Where were you during 9/11? What has changed in 20 years?

I was in Elsinore California looking after an older family member when the news came. I turned on the television just in time to see live footage of the second plane strike and wonder who missed a stroke that an attack of this magnitude could take place. To quote the book The Hunt for Red October, "there are too many people in government service whose sole skill is kissing ass". I remembered a missile sight that some troops could actually use to track footprints even after some hours, and knew the Air Force had something similar so I called and suggested NSA put a recon bird in the air for a domestic pass. I heard about the searchers being grounded for a flyover a little later. Ground too hot, no help there but it was worth a shot. Several of the NYFD KIA's were vets. Godspeed them all.

In Martinsville, WV preparing to go through a train-the-trainer course in "Law Enforcement Response to Weapons of Mass Destruction incidents.  It was a refresher course for me, also a WMD trainer, and was being taught out of the federal consortium of universities (LSU) which had developed WMD training in response, response to Chemical and Biological, Explosives and Arson.  Since the projector could not be initially configured, the class officially never got started, and pagers started going off ordering students back to their respective departments (mainly in the New York City and Washington DC areas). 

Was stationed at Osan AB, Korea. Got the phone call in the middle of the night, turned on the TV and there it was all unfolding. Very difficult to comprehend what was taking place especially at that time in the night/morning. Life changed as we know it from that moment on...

I was stationed at Davis-Monthan AFB, getting ready to take my kids to school. I first heard the news on the radio. I rushed home and saw that the same show was on each station.

I was at a meeting with the ACSIM of the Army. There were 15 people in the Army representing the MACOMS. We were about 2-3 people more that would fit in the new conference room in the 3rd corridor. They moved our meeting to the basement of the Doubletree across the street. MG VanAntwerp's office lost two secretaries and his XO was very badly burned. God was watching over us that day.

I was well into my second career , Historic Stone Restoration.First I would like to say that NYC is my hometown, born in Brooklyn; I was raised in an orphanage owned by the Kennedy family named St. Joesph's,in Peekskill( named after their first son that died in WW2) I remember the day nearly minute by minute... I...'we' lost so much that day . I was hanging on the exterior south wall of 135 LaSalle St.in Chicago between the 25 and 30th floor. I was setting up for a 400lb stone replacement when my supervisor got on the com and called for all workers to tie off the rigs at the nearest floor and rally at the break room; which was odd because we had just begun the workday. As I got to the break room I heard crying and screaming , not something you hear from a bunch of construction workers... the little tv was blaring so loud i could hardly make out what the announcer was saying... but the image was heart wrenching ... the second plane was shone over and over; hitting the second tower.
Now when I began as a Stone mason, it wasn't uncommon for us 'homies' ( from the orphanage - actual origin of the term)to help each other find work; Well I landed work with Nicholson and Galloway in '97 , restoring 11 Wall St. - NYSE and got many friends jobs throughout lower Manhattan... most at the WTC...I can't go on about watching friends and family die on tv as it happened ...that day I lost ALL of my childhood friends and one cousin. That was a tough year... when I did get to NY I was staying at my sisters house in Queens a few weeks later... a plane crashed two blocks away...I left the world for a few, taking care of business; but this is the first and probably last time I will publicly address that year...that day

I was working in Miami Florida.

I WAS RETIRED FROM THE US NAVY JUST OVER 5 YEARS. On Sept 11 , 2001 I HAD JUST WORKED OFF A SHIFT FROM SUNDAY FOR THE DOUBLETREE HOTEL NORFOLK.I FELL ASLEEP WATCHING THE CARTOON NETWORK AND WOKE UP THINKING WTF MOVIE WAS THIS AND WHEN I CHANGED THE CHANNEL IT WAS THE SAME I KNEW IT WAS A MOVIE TO SAY THE LEAST I WAS IN SHOCK FOR A LONG TIME.

I was in the middle of basic training at RTC Great Lakes. Right in the middle of having the different banks go through their deal of who to join, some chiefs came in and asked them to go outside the room and talk. When they came back in, we saw civilians running out the building and the bank reps packed up and left without saying anything.

Our RDC's (instructors) came in and informed us of what had happened. They then asked if any of us are from or had family in New York. Sadly, over half of our division was from New Jersey and New York. It was a very quite week after that.

I didn't see any footage or news until after I passed training and went to NATTC Pensacola in Oct.

I was training Soldiers just outside our Brigade Headquarters. We were getting ready to do Funeral Detail.