“Let this place and this day be a reminder of the resolute and resolve we all have to honor our highest, who gave their lives 22 years ago for the finest country in the world, the United States of America.”
Pentagon Family Life Chaplain Mark McCorkle at Monday morning's sunrise unfurling of the United States flag, marking 22 years since the September 11, 2001 terrorist attacks.
sep 11, 2023
The Pentagon was struck at 9:37 am on September 11, 2001 as a hijacker flew American Airlines Flight 77 into the leading symbol of America's military that houses the many working as part of the Defense Department. The attack killed 184 people, including everyone aboard the plane and many inside the building. In total, nearly 3,000 people were killed during the terrorist attack on 9/11, including those at the Pentagon, the World Trade Center's North and South Towers, and in Pennsylvania.
The damage to the Pentagon was quickly rebuilt. The Defense Department shares: "The Pentagon Memorial Chapel was built within a year and dedicated on the first anniversary of the attacks. The point of impact of Flight 77 had become a place where the Pentagon community left flowers and mourned the victims, so senior leaders decided that instead of rebuilding that area as office space, it would become a chapel for all faiths to worship and pray." And on September 11, 2008, the National 9/11 Pentagon Memorial was dedicated on the grounds. Read more HERE.
For this morning's full ceremony, click here.
Photo Credit: Defense Dept., Air Force Tech. Sgt. Cedric H. Rudisill; "An Aerial view of the destruction at the Pentagon caused by a hijacked commercial jet that crashed into the side of the building during the Sept. 11, 2001, terror attacks"
