NEW YORK – A camera in Brooklyn points through a chain-link fence at black smoke pouring from one skyscraper, while a plane pierces another. Papers fly through the sky; some of them end up in the filmmakers’ hands.

That evening — Sept. 11, 2001 — another camera finds firefighters trudging through dust-caked streets, carrying their helmets or a spare pair of shoes. The spindly facade of the World Trade Center is before them.

The views of the terrorist attacks — one of the most recorded events of all time — are among hundreds of hours of amateur videos, images and stories gathered by the foundation building the memorial. The National Sept. 11 Memorial & Museum launched a Web site Thursday — at http://makehistory.national911memorial.org— with its collection of citizen journalism of the tragedy and is appealing for more 9/11 stories from all over the world.

“They say that 9/11 was the most digitally documented event of all time,” said Alice Greenwald, director of the planned museum. “We’re asking people everywhere to help us tell the story.”

Visitors will be warned about graphic images — people jumping, human remains, planes piercing the towers — and will have a choice of whether to view them.

Organizers say one of the most difficult tasks they’ve faced is how to present the most sensitive material. Some of it, with the warnings, will be available online and at the museum, which is scheduled to open in three years.

One victim’s family member said such images wouldn’t keep him away.

Charles Wolf was in his Greenwich Village apartment when he saw an American Airlines jetliner pass overhead, then crash into the trade center — and his wife’s office.

“I and many family members don’t want revisionist history, and we don’t want this sanitized,” Wolf said. “It is very important that people remember what happened that day: This was civilization, people merely at work, caught up in religious fanaticism.”

Construction of the museum is moving forward rapidly, said Joseph Daniels, president of the 9/11 Memorial Foundation. The museum and memorial will cover 8 acres, at the street level and underground, graced by 400 oak trees.

The last column pulled out from the rubble has been returned to bedrock. It will serve as a focal point, along with the so-called Survivors’ Stairs used by people fleeing the towers.

The foundation has acquired 500 hours of video archives assembled by CameraPlanet, a private team of filmmakers who collected professional and amateur videos from the day and its aftermath.

They include a five-minute video shot in the streets of lower Manhattan on the evening of the attacks, with office stairwells filled with reams of paper and half-open offices with family pictures still inside.

A dust-covered Brooks Brothers logo is in one frame under shattered windows. What appears to be an airliner seat is strewn in the street. “God Bless America! Unity!” is scrawled in the dust of one window.

“Got that?” one videographer asks on the video showing the explosion of the second tower when it’s hit by the jetliner.

“What kind of crazy person would …. kill themselves?” another asks as the camera points at the two towers.

Source: http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20090910/ap_on_re_us/us_sept11_video

delete reply sanssouciblogs wrote on Sep 10, ’09 Fascinating. Something to explore for sure.

delete reply caffeinatedjo wrote on Sep 10, ’09 Oh wow, Laura…I went to this page and did some browsing–it is too emotional to take in all at once.  But wow!  Thanks for the link.  I can remember where I was that day and how frightened the kids I worked with were as they watched the news or listened to the radio.  God bless America!

delete reply wicklowmick wrote on Sep 10, ’09 As you say Laura, slow but very worthwhile.  When you leave your little ‘story’ they send you a nice certificate……………….excellent photographs but I did not try to find the ‘gory’ ones.    Thanks for the link.     Mike…

edit delete reply lauritasita wrote on Sep 10, ’09 I had just put my son on the school bus, went home for coffee, turned on CNN, and the first plane just hit. I called my friend and we watch in horror together as the second plane hit and as one of the towers collapsed. I’ll never forget that.

delete reply addisleighpark wrote on Sep 10, ’09 Thanks Laurita…I have to think about this one. Used to work at the WTC during 1993 when the first bombing happened.

edit delete reply lauritasita wrote on Sep 10, ’09 addisleighpark said Used to work at the WTC during 1993 when the first bombing happened. I remember having a job interview in one of the towers years ago.

delete reply addisleighpark wrote on Sep 10, ’09 I also watched them film the King Kong remake there in 1976.

edit delete reply lauritasita wrote on Sep 10, ’09 addisleighpark said I also watched them film the King Kong remake there in 1976. That must’ve been cool !

delete reply addisleighpark wrote on Sep 10, ’09 Yeah….so many people! I also met Kevin McCarthy (Invasion of the Body Snatchers) there years later on an escalator. Nice guy…I was surprised how many people didn’t even recognize him.

edit delete reply lauritasita wrote on Sep 10, ’09, edited on Sep 10, ’09 Fred, did you have a chance to browse around the website ? It’s very interesting and has great photography and videos from real eyewitnesses. You might want to put the link on your site for your friends list.

delete reply addisleighpark wrote on Sep 10, ’09 lauritasita said Fred, did you have a chance to browse around the website ? It’s very interesting and has great photography and videos from real eyewitnesses. You might want to put the link on your site for your friends list. Yes I did…its a great site. I was at Ground Zero back in July. Thanks again for sharing that link.

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edit delete reply lauritasita wrote on Sep 11, ’09 It seems everyone’s got a story, or can remember exactly where they were at the time that it happened.