Thousands of people gathered on Thursday to attend the inauguration of the first memorial to victims of Sept. 11 into the Pentagon when a hijacked airliner crashed against the Department of Defense, leaving 184 dead plus the five hijackers.
After a minute of silence, an officer of the Navy did sound a campanazo by each of the victims of the attack on the Pentagon, which occurred just after two other planes that crashed into the twin towers of New York, 11 September 2001. A fourth hijacked airliner crashed in an open Pennsylvania.
Among music of bagpipes and choirs, the families of the victims, and authorities and Pentagon officials observed the memorial erected near the site where the plane fell in the east wing of the Pentagon.
Former Secretary of Defense Donald Rumsfeld accompanied President George W. Bush and the secretary of defense, Robert Gates, while a flag is izaba on the memorial.
Nearly 3,000 people died in the terrorist attack seven years ago in Washington and New York.
"This memorial will be a silent monument to the determination of free people," said Rumsfeld.
"And this memorial will not be simply a symbol of the pain of the nation but an eternal reminder of the men and women of courage, they saw fire and smoke, and saved the lives of their fellow Americans on 11 September," he said.
The memorial is a plaza with sculptures that resemble benches, each with a mirror of water, with the name of each person who died in the attack on the Pentagon.
The units representing the 59 people killed on American Airlines Flight 77 are arranged so that visitors who come to watch the inscription with the name of the person who is devoted, look at the reflection of the sky.
The sculptures reminiscent of the 125 people who died inside the Pentagon are designed so that visitors see the name of the victim and the Pentagon at the same time.
The seats are distributed according to the ages of the victims, starting with the youngest, Dana Falkanberg three years, and ends with the mayor, John Yamnicky, 71.
