Return to Transcripts main page

American Morning

9/11: The World Remembers; Hurricane Florence

Aired September 11, 2006 - 07:00   ET

THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.

MILES O'BRIEN, CNN ANCHOR: Good morning. Welcome to a special edition of AMERICAN MORNING. I'm Miles O'Brien.
SOLEDAD O'BRIEN, CNN ANCHOR: And I'm Soledad O'Brien.

On this fifth anniversary of the 9/11 attacks, all morning we'll take a look back at the events of that morning and how those events changed our world five years later.

M. O'BRIEN: We're walking through the time line of that morning, shedding lights on the events we did not know about five years ago at this time, as well as those that are seared into our memory from that day. Right now, five years ago, at Logan Airport, we didn't know it, but two teams of five men, armed with box cutters or knives and mace or pepper spray were making their way to the business and first class seats on American Airlines Flight 11 and United Flight 175, both bound for Los Angeles.

S. O'BRIEN: Neither flight would ever arrive. By the end of this hour, American Airlines Flight 11 would be in the air. There would be no turning back. And at this hour also, the hijackers in Newark, New Jersey, who would take over United Flight 93, were just checking in. At Dulles Airport near Washington, D.C, another group of hijackers making their way toward American Flight 77.

M. O'BRIEN: We have correspondents positioned across the country this morning. Alina Cho live at Ground Zero to bring us the memorial events from there. Barbara Starr live at the Pentagon. She'll tell us how they're remembering the dead there this morning.

S. O'BRIEN: Bob Franken's in Shanksville, Pennsylvania, the site of the crash of United Flight 93. The plane that was brought down by its passengers. There are memorials planned there as well this morning. And John Zarrella live for us in Sarasota, Florida. That's where President Bush was on September 11, 2001. He was visiting an elementary school when he was told of the attacks.

M. O'BRIEN: And Dan Lothian is live in Boston, the point of origin for the planes that brought down the twin towers.

Now 7:02. And at this moment five years ago, the terminals at Boston's Logan International Airport were jammed with some of the hundred thousand or so passengers who traveled through there every day. They were on their way to business meetings or to visit relatives or to take kids to Orlando. Among them, 10 men with a murderous mission on their minds making their way to their first class and business class seats on two 767 airliners. AMERICAN MORNING's Dan Lothian live at Logan this morning.

Dan.

DAN LOTHIAN, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Good morning, Miles.

And I must point out again that we're going live this morning via broadband. Ever since 9/11, the airport restricted where you could set up live equipment and that usually means outside. So this gives us an inside look for the first time live of this terminal where the terrorists were checking in on September 11th five years ago.

The American Airlines counter behind me is where they would have checked in after arriving at the airport on a U.S. Air -- at least two of them on a U.S. Air flight from Portland, Maine. And then to my left is where they would have began the long walk to board that flight. As you were pointing out, unsuspecting passengers, some of them technology CEOs, going about their day, getting ready to go on a flight on a beautiful morning here in Boston.

Miles.

M. O'BRIEN: Dan Lothian at Logan Airport.

The first inkling there was going to be any trouble that day happened about an hour and 15 minutes from this moment when American Airlines 11 stopped talking to air traffic controllers and started making a beeline for New York City and the World Trade Center. Today, on the sacred ground where those towers fell five years ago this morning, they are pausing to remember the people who died. You see their names on the screen below you. They died simply because they came to work. AMERICAN MORNING's Alina Cho live now from Ground Zero.

Alina.

ALINA CHO, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Miles, good morning to you.

As you mentioned, today is a day for the nation to remember what happened five years ago. But it is an especially sad and especially painful day for the families of the victims. Those families have begun to arrive here at Ground Zero.

The ceremony will begin at 8:40 a.m. Eastern Time. There will be four moments of silence, twice to mark the time that each tower was struck, twice to mark the time that each tower fell. There, of course, will be the reading of the names, all 2,749 World Trade Center victims. And this year it will be the spouses, partners and significant others who will read the names.

Now all throughout the morning, the families will be able to descend the ramp to the lowest point at Ground Zero, to the so-called footprints of the towers. There are two small temporary reflecting pools there. The families will be able to lay flowers and pay their respects. The ceremony is expected to conclude at about 12:30 p.m. But, Miles, the site will remain open until 3:00 this afternoon.

M. O'BRIEN: Alina Cho at Ground Zero. Thank you. Soledad.

S. O'BRIEN: The time line of the terror attacks now. At this time five years ago, the fourth team of hijackers was getting into place at Newark's airport. Between 7:03 a.m. and 7:39 a.m., four terrorists check in for United Flight 93 there, bound for San Francisco. Three hours later, after a heroic struggle by the passengers on board, Flight 93 would crash in a field in Shanksville, Pennsylvania.

We'll continue our special coverage of the fifth year anniversary of 9/11 in just a moment. First, though, a look at some of the other stories that are making the news right now. Carol Costello's live for us in the newsroom.

Hey, Carol, good morning.

CAROL COSTELLO, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Good morning, Soledad.

And good morning to all of you.

Maybe we should have expected this. There is a new warning from Osama bin Laden's top deputy. In a videotape statement on an Islamic website, Ayman al-Zawahiri warns that "new events are on the way." The tape appears to be recent, with references to the fighting between Israel and Hezbollah.

Afghan President Hamid Karzai is paying tribute to the United States. He shared a message of solidarity today and spoke of America's sacrifices in liberating and rebuilding Afghanistan. Karzai says it's regrettable that it took 9/11 for the world to recognize the threat posed by terrorism.

The former president of Iran is condemning Osama bin Laden. In a speech last night at Harvard University, Mohammad Khatami described the 9/11 attacks as barbaric, but he defended Hezbollah, describing the group's actions as resistance against Israeli colonialism.

In Iraq today, a suicide bomber wearing a vest with explosives detonated a bomb on board a bus in northern Baghdad. At least 10 Iraqi army recruits are dead, three civilians wounded. The attack took place just outside of an Iraqi army recruiting center.

Saddam Hussein back in court this morning for the first time in almost three weeks. It's still his second trial. In this one he's charged in connection with the deaths of tens of thousands of Kurds in the 1980s.

Some of the first images of the space shuttle Atlantis to show you this morning. It docked at the International Space Station just about 20 minutes ago. I know this is a confusing picture. But what the shuttle is doing is flipping over on its backside, attaching itself into the International Space Station, and then those aboard the Space Station will take pictures of the underbelly to see if everything's OK and if the shuttle was damaged during liftoff. The Atlantis crew also is delivering equipment to help complete construction of the Space Station. After many delays, Atlantis lifted off Saturday from the Kennedy Space Center.

A bit of relief for drivers, and I'm sure you've noticed this, gas prices are going down. According to the Lundberg Survey, the national average is now $2.66 a gallon for self-serve regular. That's 21 cents less than two weeks ago and a 35-cent drop over the past year. Lower demand and a drop in crude oil prices are helping.

Hurricane Florence weakening a bit as it heads for Bermuda. Severe weather expert Chad Myers is here to tell us more.

Good morning.

CHAD MYERS, CNN METEOROLOGIST: Hi, Carol.

Winds are down a little bit, especially the flight level winds where the planes have been flying. Down in the 86 mile per hour category. But winds are still 80, gusts to 100 miles per hour there. The storm is still very significant. Not quite getting an eye wall. The center about 60 miles, missing Bermuda, and that's great news because it didn't make a run right over the top of it.

A cold morning. Montreal, Toronto, and Albany, temperatures up here across the northeast in the 40s.

Soledad.

S. O'BRIEN: All right, Chad, thanks.

AMERICAN MORNING's coverage of the fifth anniversary of the 9/11 attacks continues in just a moment. Stay with us.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

M. O'BRIEN: The hijackers knew their plan would succeed only if it was carefully synchronized. The four flights they selected were supposed to take off between 7:45 and 8:10 that morning. Three of them took off within 15 minutes of their scheduled departure time. But five years ago at Newark, United Flight 93 was running much later, delayed by traffic, and that set the stage for a mid air struggle that ended in Shanksville, Pennsylvania. And that's where we find AMERICAN MORNING's Bob Franken this morning.

Bob.

BOB FRANKEN, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Miles, it ended at the site you can see over my left shoulder marked by the American flag. That is where United Flight 93 crashed into the earth and nearly vaporized after a heroic fight on board. Now there were witnesses to this tragedy. As it was happening, Rick King (ph), a volunteer fireman, had gotten a call from his sister. She heard an airplane. So what he witnessed next he will never forget.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

RICK KING, PENNSYLVANIA VOLUNTEER FIREMAN: I walked out on to my front porch. And as soon as I walked out, I could hear the plane. I could hear the engines screaming. The whining noise. Seconds later, it hit. You know, this huge fireball just went up into the sky. Just right here above the church. A big black mushroom cloud of smoke. My whole porch, the house just rumbled and just shook. And she said to me, oh, my God, Rick, it crashed. And I said, I know, I've got to go.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

FRANKEN: So what happened next made Shanksville, so far out of the way, have its place in history.

Miles.

M. O'BRIEN: Bob Franken in Shanksville. Thank you very much.

Soledad.

S. O'BRIEN: While the terrorists were carrying out their plans, President Bush, on this day, was headed to an elementary school classroom in Sarasota, Florida. CNN's John Zarrella is live for us in Sarasota this morning.

Good morning, John.

JOHN ZARRELLA, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Good morning, Soledad.

That's right, the president was coming here to Emma E. Booker Elementary School to deliver an address, a speech, on education. The importance of education. He was actually sitting right over there, just in front of that dry erase board, and it was about 9:00 a.m. He already knew at that point that the first plane had hit the towers.

At about 9:05 a.m., 9:06 a.m., just before the students were to read, his chief of staff, Andrew Card, came over to him and whispered in his ear that a second plane had hit. The president's demeanor immediately changed.

At that point, the students picked up this book, this, the storybook number one reader, and began to read a story called "The Pet Goat." It took a couple of moments before the president picked up the book and began to read himself. Within 20 minutes, the president excused himself from the classroom and went to an area that was already set up for him to deliver a message about education. Of course, that's not the message that he delivered.

This morning, these students will hear a taped message from the president that will address education, finally.

Soledad.

S. O'BRIEN: John Zarrella for us in Sarasota, Florida, this morning.

Thanks, John.

Miles. M. O'BRIEN: Now almost quarter after seven, five years ago today, at Washington's Dulles Airport, a team of five hijackers, led by Hani Hanjour, checked in at the American Airlines ticket counter for Flight 77 bound for Los Angeles. Now the agent was suspicious because one of the men did not have a photo I.D. and three of them were flagged by a computerized screening system. The only consequence of this, their bags were held off the plane until they took their seats.

The first two would check in at about this time, three more would follow in the next 20 minutes. And just about one hour after that, this flight would crash into the Pentagon. And that is where we find our Barbara Starr this morning.

Barbara.

BARBARA STARR, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Good morning to you, Miles.

It was a beautiful day in Washington, D.C., five years ago. A morning of spectacular weather. At this hour, at the Pentagon five years ago, it was just another workday. Defense Secretary Donald Rumsfeld already was in his first round of morning meetings. The Pentagon was up and running.

Of course, for the Pentagon press corps, we were inside the building. We were at work as well. Watching and stunned, of course, like the country, when the World Trade Center was attacked and beginning to cover that story very rapidly. But then within minutes, of course, Flight 77 crashed into the Pentagon wall that you see behind me and everything changed at that point. Twenty to 25,000 people immediately evacuating the building, coming out of all doors, all exits in the building. And it was very clear at that point, Miles, the country was at war.

M. O'BRIEN: Barbara Starr at the Pentagon. Thank you very much.

Soledad.

S. O'BRIEN: Ahead this morning, as the world remembers 9/11, we're going to take you live to the New York Stock Exchange to take a look at the impact the terror attacks had on the financial world.

First, though, listen to Pat LaPinskey (ph). Her husband, Robert, was working in the Pentagon. Their last conversation was at this hour five years ago, right after the World Trade Center was hit.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

M. O'BRIEN: On this day five years ago, the New York City Fire Department lost 343 firefighters at what became Ground Zero. The fire commissioner at the time, Thomas Von Essen, describes the chaos and heroism on that day in an autobiography entitled "Strong of Heart." Mr. Von Essen joins us now from Ground Zero.

Good to have you with us, sir. Thank you for being with us on this day. What are your thoughts at this moment? THOMAS VON ESSEN, NYFD COMMISSIONER ON 9/11: Oh, it just brings back so many memories, you know, sitting up here and looking at this site. And I think of the chaos that day and the heartache that came that morning and for months and months and still today. It's horrible memories for an awful lot of people.

M. O'BRIEN: All right, 7:20 in the morning now five years ago, where were you and how did you find out about everything?

VON ESSEN: I live in the city, so I was still asleep actually. I got up late, on my way to work, on my way to go across the Brooklyn Bridge just as the plane crashed into the building. And I got there in about a couple minutes right after the crash.

M. O'BRIEN: And at that point what was going through your mind? I mean, obviously, you knew this was a significant event. You had a plane crash into the tower, but you had no idea what lie ahead.

VON ESSEN: No, you're right. It was significant. We knew we'd have a tremendous fire. The chiefs in the lobby had reports of a small plane hitting, and then they had reports of an awful lot of fire and communication breakdowns and system breakdowns with sprinklers and everything else on the upper floors. So it grew very quickly into a tremendous operation.

And then we heard an explosion. We thought it was up on the upper floors, but it was the south tower being hit. That changed everything. They called the second fifth alarm. We split our top people. Units came from everywhere, not knowing which building even to go into. A lot of firefighters had never been to the Trade Center, didn't know which building was north or south, one or two. So we had some mess that day, that's for sure.

M. O'BRIEN: In a sense, was there too much of a response? In other words, all these people, all these firefighters who wanting to do well came out of the woodwork, made it difficult to martial the forces.

VON ESSEN: Well, you're right. In some ways it was. But, you know, you don't know that. When you set up these plans and these procedures in place, you might need all those people to put smaller fires out. To be able to get firefighters upstairs so they can move doors that have shifted because of the impact and now people are trapped behind them because smaller fires might have opened up or began on a lot of the other floors. So you don't know that.

If the stairway were wider, would have certainly would have helped an evacuation. Could we have sent less people up? Probably. But, you know, we had 100 guys that weren't even working that we lost that day. The dedication -- that type of dedication, I mean, every employee would want that type of person working for them. These guys just couldn't do enough to help and paid the price.

M. O'BRIEN: They did. They paid a terrible price. The 9/11 Commission report goes on and on about communication and the radio system and the inability, particularly after the south tower fell, to get word to your people in the north tower that it was time to get out quickly. What do you say about that today and what has changed today for FDNY?

VON ESSEN: Well, not that much as far as radios. They've improved the radios. They made some improvements. The chiefs have bigger, more powerful radios to use amongst themselves. There are more repeaters that should hopefully work if we have anything of that magnitude.

But you will always have radio problems with an operation like that. The debris fields, the interference, the operational discipline problems that you'll have with everybody trying to talk on the radio. The tapes have shown that the radios worked that day. They didn't work as well as you would want them to work and there were people that didn't get the word. But there was an awful lot of people that did get the word but were so busy trying to help others, trying to rescue that they didn't make it out in time.

M. O'BRIEN: So basically, though, you have basically the same old system, the same old analog, six-channel system that you've always had, beefed up in some ways. Do you think that in the 21st century perhaps the FDNY, particularly given the environment they fight fires in, should have something better?

VON ESSEN: Oh, I think so. But, you know, that comes with a whole new package. We had brought digital radios in, you know, six months, coincidentally, before September 11th. We had a lot of problems with them. We were picking up -- they were great in a high- rise building, but they were picking up signals from across the river in a different burrow because they were so strong. It's hard to find a perfect radio that will function for you in a two-story wooden building in Queens and in a sub basement, in a warehouse, in a factory, at the airport, on the river. So it's hard to find a perfect radio. It takes a lot of training. Get different -- maybe equipment, more training using different channels. It's just complicated.

M. O'BRIEN: Thomas von Essen is the former FDNY commissioner who was there on that day.

Thank you for your time.

VON ESSEN: Thank you, Miles.

M. O'BRIEN: The 9/11 attacks shook the business world, of course. Andy Serwer is on the floor of the New York Stock Exchange now with more.

Hello, Andy.

ANDY SERWER, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Hello, Miles. Good morning to you.

Trading begins here in a little bit over two hours. It certainly will be an emotional morning. With me right now is Ted Weisberg, who is the CEO of Seaport Securities and a veteran of the New York Stock Exchange. Been down here for more than 30 years. And, Ted, I'm sure you remember very, very clearly that day five years ago. What was your morning like? Can you tell us?

TED WEISBERG, PRESIDENT, SEAPORT SECURITIES: Well, absolutely. Our offices were at 60 Broad Street, just a block down from the exchange. And I was in my -- we've got this beautiful view of lower Manhattan. It was a crystal clear day. One of the prettiest days I can remember since then having ever seen.

And I was on the phone talking with friends in Europe and they were watching TV. I didn't have the TV on. And they said a plane had just hit the World Trade Center. And I said, you're kidding. And then, of course, it all unfolded.

And I work with my son and daughter. My son was on the trading floor. And we went downstairs. And the sky was just raining paper. People were running around really sort of hysterical. Nobody really knew what was going on.

And then eventually, when the World Trade Centers collapsed, this giant dust cloud came through the canyons of Wall Street and engulfed everybody, including most of the members of my firm. We were luckily all safe, but on the street. And then we just proceed to find our way out of lower Manhattan, up to midtown Manhattan.

SERWER: Right. OK. Well, Ted, it must bring back a lot of memories standing here today. And we're going to have to see how trading goes.

Miles, back to you.

M. O'BRIEN: Andy Serwer on the floor of the New York Stock Exchange. Thank you.

This special edition of AMERICAN MORNING back in a moment.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

S. O'BRIEN: September 11th, five years later.

As the sun came up on the East Coast, a daring plot against America was already well underway. In Boston, in Newark, New Jersey, and in Washington, D.C., jet liners loaded with fuel were ready for takeoff and our world was about to change forever.

M. O'BRIEN: Good morning, again, everyone. Welcome back to a special edition of AMERICAN MORNING.

Today we mark the fifth anniversary of the 9/11 attacks. We're walking through that morning for you, marking the milestones of that day. Those we remember from five years ago and those we learned much later.

S. O'BRIEN: Before the end of this hour, we'll highlight one of the most important points in the timeline, the point really of no return. Within 30 minutes from now, on September 11, 2001, American Airlines flight 11 was in the air, left Boston at 7:59 a.m. It was bound for Los Angeles.

Our special coverage is going to continue in just a moment. First, though, we want to look at stories making the news right now.

Carol's got that. She's live in the newsroom.

Hey, Carol.

CAROL COSTELLO, CNN ANCHOR: Good morning, Soledad. Good morning to all of you. President Bush will address the nation tonight from the White House. Right now, though, he's in Lower Manhattan for a prayer breakfast at a local fire station.

CNN's Suzanne Malveaux is traveling with the president.

Suzanne, what's on the president's agenda today?

SUZANNE MALVEAUX, CNN WHITE HOUSE CORRESPONDENT: Good morning, Carol.

Of course the president is going to be spending the morning at the fire house, fire house ladder 18, with the brave men and women who immediately responded after the September 11th attacks. He's going to be sharing a breakfast as well as marking the moments of silence at 8:46 and 9:03 when the planes hit the Towers. Then the president will be traveling to Shanksville, Pennsylvania and the Pentagon for wreath laying ceremonies before he addresses the nation at 9:00 this evening from the Oval Office.

Now it was just yesterday that President Bush and the first lady were here at Ground Zero. This is where they laid the wreaths at what are called the footprints of the North and South Towers, the reflecting pools where those buildings once stood.

He also attended a prayer service at St. Paul's Chapel, a very important place for many New Yorkers, police men, firefighters, volunteers, who used that church as a place of refuge in the days and the months immediately following those September 11th attacks.

Now the White House and the administration, of course, is engaged in a very delicate balancing act here. They say it is a time of reflection, remembrance, that this not an occasion to be politicized. President Bush making comments yesterday.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

GEORGE W. BUSH, PRES. OF THE UNITED STATES: Laura and I approach tomorrow with a heavy heart. It's hard not to think about the people who lost their lives on September 11th, 2001. You know, you see the relatives of those who still grieve, and I just wish there was some way, you know, we could make them whole.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

MALVEAUX: Again, administration officials really emphasizing here now is not the time to politicize these events. But of course with midterm elections just two months away, there has been political undertones. The president and White House engaged in an aggressive public relations campaign to try to convince Americans that they are safer five years after that tragic event -- Carol.

COSTELLO: All right, Suzanne Malveaux, reporting live from Ground Zero this morning.

Of course, CNN will have live coverage of the president's address. That begins tonight at 9:00 Eastern.

(NEWSBREAK)

(WEATHER REPORT)

S. O'BRIEN: Remember what a beautiful day it was on September 11, 2001? It was a beautiful day. Everybody who was in New York City that day remembers just what a perfect, clear day it was.

Today our special edition of AMERICAN MORNING is going to continue as the world remembers the attacks of September 11th five years ago today.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

S. O'BRIEN: Welcome back, everybody.

At this time five years ago, Mohammed Atta and his four accomplices were in their seats in the first-class and business sections of American Airlines flight 11. They'd be airborne in about 30 minutes and headed for the North Tower of the World Trade Center.

New York Governor George Pataki was in New York City that morning. He's at Ground Zero this morning.

Nice to see you, governor. Thanks for talking with us.

GOV. GEORGE PATAKI, NEW YORK: Good morning. Soledad. Nice being on with you.

S. O'BRIEN: Thank you very much.

What were you doing in New York City that morning? Where were you?

PATAKI: Well, I happened to be in my office, and my daughter called me and said, dad, turn on the TV, a plane just had hit one of the Towers. So I turned on the television, and it was an unbelievably beautiful day, and it was incomprehensible how that could have happened. And then I saw, as so many others did, the second plane hit the second tower, and knew right away that we were under attack.

S. O'BRIEN: At that point you realized it was a terror attack. What did you do?

PATAKI: Well, first I mobilized our National Guard. We had -- I called them, created a 24-hour emergency command center, moved National Guard units into New York City, activated our emergency health-response system across the state. And then I spoke with Mayor Giuliani and asked him if there was additional support I could do to help him.

And then I called President Bush in Florida. He was at the education summit, and asked him to shutdown the air space over New York, because, as you might recall, no one knew what might happen next. We knew that two Towers has been hit. We knew that the plane in Shanksville had gone down, and later on the Pentagon was hit. And there were a lot of concerns that there would be follow-up attacks, but thank god that didn't happen.

S. O'BRIEN: Yes, I remember, It was like waiting for the other shoe to fall, just sort of all of us sitting and waiting.

Let me ask you a question about Ground Zero, which is really very much where you are this morning. It would be such a nice memorial to the people who lost their lives, the nearly 3,000 people who lost their lives, to have something in that big hole that's Ground Zero. Why has the progress not been fast there? Who do you blame for that?

PATAKI: Well, Soledad, some say we should be going much faster. There are others who are saying we're going too fast. And to me, all of that site is sacred ground. It honors the memory of the almost 3,000 heroes who died. So the most important thing is do it right, and not do it right for today, but do it right for future decades and future generations, and that is what happened.

We've had a very broad public process. Instead of building a building here or a building there, we wanted to have a master site plan, so we could have a coordinated development of the entire site. And we had a public process, architects from around the globe, and 10 million people hit on the Internet sites that laid out those plans. And once that brilliant Libeskind master site plan was picked, we knew the cornerstone, the centerpiece, had to be a memorial. We weren't going to build on the footprints of the Towers; we were going to keep them as voids, and now they'll be reflecting pools with the names of every hero around them.

But we had a public process for that as well. More than 5,000 entries into the memorial design competition, because what we want is something that future generations look here and come here, and they're going to say that they did it right. They did it respectfully with the memorial telling the story of the heroes who died.

But then at the same time you're going to see new offices rising and culminating in the Freedom Tower, 1,776 feet high, which will symbolize our freedom, symbolize the year of our independence. And I'm just very excited about what this site will mean to not just those of us today, but to future generations.

S. O'BRIEN: New York Governor George Pataki joining us this morning. Thank you, governor.

PATAKI: Thank you, Soledad.

S. O'BRIEN: A short break. We're back in a moment.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

M. O'BRIEN: Now about 7:45, only 14 minutes until American flight 11 would be airborne five years ago, 28 minutes until United 175 would takeoff. Those planes, loaded with fuel for a transcontinental journey, would be commandeered quickly and head straight for New York, where it was primary day.

And our next guest was probably thinking more about politics than anything else at this hour. What a difference an hour can make. Former Mayor Rudy Giuliani from St. Paul's Chapel here in New York City.

Mr. Mayor, good to have you back with us.

RUDY GIULIANI, NYC MAYOR ON 9/11: How are you, Miles?

M. O'BRIEN: I'm fine.

Where were you that morning about this time?

GIULIANI: Well, the morning -- at this time I was probably on my way to the Peninsula Hotel to have breakfast with two friends of mine, Bill Simon and Denny Young. And you're right, we were going to talk about politics that morning. Bill was considering running for governor of California. We had a discussion about old times, about politics. It was primary day. I expected it to be kind of a quiet day until late afternoon, early evening. And then we were interrupted and told that a twin-engine plane had hit the North Tower, and that there was a terrible fire down at the World Trade Center. And we rushed down here, and, of course, it was much worse than that; it was the worst attack in the history of our country that was going on.

M. O'BRIEN: So when you first looked up at that tower and saw it in smoke, what went through your mind?

GIULIANI: The first thing I thought as I was about four miles away at that point, maybe three miles away, looking up in my car, and I could see that the fire was much worse than a twin-engine plane. So right away, the process began that this was much worse than it was originally described.

And then I was about a mile away, The second plane hit, we saw that explosion, and we rushed here, walked about two blocks from here, right below the North Tower. And that's when I saw the tremendous planes, and I saw people throwing themselves out of buildings, a man throwing himself out from the 101st, 102nd floor. And, you know, it was way beyond anything we had ever had. We've had all kinds of emergencies in New York, but we've never had one at this dimension, at this scope.

M. O'BRIEN: Yes, and when you see something like that, I mean, you almost can't even process it in realtime, can you?

GIULIANI: No, you can't. Actually, that's exactly correct. You can't process it in realtime, so what you do is you try to focus on what is it that I can do to deal with it? What are the immediate decisions? Closing the bridges and tunnels so no more terrorists can get in, Evacuating a couple hundred thousand people, moving them north and off the island as much as possible, trying to cover -- we thought we were going to get attacked seven, eight times that day. We had gotten information from the White House that there were seven to 10 planes that were unaccounted for. So we tried to immediately covered what we thought the other targets would be, the Empire State Building, Pennsylvania Station, Grand Central Station. We had to triage the hospitals to move people out of -- so you just go into the process of making decisions.

Then we got trapped in a building here for about 15 minutes, which is basically right over my shoulder to the left here. And then we got out of there. We had to communicate with the public, set up a new command center. Governor Pataki and I put a joint command center together.

So you get yourself into the decisions that have to be made, and then every once in a while as you're watching it and seeing it, you say to yourself, I can't believe this is really going on. This is something that is like worse than a battle; it's a horrific attack during a battle, I guess.

M. O'BRIEN: Just a final quick question. The 9/11 Commission Report, which delves into how the response on all levels, from all levels of government, only half of the 41 recommendations have been implemented. Is that a disappointment to you?

GIULIANI: Well, I thought the recommendations, almost all of them -- I can't say I agree with every single one, but I thought almost all of them were good ones and needed to be responded to. I mean, sure, you'd like to see more progress.

I think the best answer you can give quickly is we're safer than we were before September 11th, or on September 11th, but we're not as safe as we could be, and nobody's satisfied with the progress. You'd like to see even more.

But we've done a lot. I mean, the airports are safer. Look at what happened in London a couple weeks ago. Intelligence services, including our own, have picked up a lot of these plots. We've made progress in creating governments in Iraq and Afghanistan, even though there's a lot of work that needs to be done there.

So a lot of things have been accomplished, and there's a tremendous amount that remains to be done. And we have to remind ourselves, the attacks are not over. These people that attacked us on September 11th want to come here and attack us again. So this is an ongoing struggle, and there'll always be a lot more to be done.

M. O'BRIEN: We'll leave it at that. Thank you, Rudy Giuliani.

GIULIANI: Thank you very much.

M. O'BRIEN: Soledad. S. O'BRIEN: Five years ago today, Diane Defontes was a receptionist for a law firm on the 89th floor of the North Tower of the World Trade Center. After the tower was struck, Diane began her long journey to safety, walking down all 89 flights of steps. She's with us this morning.

It's nice to see you. Thanks for talking with us.

DIANNE DEFONTES, WORLD TRADE CENTER SURVIVOR: Good morning.

S. O'BRIEN: I noticed you watching very intently and nodding your head when you were looking at some of the pictures we were rolling as the former mayor, Rudy Giuliani, was talking. Is today very painful for you? Is this a day you just like to pass by?

DEFONTES: No, it's not, because -- and it's not something that I can pass by. Because this day, I relive it every day, and I remember most of the things that happened to me that day every day.

S. O'BRIEN: At the time, the World Trade Centers were first about to be struck, you were in the office, doing what you always do, making coffee, getting everything ready for some of your bosses and some of the employees to come in.

DEFONTES: It was a beautiful day.

S. O'BRIEN: It was a gorgeous day, remember that?

DEFONTES: Very much.

S. O'BRIEN: It was just a perfect crystal-clear fall morning.

DEFONTES: Yes.

S. O'BRIEN: What did the impact feel like?

DEFONTES: I had never felt anything like that before, and I know that when the plane hit, I was knocked out of my chair. And the conference room that is next to my desk, the ceiling collapsed, and I wondered, what could possibly be happening, and how did they get a bomb up this high?

S. O'BRIEN: So you automatically thought someone had planted a bomb?

DEFONTES: Yes, I did. I did.

S. O'BRIEN: How did you get out?

DEFONTES: Well, I didn't know it at the time, but the exit to the floor that we were on was closed by the impact of the plane.

S. O'BRIEN: Slammed shut.

DEFONTES: Yes, stuck. And two people had to come and break down that door in order for us to get out of the -- off that floor. S. O'BRIEN: A number of people started coming into your area. And what they had seen -- I guess from their faces, you could tell just how bad it was.

DEFONTES: Their faces were black, and they told me that they had seen a plane hit the building and that their office had been set on fire. And it was so unbelievable because I felt the impact, but our office, no windows were broken.

S. O'BRIEN: It was fine.

DEFONTES: Except for this fallen ceiling and the front doorway, everything seemed like nothing had happened.

S. O'BRIEN: You started to walk down the flight of stairs. And it took a long time.

DEFONTES: It took a long time. I couldn't tell you exactly how much time, but it took a long time.

S. O'BRIEN: There's a point when the South Tower collapses. What did that feel like?

DEFONTES: We were -- I remember there were lots of people in the stairway. We were walking down, and we were talking to each other. It wasn't -- no one was...

S. O'BRIEN: It wasn't panic.

DEFONTES: No, there was no panic. And then the stairs rumbled, the lights flickered, and the floor and the stairway shook, and no one moved, and it was silent until the rumbling stopped. And then from then on, no one said anything; it was quiet.

S. O'BRIEN: Until you got down to the bottom.

There was a point when the stairs sort of collapsed around you and you were alone.

DEFONTES: I was -- I could not believe that it happened to me. We were all going down the stairs. I hear someone say the ceiling's collapsing, the ceiling's collapsing. The people who were in front of me went down the stairs immediately. The people in back of me went up the stairs. And for a few seconds, I was on the stairway by myself, and I didn't know if I should go down or if I should go up, and then finally someone who was above me called to me and said come this way.

S. O'BRIEN: In some ways, maybe that person saved your life. Do you ever want to go back and find the people every step of the way sort of guided you?

DEFONTES: There were so many people that I wish that I knew every one of them, and I know that some of them didn't live, but the ones that are alive, I'd love to give them a great big hug and say thank you.

S. O'BRIEN: Dianne Defontes, it's nice to talk to you.

DEFONTES: Thank you.

S. O'BRIEN: Thanks for talking with us this morning. We appreciate it.

We've got a short break. We're back in a moment.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

M. O'BRIEN: It's now about 7:59, a little before that. But five years ago just about this moment, American Airlines flight 11, 81 passengers, five of them hijackers, and 11 crew aboard, rolled down the runway at Boston's Logan Airport and became airborne. The final stage of the plan was now in motion. The last routine radio communication from the cockpit would come in about 15 minutes. Mohamed Atta and the others wasted no time getting to work and turning the plane into a guided missile aimed at the World Trade Center.

S. O'BRIEN: The first attack certainly got the attention of Melody Homer. Her husband Leroy Homer was the copilot of United flight 93, the plane that would crash in Shanksville, Pennsylvania. A wife and mother of a small child, her day on September 11, 2001 began as any other day would, said good-bye to Leroy as he headed to the airport to begin work.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

S. O'BRIEN (on camera): It's been five years since September 11th. Does it feel like five years, or does it feel like yesterday?

MELODIE HOMER, WIDOW, UNITED 93 COPILOT: It feels like, you know, how could I have survived five whole years, because I didn't think I could survive day one.

S. O'BRIEN (voice-over): Melodie Homer began that day by taking her 10-month-old daughter, Laurel, to daycare. She came home, put on the TV, and then watched confused, as news of the airplane hijackings appeared on the screen.

HOMER: And immediately I thought about Leroy.

S. O'BRIEN: She knew her husband, Leroy Homer, a United Airlines pilot, was flying that day. But based on the flight schedule, she was sure his plane was far from the New York an D.C. areas. It wasn't.

HOMER: People were calling back and forth, but then my friend from California called. He said, I think that was Leroy's flight. I saw it on CNN. And I, you know, immediately I just remember yelling at him to take it back, and hitting the kitchen window and just yelling at him to take it back. And it came across the screen.

JUDY WOODRUFF, FMR. CNN ANCHOR: I'm now told that United Airlines is now saying that flight -- can you tell me the number of the flight -- 93 has crashed in Pennsylvania. S. O'BRIEN: Leroy was the copilot of United Flight 93. The airline had been hijacked. It was believed to be headed for the Capitol or the White House. The hijackers were defeated by unarmed passengers and crew members, who'd been alerted about the other attacks. The plane crashed in Shanksville, Pennsylvania, and left no survivors.

HOMER: We had it all figured out, you know, we had it all figured out, and then it was like somebody took a big eraser and just erased everything.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

S. O'BRIEN: In his memory, Melody's created a fund, a Leroy W. Homer foundation, where young people can learn to fly. You can find it at leroywhomerjr.org.

TO ORDER A VIDEO OF THIS TRANSCRIPT, PLEASE CALL 800-CNN-NEWS OR USE OUR SECURE ONLINE ORDER FORM LOCATED AT www.fdch.com