The OTHER world trade center attack!

Most people have forgotten the first attack on the World Trade Centers since it has been over shadowed by the horrific events of 9/11/01. But the first terrorist attack on the twin towers was horrible too. 7 innocent people lost their lives that day.

Devastation below ground. Here is what the parking garage underneath the World Trade Center looked like after the bomb went off.


Here are some interesting facts about the 1993 Twin Tower Bombing...

1. 1,042 thousand people were injured, mostly from smoke inhalation and/or during the evacuation.

2. A granite memorial fountain (shown below) honoring the victims of the bombing was built. On it were the names of the 7 victims, and a message which read: "On February 26, 1993, a bomb set by terrorists exploded below this site. This horrible act of violence killed innocent people, injured thousands, and made victims of us all." The fountain was destroyed with the rest of the World Trade Center during the September 11 attacks, however, amazingly, a fragment from the 1993 bombing memorial with the text "John D", from bombing victim John DiGiovanni (shown below), was actually recovered and is being used as the centerpiece of a new memorial honoring the victims of both the 1993 and 2001 attacks.

The 1993 Tower Bombing memorial before it was destroyed on 9/11.


The only fragment of the 1993 memorial recovered from the Twin Tower rubble.


3. Lessons learned on that day resulted in new and improved security measures and evacuation procedures which were in place on 9/11. Fortunately, this significantly reduced the number of killed and injured.

4. In 2006 the New York and New Jersy Port Authority was sued by the victims of the bombing and the court found that the Port Authority, not the terrorist plotters, was legally responsible for damages. That's right, amazingly, the court attributed the majority of the blame to the Port Authority(!). Representatives for the the Port Authority appealed the decision but the ruling was upheld.

5. While combing through the devastated wreckage investigators found a VIN and some other labeled parts of a vehicle, which turned out to be a Ryder rental truck. More investigating led to the identity of those who plotted the bombing. Had the VIN not been found, there is no guarantee that the terrorist plotter's identities would have been discovered.

6. The United Nations headquarters was the original target that day. Due to heavy security, that plan was abandoned and it was decided to bomb the World Trade Center instead.