Victims honored as flags lowered to half mast today
In the first-ever observation of Patriot Day marking the one-year anniversary of the terrorist attacks on America, city leaders have announced a moment of silence planned for this morning.
Made official last week after a proclamation by President George Bush and after Congress approved a joint resolution allowing the president to designate Sept. 11 of each year as Patriot Day, all city flags are planned to be lowered to half mast at 7:46 a.m. central time, Mayor Royce Davenport said.
Davenport said there was some question as to how to best observe the one-year anniversary of the terrorist attacks, but said officials ultimately decided to lower the city’s flags as well as observe a moment of silence.
He also asked area churches and others who have bells to recognize Patriot Day by observing one minute of silence at 7:46 a.m. and then ringing their bells at 7:47 a.m.
“The idea is to lower the flags in a moment of silence at 7:46 a.m. and then to ring the bells at 7:47 a.m. to indicate that we’re going on and that our country’s still here and we’re positive about moving to the future,” Davenport said.
This morning’s moment of silence begins at the same time the hijacked American Airlines Flight 11 slammed into the World Trade Center’s north tower last year, setting it on fire.
Broadcast live on television, another plane hit the south World Trade Center tower about 15 minutes later and both towers collapsed, killing about 3,000. Terrorists also hijacked a plane that crashed into the Pentagon and one that crashed in Pennsylvania after passengers stormed the cockpit.