Both World Trade Center Towers collapse following terrorist attack

Panic spread around world trade centres as Canary Wharf, City Bank and the London Stock Exchange were evacuated following the collapse of the World Trade Centre Twin Towers following plane strikes.

At around 8:50am EST the 1,360ft Southern World Trade Centre tower collapsed followed around half-an-hour later by the Northern Tower that shared a common base with its twin.

Pandemonium hit New York streets as the two hijacked planes smashed into the buildings as workers were beginning to fill the buildings which house up to 20,000 workers.

The Southern World Trade Centre tower collapsed less than an hour after it was struck and set on fire when a hijacked twin-engined airliner tore through the middle of the building in a ball of fire. The Northern Tower had earlier been struck and set on fire on the 80th floor by a smaller hijacked plane. Hundreds of rescue and emergeny personnel, New York firemen, police officers and paramedics, responding to the fire in the tower are feared to have perished when the building collapsed.

When the huge 11O-storey South Tower of the World Trade Centre collapsed it was already well ablaze. Just prior to the collapse horrific scenes unfolded as eyewitnesses reported people leaping from the blazing building.

Weakened by the fire raging in the heart of the stricken tower, the damaged floors of the huge building gave way as the weight of the blazing upper floors crashed through the lower floors down to street level.

The Northern Trade Centre Tower was already ablaze following an earlier strike by a smaller aircraft. It was continuing to burn as emergency services arrived at the scene of the devastation caused by the collapse of the South Tower. This tower also collapsed with an unknown loss of life.

The Pentagon was also hit and set on fire when a third hijacked airliner crashed close to the heart of the military centre in Washington DC. It is thought that up to 800 people may have died in the attack.

British Prime Minister Tony Blair abandoned his scheduled speech at the TUC conference to express his sympathy: “In the past hour we have just received news of a terrible and shocking event in the United States which involved two hijacked planes being flown deliberately in the World Trade Centre. We can only imagine the terror and the carnage there, and the many, many innocent people who have lost their lives.

“I hope you would join with me in sending our condolences to the people of America and to President Bush from the British people. This mass terrorism is the new evil in our world perpetrated by fanatics who are utterly indifferent to the sanctity of human life. All democratic countries must unite to eradicate this evil from our world.”

Politicians in Northern Ireland have also condemned the attacks. Acting First and Deputy First Minister Sir Reg Empey and Séamus Mallon said: “As a society that has suffered from the effects of terrorism for over 30 years, we have some recognition and understanding of the hurt being felt by the American people.

“It is hard to comprehend what could motivate anyone to cause such misery, destruction and deliberate loss of human life. Our thoughts are with the Government and the people of the United States at this distressing time.”

Over 20 hours after the attacks, as recue teams sift through the debris, it has yet to be established which terrorist group is responsible for theses orchestrated attacks against America. (SP/AMcE)