20 Less-known Facts Related to 9/11 Attacks That are Pretty Sad and Shocking!
11 There was to be an investors meeting in the Tower 1 of WTC on the day of the attack about what to do in case of a terrorist attack. They postponed it because one of the members could not come.
Larry A. Silverstein and his consortium of investors were a few of the lucky people who were not present in the towers when the attack happened. Regardless, it caused each of them great financial loss in terms of investment, equipment and loss of premises, and there were also some who lost their entire investment in the incident. They also had to take care of customers’ claims under business interruptions, accident and worker compensations.(source)
12 Two F16 pilots flew up into the air on a suicide mission to crash into Flight 93. They had to act quick as the attacks were coming faster than they could load ammunition.
By the time the third plane crashed into the Pentagon, everyone was getting ready to act and stop attacks no matter what it takes. Lt. Heather Penney and Col. Marc Sasseville were two pilots who got up on their F16 to crash into the cockpit of the fourth plane to stop it from causing further damage. They had to take that decision because it could take at least an hour to arm a plane and there was no other way to stop the plane.(source)
13 An indirect death toll of 1,595 via car accidents has been reported during the year after 9/11. Many travelers took to traveling by road for fear of dying in another plane attack.
According to the German Professor Gerd Gigerenzer who specialized in risk analysis humans have an evolutionary tendency to avoid situations in which people die. This means people are more responsive to overt incidents causing fatalities than passive ones such as deaths from preventable medical conditions or accidents. He also states that when it comes to safety the government takes a defensive stand and prefers not to be blamed for decisions people make such as driving a car instead of flying, which technically had less probability of death.(source)
14Â Soon after the attack a banking firm that lost 66 employees set up a foundation to raise funds and pay for college for their employees’ children.
Sandler O’Neill & Partners was a foundation established for the sole purpose of supporting the families and the children of their employees who lost their lives in 9/11 attacks. Within a week they started the foundation and were ready to help. According to Jimmy Dunne, the Senior Managing Principal of the foundation, their efforts were an act of defiance against terror and a beginning to survive and flourish in the face of such tragedy.(source)
15 The captains, crews and civilian boat owners all came to the aid of those who were stranded on Manhattan Island. In an unprecedented act known as “9/11 Boatlift” they transported around 500, 000 to one million people off the island to safety.
And that is not all they have done. They provided water and other supplies necessary immediately after the incident as the water mains were destroyed. The act was called the “largest marine evacuation in the United States” by the Secretary of Transports.(source)