7 World Trade Center collapses.

8:30 PM: President George W. Bush addresses the nation from the Oval Office: “Today, our nation saw evil, the very worst of human nature. And we responded with the best of America—with the daring of our rescue workers, with the caring for strangers and neighbors who came to give blood and help in any way they could.”

Courtesy The Port Authority of New York and New Jersey