Ten years without The Twin Towers

World Trade Center: Ten years after

Originally printed at http://www.wpsdlocal6.com/news/local/World-Trade-Center-Ten-years-after-129488733.html

By Michelle Franzen
September 8, 2011

NEW YORK (NBC) — This Sunday, the world will be watching as the nation marks the 10th anniversary of the 9/11 attacks.

In New York City the rebuilding of ground zero is still not complete after a decade.

Ten buildings, including the Twin Towers, were destroyed or damaged beyond repair that day.

In the decade since the 9/11 attacks, the World Trade Center site has slowly transformed from a gaping hole of death and destruction into a symbolic place of renewal, the hum of construction sharing space with sacred ground honoring the lives lost.

Today the scars where the Twin Towers and surrounding buildings once stood are still visible, along with the progress.

The rebuilt transit system runs beneath.

The first tower to be completed in 2006, World Trade Center 7, is open for business, and after countless changes in design the building once known as the Freedom Tower is on the rise.

Now renamed World Trade Center One, construction on the 104-story tower isn't expected to be complete until 2013.

At the center of the World Trade Center site is the National September 11th Memorial and Museum, two reflecting pools symbolizing where the Twin Towers once stood with all the names of the victims surrounding them inscribed in bronze.

"They are the largest man-made waterfalls in the country," says museum president Joseph Daniels. "52,000 gallons of water being pumped through pools, the water fountains every minute and they really symbolize the fact that the people are no longer here with us.

The 9/11 Memorial Plaza will be dedicated on Sunday.

For the families who have made the journey each 9/11 anniversary to honor their loved ones, this year takes on new meaning.

"For so many that didn't get any human remains back to bury. So when they come here and that first experience, the first time that they place their hand, touch their hand on their loved ones names," Daniels says.

Some have criticized the memorial has taken too long.

Organizers say given the challenges of building in New York City and the importance of this memorial, the timing is perfect to mark the 10th anniversary.

The memorial will be open September 12th to the public.

The museum is slated to open in 2012.

Visit the Youtube Channel Reflections on 9/11