Photos of the terrorist attack on the Twin Towers that put the world on edge

At 8:46 a.m. on September 11, 2001, an American Airlines Boeing 767 crashed into one of New York’s Twin Towers, home to the World Trade Center and its emblematic financial center. Around 50,000 people worked there.

The plane carried 76 passengers and 11 crew members. Its impact tore a huge opening through the upper floors of the 110-story building and triggered a massive fire. What initially appeared to be a possible accident took on a far more serious meaning when a second plane struck the other tower.

The photographs show the Twin Towers reduced to rubble, people fleeing as one building collapsed, and a woman covered in dust taking shelter in an office building. Firefighters move through the debris, while a bronze statue of a man carrying a briefcase lies amid the wreckage. Another image captures an exhausted firefighter near the destroyed World Trade Center.

The collection also records the rescue effort, including teams continuing their work at the site. One photograph shows U.S. President George W. Bush with retired firefighter Bob Beckwith, 69, speaking with volunteers and firefighters as he inspected the damage. Another shows the American flag raised at Ground Zero, now displayed at the National September 11 Memorial and Museum in New York.

The article comes ahead of the 25th anniversary of the terrorist attack, which killed nearly 3,000 people. Its final comparison places a 2001 image of Bush at Ellis Island, with the Twin Towers behind him, alongside the present-day Manhattan skyline and One World Trade Center.