It's the question that's often first asked or first told when the subject of the worst terror attack in the nation's history comes up: Where were you? What do you remember most? The Associated Press posted an inquiry on Facebook asking people around the world to describe their most vivid memory of Sept. 11, 2001. A sampling of their verbatim responses follows.
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Jeremy Suede, 28, of Woodland Hills, Calif., lived in Santa Clara at the time of the attacks.
"I remember waking up to my mom pounding on my door and just saying there was something I needed to see. I got to the tv just in time to see the second plane hit and then I watched in utter disbelief as they fell. I remember feeling so helpless and it was the first time in my life something major had happened and we had absolutely no information on why or who. It was my first year after high school so it was odd not having the answers we had always had in our books. Truly a day I will never forget from start to finish."
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Carol Rychlik Kickham, 52, of Wichita, Kan., was a worker at the Saint Louis Art Museum in Missouri on Sept. 11.
"I remember driving to work and hearing that the first tower was hit, and then the second, before I ever arrived at work. No one on the radio knew what was happening. I walked into the building in a daze, fired up my computer to try to get more information and all of the major media outlet websites were flooded with traffic. I was finally able to access an Australian website."
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Brian Rich, 29, from Boise, Idaho, was living in in Moscow, Idaho, at the time of the attacks, attending the University of Idaho.
"Being stuck in a large van on a college lab field trip with a dozen strangers in rural Washington State, on our way to a nuclear power plant tour, listening to scratchy AM radio news at 6:30-7 a.m. as the events unfolded, with three hours of driving before we could get to any town that actually had a TV or cell phone coverage."
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John N. Hart, 71, of West Palm Beach, Fla.
"I lived in Ft. Lauderdale on 9/11/01 and my ex wife called me from NJ to tell me to turn on the TV. I watched in horror as CNN/etc. described that first tower was on fire but not sure of the cause. Then at 9:15 a.m., the 2nd tower was hit by that plane as it smashed into the bldg. We both were stunned and speechless and began to fear the worst was yet to come."
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Harry Goldmund Sinclair, 56, was living in San Diego on Sept. 11.
"At the time, I was working for a theme park which is open 365 days a year. The park closed that day (asked guests to leave) and the following day. It was weird to walk through the theme park on a beautiful day and see no visitors, just other stressed out employees. Plus, many of us felt like a target. Who might be next?"
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