N.Y., Washington Hit by Terrorist Attacks

(AFP/Newscom) The "Twin Towers" of the World Trade Center burn after two planes crashed into each building.

In what is being called the worst terrorist attack in U.S. history, two large commercial planes crashed into the World Trade Center in New York, causing the two towers to collapse, and one aircraft hit the Pentagon, news services reported.

All bridges and tunnels leading into Manhattan have been closed, Bloomberg reported. In Washington, the White House, Capitol and all Federal office buildings were immediately evacuated, as were major buildings in numerous other cities. Trading on the New York Stock Exchange and all U.S. markets was halted for the day and will be closed on Wednesday, the Bloomberg reported.

For the first time in history, the Federal Aviation Administration ordered all planes grounded at U.S. airports. Planes will remain grounded until at least 12 p.m. EDT on Wednesday, and news services reported that Canada has also decided to temporarily ground all flights.

President Bush, who was in Florida at the time of the attacks, said that he has ordered the full resources of the Federal government into action to help in the relief and to track down the culprits.

The attacks began around 9 a.m. EDT, when a plane slammed into one of the "Twin Towers" in lower Manhattan. About 20 minutes later, a second plane struck the other tower. Both towers collapsed shortly after the explosions.

Shortly after the attacks in New York, a large airplane-caused explosion and fire took place at the Pentagon, the Washington Post reported. There was no immediate word on fatalities or the extent of the damage. Late in the day, a third building in the World Trade Center complex also collapsed.

American Airlines said two of its jets were lost on Tuesday morning (Click here for a press release). United Airlines also confirmed that two of its planes crashed (Click here for the full press release).

There were a total of 266 people on board the four hijacked planes -- two that crashed into the twin towers, one that slammed into the Pentagon and a fourth that crashed in a wooded area near Pittsburgh, Pa around 10:30 a.m. EDT.

New York Mayor Rudolph Giuliani said in a televised interview there had been a large number of lives lost in New York. Some reports had estimated death tolls as high as 10,000.

The United Kingdom also put its defense forces and embassies around the world on alert.

"We've offered President Bush and the American people our solidarity, our profound sympathy and our prayers," British Prime Minister Tony Blair said in a press release. "But it is plain that citizens of many countries around the world, including Britain, will have been caught up in this terror."

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