Commemorating Sept 11 Tragedy

In just 22 days, we here in New York, our nation, will commemorate the tenth anniversary of 9/11 when terrorists hijacked four planes, two of them taking down the Twin Towers known as the World Trade Center towers. Most of us here in New York know someone that was in the towers, or who responded to the tragedy on that fateful day when America found itself under attack.

Thinking our small hamlet of Mountaindale should find a way to commemorate the day, honor those who lost their lives that day in the towers, at the Pentagon in Washington, DC and in a field in Pennsylvania. Below are the staggering facts by the numbers.

The initial numbers are indelible: 8:46 a.m. and 9:02 a.m. Time the burning towers stood: 56 minutes and 102 minutes. Time they took to fall: 12 seconds. From there, they ripple out.

• Total number killed in attacks (official figure as of 9/5/02): 2,819

• Number of firefighters and paramedics killed: 343

• Number of NYPD officers: 23

• Number of Port Authority police officers: 37

• Number of WTC companies that lost people: 60

• Number of employees who died in Tower One: 1,402

• Number of employees who died in Tower Two: 614

• Number of employees lost at Cantor Fitzgerald: 658

• Number of U.S. troops killed in Operation Enduring Freedom: 22

• Number of nations whose citizens were killed in attacks: 115

• Ratio of men to women who died: 3:1

• Age of the greatest number who died: between 35 and 39

• Bodies found "intact": 289

• Body parts found: 19,858

• Number of families who got no remains: 1,717

• Estimated units of blood donated to the New York Blood Center: 36,000

• Total units of donated blood actually used: 258

• Number of people who lost a spouse or partner in the attacks: 1,609

• Estimated number of children who lost a parent: 3,051

• Percentage of Americans who knew someone hurt or killed in the attacks: 20

• FDNY retirements, January–July 2001: 274

• FDNY retirements, January–July 2002: 661

• Number of firefighters on leave for respiratory problems by January 2002: 300

• Number of funerals attended by Rudy Giuliani in 2001: 200

• Number of FDNY vehicles destroyed: 98

• Tons of debris removed from site: 1,506,124

• Days fires continued to burn after the attack: 99

• Jobs lost in New York owing to the attacks: 146,100

• Days the New York Stock Exchange was closed: 6

• Point drop in the Dow Jones industrial average when the NYSE reopened: 684.81

• Days after 9/11 that the U.S. began bombing Afghanistan: 26

• Economic loss to New York in month following the attacks: $105 billion

• Estimated cost of cleanup: $600 million

• Total FEMA money spent on the emergency: $970 million

• Estimated amount donated to 9/11 charities: $1.4 billion

• Estimated amount of insurance paid worldwide related to 9/11: $40.2 billion

• Estimated amount of money needed to overhaul lower-Manhattan subways: $7.5 billion

• Amount of money recently granted by U.S. government to overhaul lower-Manhattan subways: $4.55 billion

• Estimated amount of money raised for funds dedicated to NYPD and FDNY families: $500 million

• Percentage of total charity money raised going to FDNY and NYPD families: 25

• Average benefit already received by each FDNY and NYPD widow: $1 million

• Percentage increase in law-school applications from 2001 to 2002: 17.9

• Percentage increase in Peace Corps applications from 2001 to 2002: 40

• Percentage increase in CIA applications from 2001 to 2002: 50

• Number of songs Clear Channel Radio considered "inappropriate" to play after 9/11: 150

• Number of mentions of 9/11 at the Oscars: 26

• Apartments in lower Manhattan eligible for asbestos cleanup: 30,000

• Number of apartments whose residents have requested cleanup and testing: 4,110

• Number of Americans who changed their 2001 holiday-travel plans from plane to train or car: 1.4 million

• Estimated number of New Yorkers suffering from post-traumatic-stress disorder as a result of 9/11: 422,000