Twelve years ago, Americans were devastated by the deadliest act of terrorism on U.S. soil that claimed thousands of lives, including 343 firefighters and 72 police officers.

While most people watched the tragedy unfold from their home or office, Sept. 11, 2001 was a day that firefighters, police officers, and rescue squads were put to work more than any time before.

Glenn Newell, N.C. A&T’s university police chief, worked on Ground Zero of the World Trade Center for New York City’s Emergency Operations Center. Newell was at home getting ready for work when his parents, who were visiting from Virginia, told him American Airlines Flight 11 crashed into the North Tower of the World Trade Center.

“At the time, I was trying to figure out how a plane could hit the tower,” he said. “When the first tower was hit, no one thought it was terrorist activity.”

During his drive to work, his mother called his cell phone to tell him the South Tower was hit by United Airlines Flight 175. Later, she called again to tell him that the South Tower collapsed.

“It looked like a warzone.This was something I had never seen before,” said Newell, who has worked in law enforcement for more than 20 years.

According to Newell, officers worked a minimum of 12 hours and sometimes they had to work up to 24 hours with no relief.

“If you were a New Yorker, this wasn’t just an attack on our country, this was an attack on your home,” said the New York City native. “I think about the people who were a part of the search and recovery team. There were just too many lives lost that day.”

According to the New York Magazine, more than 110,000 truckloads of debris were removed from Ground Zero, and 19, 435 body parts were recovered. Over 1,700 families were reported to have gotten no remains of their loved ones.

Throughout the day, officers heard news of the attack on the Pentagon in Washington, D.C. as well as United Airlines Flight 93 crashing into a field in western Pennsylvania.

“The news just kept getting worse and worse,” Newell said.

Sandra Bradshaw was one of the flight attendants on Flight 93. She lived in Greensboro with her husband and two young children.

Rescue teams, firefighters, and police officers were sent from all over the country to assist with the recovery of 9/11, including the Greensboro Fire Department.

Greensboro Firefighter, Chris Gonzalez, experienced the tragedies from a different perspective.

Fourteen year-old Gonzalez was with friends standing outside at school, waiting for classes to start when they saw the first plane go over their heads.

“Everyone looked up because it was so close,” he said. “A few seconds later we heard a crash.” Gonzalez attended Chelsea High School, located one mile away from the World Trade Center. He said when the second plane crashed into the South Tower, everything turned into chaos.

“When the [South Tower] fell, we were close enough that we actually had to start running away from the building because of all the dust and smoke,” he said. “It was pitch black. You couldn’t see anything.”

Gonzalez walked from downtown Manhattan to Central Park because transportation had been completely shut down throughout the city. He did not arrive home until about 10 p.m.

“I was in shock,” Gonzalez said. “That event sparked something in me to do something to help people.”

After the terrorist attacks, Gonzalez was a lifeguard for five years. In 2007, he moved to Greensboro with his older sister, who had recently completed the fire academy. He joined the Greensboro Fire Department on Sept. 2, 2008.

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• Karmen Robinson, Editor-in-Chief