Today marks 20 years since the World Trade Center in New York City was destroyed in a terrorist attack. In the final part of our 9/11 anniversary series, architects share their memories of the traumatic event and the impact that it had on architecture.
On 11 September 2001, the 110-storey World Trade Center towers in lower Manhattan, New York City, were struck by two planes hijacked by Al-Qaeda terrorists.
The attack, which claimed the lives of 2,753 people, sent shockwaves across the world and led many people to question the future of New York and high-rise buildings.
Today marks twenty years since the World Trade Center terrorist attacks. Photo is by Wally Gobetz
That day, a third plane also hijacked by Al-Qaeda terrorists struck The Pentagon, while a fourth crashed in a field in Pennsylvania as passengers attempted to regain control. The four coordinated hijackings claimed the lives of 2,996 people.
"You knew immediately that something was not right"
Ung-Joo Scott Lee, the New York partner of US studio Morphosis, had just arrived at his office in the city after the first plane had struck the North Tower.
"You could see this gigantic black smoke in the sky because it was a beautiful, clear blue sky day and you knew immediately that something was not right," he told Dezeen.
In the office, he said "everybody hurtled around the conference room" where they watched the second aeroplane hitting the World Trade Center live on television.
"We th...