Issue link: https://www.epageflip.net/i/82453
At Flight 93 site, investigators recall what happened that day SHANKSVILLE, Pa. (MCT) — FBI Special Agent John Larsen spent most of the two weeks after 9/11 on his knees in an old coal field, wearing a hazmat suit, rooting through the pulverized remains of Unit- ed Flight 93. itors center and museum complex in Somerset Coun- ty. Larsen, who spoke at a panel discussion at the Flight 93 National Memori- al on Sunday, remembers arriving from Chicago just after Sept. 11, 2001, looking down from the hillside above the crash site into a blackened crater and say- ing, "Where's the plane?" Working around the clock, Larsen and hundreds of other investigators braved sharp-edged aircraft debris and pools of fuel oil and other toxic materials in their effort to determine who and what brought down the Boeing 757. Their efforts yielded tons of material: the critical data and voice recorders that established the chronology of bone-chilling events on the plane, and some human remains that brought a mea- sure of solace to families of the 40 passengers and crew who lost their lives. yards away, was a key piece of evidence that helped tie the crash to the larger 9/11 terrorist plot: one of the metal shanks used to hijack the plane, along with the burned remnants of a pass- Buried in the silt, 300 port clearly picturing one of the hijackers. Larsen, now retired, joined two other top investi- gators on the case — who spoke together publicly for the first time before a rapt audience of 250 at the crash site — as part of the Flight 93 anniversary commemo- ration. The event was held under dramatically cloud- filled skies in a packed tent on the site of the future vis- own experiences of 9/11, starting the day in various parts of the country at train- ing events or meetings, and thinking when they heard that an aircraft had hit the World Trade Center that it was an accident. The agents recalled their As soon as the second plane hit the World Trade Center, the men said, they realized the United States was under terrorist attack — their worst nightmare had come true — and they scrambled into action. John Shea, former spe- cial agent in charge of the Pittsburgh FBI office, remembers the rapid mobi- lization of the small army that worked at the site — 1,000 people in all — in the weeks after 9/11, from the state troopers who patrolled the perimeter on horseback, sitting by campfires at night, to Red Cross workers who provided support services. He recalls being struck by the enormity of the task and the fear that this was the beginning of a longer war on U.S. soil. was, is this a single-day event or are we looking at other attacks on bridges and tunnels, infrastructure else- where in the country?" Shea said. "What we didn't know He said that as conspira- Tuesday, September 11, 2012 – Daily News 7A cy theories cropped up alleging U.S. fighter jets had shot down the plane, he consulted with a National Transportation Safety Board accident expert about how best to respond. "There would have been a huge debris field if it had been shot down, and there was none," he said. "There was a hole filled with heavy plane parts, and the lighter parts of the aircraft and other material was carried by winds and ended up in trees." Todd McCall, a former head of the FBI's evidence response team who is now an FBI section chief han- dling computer evidence. He called the Flight 93 investigation a "massive operation." that involved a range of experts, from those working with tiny frag- ments of human remains and plane pieces the size of a quarter to the young arborists who scaled the flame-scarred hemlock trees alongside the crash site to dislodge parts of the plane's fuselage. McCall shed light on one of the mysteries that linger. An audience member asked whether passengers might have taken control of the plane during the coun- terassault . "There was a struggle in the front of the aircraft," he said. "But no passenger made it into the pilot's seat." High cost looms for 9/11 memorial in New York With its huge reflecting pools, ringed by waterfalls and skyscrapers, and a cav- ernous underground muse- um still under construction, the National Sept. 11 Memorial and Museum at the World Trade Center is an awesome spectacle that moved and inspired some 4.5 million visitors in its first year. One World Trade Center, NEW YORK (MCT) — center, rises above the National September 11 Memorial and Museum at the World Trade Center in New York. magnificence comes at a jaw-dropping cost. But all that eye-welling The foundation that runs the memorial estimates that once the roughly $700 mil- lion project is complete, it will cost $60 million a year to operate. The anticipated cost has bothered some critics and raised concerns even among the memorial's allies that the budget may be unsustain- able without a hefty govern- ment subsidy. By comparison, the National Park Service bud- geted $8.4 million this year to operate and maintain Gettysburg National Mili- tary Park and $3.6 million Sierra Sound Car Audio 35th $ 226 So. Main St., Red Bluff 527-3735 All CD's 13.99 FOR JUNK CARS CASH Auto Recycling Inc., Corning CA. www.allstarautorecycling.com All Star 824-2880 Webbers Crafts & More September Specials 10%-30% OFF SELECT ITEMS 650 Main St., Red Bluff RENT A BOOTH & SELL YOUR GOODS! Sat. 11-3 • Closed Sun. & Mon. Tues.-Fri. 10:30-5:30 530 528-2723 Anniversary Sale or less for the monument that includes the USS Arizona Memorial at Pearl Harbor. Running Arlington Nation- al Cemetery, which has more than 14,000 graves and receives 4 million visi- tors a year, costs $45 mil- lion annually. Officials at the 9/11 memorial say they face unique challenges that make comparisons to other national memorials diffi- cult. The foundation plans to spend at least a fifth of its operating budget, or around $12 million per year, on pri- vate security because of ter- rorism fears. Visitors to the memorial plaza pass through airport-like securi- ty, and armed guards patrol the grounds. "The fact of the matter is that this was a place that was attacked twice," said Joseph Daniels, the founda- Just operating the two huge fountains that mark the spots where the twin towers once stood will cost $4.5 million to $5 million annually, said the founda- tion's spokesman, Michael Frazier. Foundation officials did- n't respond to requests for information about other costs at the site, including the anticipated expense of running the museum, which is still unfinished and might not be anytime soon. The museum was sup- posed to open this month, but construction all but ceased a year ago because of a funding squabble between the foundation and the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey, which owns the land the memorial sits on. tion's president and chief executive. at least a year for the muse- um to open once construc- tion resumes, meaning the site may not be fully com- plete until at least 2014. The failure to open the museum on time has thrown off the foundation's finan- cial planning. Officials had expected to use the muse- um, being built mostly with money from various gov- ernment agencies, plus pri- vate donations, as its main source of revenue. allowed into the above- ground portions of the memorial for free, the foun- dation plans to charge peo- ple to descend into the museum's exhibition space, where they will see portraits While visitors will be Daniels said it will take 2126 Solano St., Corning Have you been in to see us lately? We are inside Clarks Drug Store 442 Walnut St., Red Bluff Seniors save 10% Everyday on Everything! ALL Children and Youth items (Bibles, books includes Kindergators and Veggie Tales DVDs) Back to School Specials! 15% off 530-527-7663 Monday-Friday 10-6 Bring in this ad to receive 2000 20% off a Fresh Flower Bouquet of $ Exp. 9-19-2012 or more GIBBS NOW OFFERS RENTAL CARS M-F 8AM-5PM Floral Shop 824-3971 Clarks of the nearly 3,000 victims, hear oral histories of the tragedy and view artifacts such as the staircase World Trade Center workers used to flee on 9/11. one-third of the operating costs. The admission price has- n't been set. But if the muse- um gets the 2 million visi- tors a year the foundation expects, a $12 fee, like the one charged at the memori- al to the victims of the 1995 Oklahoma City bombing, would cover 40 percent of the operating costs. More money will be generated through fundraising and the sale of memorabilia. In addition, the founda- tion and several elected offi- cials have proposed that the American public pick up balked. A bill proposed by Sen. Daniel Inouye, D- Hawaii, that would have had the National Park Ser- vice contribute $20 million per year ran into opposition from Sen. Tom Coburn, R- Okla., who noted that the federal government had already spent $300 million on the project. A National Park Service So far, Congress has official, William Shaddox, testified at a hearing that $20 million is more than the agency can afford, and larg- er than the entire annual appropriation for nearly 99 percent of the parks in its system. HAD A SMASHING WEEK? WE WILL GIBBS 527-2649 780 EAST AVE. (behind Food Maxx) STRAIGHTEN IT OUT. Voted BEST in Tehama County all 7 years 2006~2012 AUTO BODY REPAIR