NYC to mark 9/11 anniversary with vigils, memorials and more

On Wednesday, New York City will mark the 23rd anniversary of the Sept. 11 attacks on the World Trade Center and the Pentagon, as well as the crash of United Airlines Flight 93.

Here are some of the events taking place around the five boroughs to honor the nearly 3,000 lives lost in the tragedy.

9/11 Memorial & Museum’s 23rd Anniversary Commemoration

The 9/11 Memorial & Museum’s annual ceremony will take place at the 9/11 Memorial Plaza starting at 8:30 a.m. on Wednesday, Sept. 11. The event typically concludes at approximately 1 p.m.

The event includes an in-person reading of the names by victims’ family members, as well as six moments of silence recognizing when both World Trade Center towers were struck and fell, when the Pentagon was attacked and when Flight 93 crashed.

The plaza will not be open to the public during the ceremony. The museum will also be closed to the public throughout the day, open only for family members and others with reserved tickets.

The event is not open to the public.

A livestream of the ceremony will be shown in its entirety here. NY1 will also air the ceremony live.

For more information, go to the 9/11 Memorial & Museum’s website.

President Joe Biden and Vice President Kamala Harris are expected to visit the site on Wednesday. 

Moment of Tribute on the Memorial Glade

At 2:30 p.m., those who attended the 9/11 Memorial & Museum’s 23rd anniversary commemoration will observe a moment of silence to honor those who are sick or who have died as a result of a 9/11-related illness or injury. The event also honors rescue, recovery and relief workers, and recognizes the survivors and members of the downtown Manhattan community.

Tribute in Light

First shown six months after the attacks — and then every year after that on Sept. 11 — the Tribute in Light is a public art installation featuring two beams of blue light that can reach up to four miles into the sky. 

The tribute can be seen from a 60-mile radius on a clear night in lower Manhattan, according to the 9/11 Memorial & Museum’s website.

The Green-Wood Cemetery will hold a special tribute event on Wednesday from 7 p.m. to 9 p.m., where attendees will be able to view the tribute lights over Lower Manhattan. Green-Wood serves as the final resting place for over 100 people who lost their lives on 9/11, according to the cemetery.

Dozens of other notable buildings, bridges and NYC landmarks will also be awash in blue light in show of unity and collective remembrance, including the Empire State Building, Bloomberg L.P., One World Trade Center, The Oculus, PAC NYC, 7 WTC, RXR Realty Buildings, Helmsley Building, Bank of America, New York City Hall, Lincoln Center for the Performing Arts, Rockefeller Center — to name just a few.

Staten Island ‘Postcards’ Memorial Ceremony

Every year on Staten Island’s North Shore Waterfront Esplanade, residents gather at the “Postcards” memorial site to honor Staten Island residents who died on 9/11.

The memorial was built to resemble two postcards, “symbolizing personal communications between loved ones,” the 9/11 Memorial & Museum’s website says.

The walls of the structure “feature 274 plaques with the names, birthdays, job titles and profile silhouettes of loved ones lost,” according to New York City Tourism + Conventions, the city’s official marketing, tourism and partnership organization.

This year, the event will be hosted by Staten Island Borough President Vito Fossella at 6:30 p.m. on Wednesday.

Tunnel to Towers 5K Run & Walk

Each year on the last Sunday of September — which falls on Sept. 29 this year — runners and walkers gather for a 5K that follows the final footsteps of Stephen Siller, who sprinted through the Brooklyn Battery Tunnel to the World Trade Center on Sept. 11, 2001, while carrying 60 pounds of firefighter gear. He died when the south tower collapsed.

The event honors the 343 FDNY firefighters, law enforcement officers and thousands of civilians who died on 9/11.

For more information, go to the Tunnel to Towers Foundation’s website.

Port Authority’s 9/11 Remembrance Service

The Port Authority will hold an interfaith remembrance service at St. Peter’s Church at 2 p.m. Wednesday, Sept. 11, to honor 84 employees who died during the attacks and the victims of 1993’s World Trade Center bombing.

The service will follow the 9/11 Memorial and Museum commemoration ceremony, according to a release.

Watch the livestream of the service here.

9/11 Memorial Service at Midtown Firehouse

Engine 54, Ladder 4, Battalion 9 lost all 15 men who responded to the terror attacks at the World Trade Center on Sept. 11, 2001, making it the hardest hit firehouse in New York City. Every year since then, the Midtown firehouse has commemorated the heroes who died that day with a ceremony. The event typically takes place at the park near the firehouse, located on Eighth Avenue and 48th Street, at 8:30 a.m.

New York Blood Center Donation Drive in Honor of 9/11 Victims

NYBC is urging New Yorkers to honor those who lost their lives on 9/11 by giving back to the community. New Yorkers are encouraged to donate blood, volunteer at a blood drive, or sign up to host a blood drive at various locations across the region. For more information on how to help, check here.