Media Advisory
September 11th Remembrance
Date: September 11, 2017
Time: 0815 Hrs
Location: RA Long Park/ Civic Circle
Attendance: Open to the Public
Officiating: Cowlitz Chaplaincy -- Chaplain Tom Haan

The City of Longview will be hosting a September 11th Commemoration at RA Long park on the morning of September 11th at 8:15 AM, observing the 16th year remembrance of this tragic day.

City Officials as well as uniformed officers representing Longview Fire and Police Departments will be in attendance and Cowlitz Chaplain Tom Haan will officiate the observance. Local riders from the Patriot Guard will also be in attendance. RA Long Park sits in the heart of Longview's Civic Circle surrounded by historic building such as the Public Library, Post Office, and Monticello Hotel as well as City Hall. There is ample parking in the immediate vicinity and the event is open to the public as well as media.

On September 11th 2001 terms like Nine-Eleven (9/11), Ground Zero, and Never Forget were forged into our consciousness forever. Most American citizens know where they were and what they were doing on this day of infamy that started when American Airlines Flight 11 struck the north tower of the World Trade Center; 17 minutes later the south tower was struck by United Airlines Flight 175. In the aftermath, nearly 3,000 citizen, 343 firefighters, and 72 law enforcement officers perished within the twin tower strikes and subsequent collapses known as Ground Zero.

At the United States Pentagon 64 passengers and crew as well as 125 occupants of the Pentagon perished when American Airline Flight 77 struck the highly fortified West side of the building causing severe structural damage and a large fire.

Forty innocent passengers and crew died when United Airlines Flight 93 was hijacked for a still undetermined plot, crashing in a field in Shanksville, Pennsylvania. During the event, passenger Todd Beamer's last muffled words were captured on an attempted phone call to his family, "Are you ready? Okay. Lets Roll!" Beamers actions are credited to the flight landing where it did, causing not additional injuries or casualties other than the occupants of Flight 93.

This September 11th observance is Longview's way of keeping our pledge to "Never Forget" the events of the day, the losses our country experienced, and the continued effects of those impacted forever.