Reporter Meiying Wu produced the 25th anniversary piece
BBC News has released a video in which Americans in Washington describe what they were doing on September 11, 2001 and reflect on how the attacks reshaped the country over the 25 years since.
The piece was published on September 11, 2026, the 25th anniversary of the attacks. BBC’s headline for the video characterized the interviews as “heartbreaking.” The BBC said it spoke to Americans in Washington about what they were doing on that day and how 9/11 has changed the country.
The video opens with a brief account of the day’s events. On Tuesday, September 11, 2001, hijackers seized US passenger jets and crashed them into two New York skyscrapers, killing thousands of people. A third plane destroyed the western face of the Pentagon, the headquarters of the US military just outside Washington, DC. A fourth plane crashed in a field in Pennsylvania after passengers fought back; the BBC noted that it is thought the hijackers had meant to attack Washington’s Capitol Building.
The video is credited to BBC journalist Meiying Wu.