INDIANAPOLIS — Twenty-three years ago, terrorists hijacked four planes and crashed them into the World Trade Center in New York, the Pentagon in Washington, D.C., and a field in Shanksville, Pennsylvania, marking the deadliest attacks ever on U.S. soil.
Jonathan Witham, acting executive director of Indiana Homeland Security, believes the state is now better prepared for such an attack if it were to happen again.
“We hope it never happens again. We’ve been fortunate since 9/11 not to see anything at that level,” he said. “The attacks exposed gaps in our intelligence, response capabilities, and communications, but that doesn’t mean we’re perfect.”
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Witham noted that the security community has learned a lot from past incidents and is now in a stronger position than it was over 20 years ago.
He visited the Indiana 9/11 Memorial in Indianapolis on Wednesday and reflected on being in high school during the attacks. He remembered how the seniors at his school held a meeting the day after to discuss the events.
“Everybody was together,” he said. “The united feeling we had for so long after September 11 was so powerful.”
1. Two 11,000-pound beams from the Twin Towers.
Source:WIBC Radio
2. The Indiana 9/11 Memorial
Source:WIBC Radio
3. Jonathan Witham, acting executive director of Indiana Homeland Security
Source:WIBC Radio
4. Nearly 3,000 people were killed in the Sept. 11, 2001 attacks
Source:WIBC Radio
