Richmond remembers 9/11, 25 years later

State of play: In Richmond, it was a late summer Tuesday morning like any other. Until it wasn't.

• The first plane hit the World Trade Center at 8:46am, the second less than 20 minutes later. Within an hour, Virginia, too, was under attack when a third plane struck the Pentagon, 100 miles north of Richmond.
• Planes were grounded. People crowded around televisions. Phone lines up and down the East Coast jammed amid a daylong surge in traffic.
• Downtown state and federal buildings tightened security. A false rumor spread that another plane was headed toward Richmond's 26-story Federal Reserve building or the State Capitol, former Gov. Jim Gilmore later recalled.

The aftermath: Muslim and Arab Virginians faced threats, discrimination and heightened scrutiny as suspicions spread to entire communities, per a federal report.

• Local Muslim leaders found themselves publicly defending their faith and reassuring neighbors that the attackers didn't represent them or Islam, including in a full-page ad in the RTD.

For the 25th anniversary, we're sharing our memories — and some from nearly 200 readers who shared theirs.

• They were in Richmond classrooms and VCU dorms, at work downtown and scattered across the country and beyond.
• Many tried to help from afar. Some witnessed the devastation as NYPD first responders. Others had family in Manhattan or spouses working near the Pentagon.
• Countless readers recalled learning that someone they knew was among the dead.

Zoom in: Karri here. I remember flashes of that day more than anything: the friend whose call woke me in my Museum District apartment in time to see the second tower hit on television. The stunned silence on the other end of the line.

• The VCU professor in my 10am class who hadn't heard and shushed panicked undergrads sharing what they knew. He later apologized profusely.
• The fear of the sky as I walked to my car after classes were canceled.
• Holding hands and crying with friends, coworkers, neighbors and strangers as we watched the aftermath unfold on TV.
• The busy signal for hours as I tried to reach friends in New York and D.C. The relief when I finally got through — a full day later.

Lisa P., a downtown Richmond travel agent, scrambled to get stranded travelers home after the nation's planes were grounded, pairing strangers in rental cars and vans for drives from as far away as California.

• Ayana B. got home from third grade at A.M Davis in Chesterfield and saw her mom watching the news in silence. "She was in the Army at the time and knew a war was coming."
• Maria T. was a teacher at St. Bridget's who got a call from a friend whose daughter-in-law died in the attack. "She and her husband had just had their first baby."

The aftermath left its own memories. One VCU grad who is Palestinian recalls her family receiving threats in the weeks that followed.

• Jennifer T. remembers the backlash against anyone perceived as Middle Eastern or Muslim as one of the things that stayed with her, calling it "sickening."

For a younger generation, the memories aren't their own. Ethan B., who was not yet 4, remembers little beyond seeing his mother cry in front of the television.

• His understanding came partly through stories from his father, who worked for VDOT and told him officials immediately ordered that highway lane closures be reopened.
• Carrie S., while teaching in Henrico 10 years later, found some students knew little about what had happened.

The bottom line: After 25 years, it's not only what we remember — but how we pass those stories on.