their day today in service to others. join us for abc-7 news at 6:00. and that does it here at abc-7 news at 5:00. thanks for joining us. we leave you with a live look at the tribute in light in new york city. captioned by closed captioning services inc. this is a special edition of "world news," america remembers. ten years later, two presidents, side by side. a nation resilient, remembering, reuniting. ten years after that moment we all knew this was not an accident. >> oh, my god. >> i just saw another plane. >> watch powerless. it's a horror. >> a decade later, ground zero reimagined.

tonight, the extraordinary moment. families invited in for the first time, finding the names of their loved ones. the children, tracing the names with their fingertips. so many now grown up. >> i wish my dad had been there to teach me how to drive, ask a girl out on a date. and tonight, the survivors from the twin towers and the pentagon. ten years later, what we never knew. what they really saw through those windows. the flash of blue that kept a group of firefighters going. and as a nation looks forward tonight, so do we, taking you straight up to the top of one world trade center. what will now be the largest skyscraper in the western hemisphere. from new york to washington to shanksville, "world news" starts now. and good evening on this september 11th. ten years later, we are a nation looking forward after a day, after a decade of looking back. on this anniversary, we all watched as a corner was turned,

ground zero, reimagined, now openededas families were invited in for the first time to see the names of their lovov ones etched into the side of those giant reflecting pools they have now replaced the craters left by the twin towers. the children, right there with their small camera. the boy determined to take home the name of his loved one. the names, by the e y, etched in bronze. family members will be able to read and touch them year round. the bronze is temperature controlled, cool to the touch in the summer and warm to the touch in theheinter. there were so many powerful images today, , d they began unfolding this morning, at the same time that morning changed our country ten years ago. they entered ground zero together. president obama and president bush and the first ladies. a sign of solidarity, much likik what this nation saw in the hours and days after 9/11. when all of the world watched that cruel plot unfold. >> good morning america, how nice to see all of you. i'm charles gibson. >> i'm diane sawyer. it's tuesday, september 11th, 2001.

>> reporter: 8:46 that morning. >> we just got a report in, there's been some sort of explosion at the world trade center in new york city. >> reporter: 9:03. >> does not appear there's any kind of an effort up there yet. oh, my god. >> my god. >> that looks like a second plane. >> that just exploded. >> i just saw another plain plane coming in from the side. ohohthis is -- terrifying. awful. >> to watch powerless. it's a horror. >> reporter: 9:37, and this time, washington. >> we now have fire confirmed at the pentagon. >> reporter: 22 minutes later. >> you can see the firemen assembled here, the police officers, fbi agents. and you can see the two towers -- a huge explosion now, raining debris on all of us. we better get out of the way. >> the second building has just completely collapsed. >> the whole building has collapsed? >> the building has collapsed. >> we're talking about massive

casualties here at the moment. >> reporter: 10:03, flight 93 crashing in shanksville, pennsylvania. >> a large plane has now crashed. >> reporter: 10:28, 102 minutes after that first plane hit, the second of the two towers falls. >> oh, my god. both trade towers, where thousands of people work on this day, tuesday, have now been attacked and destroyed. and -- if you're a parent, you have a kid in some other part of the country, call them up. >> reporter: but ten years later, a nation, resilient and reuniting. this morning, at what new york's mayor hopes will no longer be called ground zero, instead, a memorial. ten years in the making. the sunrise, the blue skies so much like that morning. but today, a determination to mark a new beginning. the waterfalls that now fill the craters left by those towers.

the largest man made waterfalls in the world. this morning, moments of silence. at each one of those key times, those moments we'll never forget. and the names read by family members, the victims from 93 different countries. and the president, ten years later, speaking behind bulletproof glass. >> god is our refuge and strength. >> reporter: there was the boy who lost his dad in the world trade center, one of the many trying to help others escape. that boy, now a young man. >> i wish my dad hadadeen there to teach me how to drive, ask a girl out on a date and see me graduate from high school. i hope that i can make my father proud of the young men that my brother and i have become. i miss you so much, dad. >> reporter: and then, the extraordinary moment. the families allowed in for the first time, seeing the pools and seeing their loved one's names etched in bronze. putting their hands to the names. the children using their

fingertips to trace the names. the hugs, so many of them. there was betty ann ong's family and the two roses. she was the flight attendant on flight 11 calling into operations to say, "i think we're getting hijacked." the endless etching today. children, determined to take those names home with them. and there was the girl who simply put her head down. at the pentagon today, another service. remembering the 184 killed on board that flight and inside the pentagon. and in shanksville, pennsylvania, and to that valiant team on board flight 93, who could forget, "let's roll," and the cell phone calls from inside that plane. >> please tell my children that i love them very much and i'm so sorry, babe. i don't know what to say. there's three guys, , ey hijacked the plane. i'm trying to be calm. we're turned around and i've heard that there's planes that's been flown into the world trade center. i hope to be able to see your face again, baby.

i love you. good-bye. >> reporter: today, we heard the young voices, bringing comfort to that unforgotten field. while back in new york, paul simon, who said after 9/11, he wasn't s sure he could ever make an album again, came back, ten years later. ♪ and the vision that was planted in my brain ♪ ♪ still remains ♪ within the sound of silence ♪ >> so many people embracing at a transformed ground zero today. as soon as tomorrow, the memorial at ground zero will be en to the public. free tickets will be issued. but only 1,500 people allowed in at a time to protect the sanctity of the memorial. as you all know, we went

into this weekend with security very tight here in new york and washington, and really across the country, after word of that possible al qaeda threat, the warnings of a possible car bomb attack. abc's brian n ss tracking this going into this weekend. he's with us here tonight with the latest. brian, where does it stand? >> reporter: well, david, ststl no hard evidence of any kind that the plot was real. the fbi has now interviewed some 300 people, based on flight logs. they've all been cleared. they were not connected to terrorism in any way, according to the fbi. still, they continue to look. >> this does not stop after tonight, this investigation. >> reporter: that's right. >> you also told us of the jitters today on 9/11. reports that, in fact, fighter jets had been scrambled. >> reporter: that's right. an american airlines flight from los angeles to new york was accompanied to the ground by two f-16 fighter jets after air marshals on board the plane reported strange behavior by three men who were coming and going from the bathroom. turns out that's all they were doing and they were questioned and released and everybody else on the plane was let go. >> but reassuring that the fighter jets were there. >> reporter: they were there. >> brian ross tonight, thanks very much. protecting this nation has been the mission for so many young people shaped by what they witnessed as a child on 9/11.

and for ten years we, of course, have been a nation at war. for ten years, abc's martha raddatz has been follolong those children who grew up and went to war for their country. >> reporter: just hours after the pentagon was hit, with the building still smoldering, the horror still fresh, many of the 20,000 pentagon employees came back to work to prepare for war. ten years later, well over 2 million americans, all of them volunteers, have been deployed to iraq and afghanistan. among them, a generation of young soldiers we have met who were just children on 9/11. you were a little boy. >> fifth grader. >> reporter: were you frightened? >> i was a little frightened at first, but i was reassured by my parents that it would be all right. >> reporter: you saw it on t t i can't imagine you ever thought, gee, i'll probably be over there fighting some day. >> i don't know, ever since then i kind of wanted to. >> reporter: in this decade of war, the nation has lost more

than 6,000 troops and had more than 45,000 injured. military spending during that period reached an astonishing $6 trillion. but today, there is much that the military is proud of. the biggest achievement? the death of bin laden. and the decimation of al qaeda leadership. >> al qaeda is on the ropes and it continues to get pummeled. >> reporter: we are, of course, still a nation at war. there are 144,000 americans still serving in war zones. but by the end of next year, that should be cut in half. david? >> all right, martha raddatz, with us tonight. thank you so much. i want to bring in abc's christiane amanpour, the host of "this week." and christiane, so moved this morning by the headlines you recalled around the world on 9/11. >> reporter: you know, the one ray of sunshine out of 9/11 was that instant global solidarity, that famous french headline from "le monde" saying, "we arerell americans today." that feeling was ripped asunder

by the division over iraq, but now, ten years later, in the arab part of the world, this arab uprising, this arab spring, which is a direct repudiation of osama bin laden, everything he stood for and a direct desire for democracy and freedom and a progressive relationship with the rest of the world. >> and you and i saw it in tahrir square in egypt, the dominos falling and many people telling us they want a new relationship with america. >> a relationship based on mutual respect and dignity and one that, now, really, american foreign policy will have to take into account the arab street and maybe now it will be more friendly, because it will not be under the yolk of dictators who they believe the u.s. supported and kept in place. >> christiane amanpour with us tonight, thank you very much. and still ahead on this special edition of "world news," the survivors. from the twin towers to the pentagon, tonight, some of what they saw we never heard about. the view across one office floor. and that flash of blue. why it changed the course for group of firefighters.

and the snapshots of the lost. all those fliers on 9/11, we haven't forgotten them. tonight, the story those images still tell ten years later. and later tonight, the nation looking forward. the view on this 9/11 you haven't seen. tonight, we're going to take you straight to the top of the new world trade center. americans taking back the sky. i can't enjoy my own barbecue with these nasal allergies. i know what works differently than many other allergy medications. omnaris. omnaris, to the nose! did you know nasal symptoms like congestion

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or if you take aspirin products, nsaids, or blood thinners. tell your doctor about all medicines you take, any planned medical or dental procedures, and don't stop taking pradaxa without your doctors approval, as stopping may increase your stroke risk. other side effects include indigestion,stomach pain, upset, or burning. if you have afib not caused by a heart valve problem, ask your doctor if pradaxa can reduce your risk of a stroke. for more information or help paying for pradaxa, visit pradaxa.com. all this past week here on "world news," we've been going back to find the survivors of 9/11, from the twin towers to the pentagon. they've spent this last decade hugging their loved ones a little tighter. a way, they say, to honor those who lost that chance ten years ago. ten years ago this morning, florence jones was heading to work in new york. sheila moody was heading to the pentagon.

and captain jay jonas was at the new york fire department. >> what a beautiful day it started off to be and it descended into hell on earth. >> reporter: florence was on the 78th floor of the south tower, a manager, when the north tower was hit. this is what she told us on the first anniversary. >> see the young people doing the sign of the cross and jumping, you were like, oh, my god. it's got to be awful up there for people to make that choice. >> reporter: florence left the 78th floor and gone down to 77. >> i could see straight across the floor, which was all glass and i could not figure out, on a bright, sunny, cloudless day what this black thing was that was approaching the building. >> reporter: moments later, the second plane hit the floor she had just been on. of the last 25 people out of the south tower, she was number 18.

ten years later, she had not been back to ground zero until she went with us. >> wow. >> reporter: for sheila moody, it was just her second day on the job at the pentagon. one of her brand new coworkers came to her ask and ask ed, did you hear? two planes have hit the world trade center. >> ten seconds later, i heard a whistling, like a whistling sound and a rumble. >> reporter: this time, it was the pentagon. and sheila was soon in a ball of fire. and then, a voice. >> and he was saying, is there anybody in there? i said, yes, we're here, we're here. >> reporter: and so she started to clap, hoping he could follow the sound. he extinguished the flames between them and pulled her out. his hand was out to you? >> his hand was out to m m yeah. >> reporter: ten years later, she shows me her hands, the burn scars.

a small price, she says, to have survived to see her first granddaughter. there was another blessing that emerged after the two towers fell. a tiny miracle on stairwell b in the north tower. a flight of stairs somehow, still standing. captain jay jonas and his men inside that stairwell. >> all of a sudden, a beam of sunshine broke through the dust. and it came into the stairway. and it almost looked like a light from the heavens, literally. >> reporter: they followed it and survived. ten years later, and two promotions later, deputytyhief jonas now told us he still remembers the fathers who were lost that day. and we won't forget what we all heard from him just this week about why he never walked away. >> i wanted to be a fireman since i was a little kid. and this is -- other than playing center field for the yankees, this is the only job i ever wanted. >> reporter: still time for the yankees. >> still time.

>> still time, still hope. hen we come back tonight, those fliers, those faces taped onto so many buildings and trucks after 9/11. the stories they still tell. specialists, lots of doctors, lots of advice... and my hands were full. i couldn't sort through it all. with unitedhealthcare, it's different. we have access to great specialists, and our pediatrician gets all the information. everyone works as a team. and i only need to talk to one person about her care. we're more than 78,000 people looking out for 70 million americans. that's health in numbers. unitedhealthcare. whose non-stop day starts with back pain... and a choice. take advil now and maybe up to four in a day. or choose aleve and two pills for a day free of pain. way to go, coach. ♪ look at all this stuff for coffeee oh there's tons. french presses, espresso tampers, filters. it can get really complicated. not nearly as complicated as shipping it, though.

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former "new york times" executive editor hal raines says in the weeks after september 11th, no single aspect of the newspaper's coverage generated more reader response than "portraits of grief." >> the purpose was, we didn't want to write premature obituari obituaries. >> reporter: inspired by the hundreds of missing persons fliers that wall papered lower manhattan, "portraits of grief" was a series of brief biographies that appeared in the paper every day for 15 weeks. >> it lingers in our memory because it is a life being lived. >> reporter: a team of reporters interviewed over 1,900 families. and in roughly 200 words, the legacies of their loved ones. battalion chief, working mom, first-time father. they were all preserved. >> it developed a momentum that even people who might have turned away, wound up thinking

of this as a way to memorialize the nobility of ordinary life. >> reporter: so, this array of faces, sometimes imperfectly reproduced, eulogized those who were lost. and told a heartbroken nation who they were, what they did and who they loveded that peter gelinas took his 3-year-old on a camping trip. that her four nephews called suzanne geraty the kiss monster. that firefighter michael mullan loved to play the piano. in other words, that they were us. >> and katie couric is here on the desk in new york. and katie, all those images so powerful that day. you and i were talking about the woman being so emblematic of the powerful images from downtown. >> reporter: that's right, david. one critic said photo journalism got its job back that day.

and there's so many extraordinary photographs from september 11th. and the days that follow. >> reporter: the father trying to get his son to safety. >> that's right. he picked his little boy up who was 2 1/2 at nearby trinity church. he was rushing to the hudson river. he said to the police officer, "water," and the officer thought he needed a drink of water, gave the little boy his mask and the father in the photo has been searching for the police officer ever since. and then there's another photo of a woman who was able to get out of the south tower, burning and bleeding. a deputy u.s. marshal came to her aid and they have become fast friends. >> friendships forged that morning. abc's katie couric, great to you have on board. >> thanks, david. >> and katie, we should point out you and your team tracked down the faces from our images. extraordinary reunions tonight on "20/20" at 10:00 eastern. and coming up on the broadcast, we take you to the very top of the new world trade center. [ male announcer ] from nutritional science

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and finally tonight here, as we look forward, abc's dan harris from a view atop the new world trade center. >> reporter: in the days after 9/11, when ground zero was a pile of smoldering steel, i saw for myself the extraordinary pull this place exerted on americans. >> no words to describe it. it's just -- all those people, you know? it's real tragic. >> reporter: for most of the intervening decade, ground zero has been just a hole in the ground. but as the world saw today, the september 11th memorial is finally finished. inside the exact footprints of the towers, two of the largest manmade waterfalls on earth.

and right next door, the largest skyscraper in the western hemisphere is rising. it's called one world trade center. we're very high up. >> very high up. >> reporter: it's incredibib. 81 stories are up, and it will ultimately be 104 stories at its symbolic 1,776 feet. what you realize quite powerfully when you visit one world trade center is, this is not just a building, not just a construction job. this is new yorkers reoccupying, retaking the sky. unlike the twin towers, this building will have a core made out of concrete that is seven times stronger than the concrete in a sidewalk. architect david childs. do you think it's safe enough that you would go to work there every day? >> absolutely. i would feel more safe in this building than most of the buildings in new york. >> reporter: right after 9/11, the mantra was "never forget." but moving on, some say, is a form of tribute, too. the people behind the new ground

zero say they have struck the right balance between rebuilding and remembering. dan harris, abc news, new york. >> love that. retaking the sky. don't forget a special edition of "20/20" later here this evening. diane sawyer right back in the chair tomorrow night. good night. we ask that you join us to honor, remember, and reunite. to learn more or to reserve your visit, go to 911memorial.org. [bell ringing] >> melissa harrington. >> ann harris. >> alan: tributes in honor of the victims who died on september 11th. ten years ago tonight the