UNITED STATES: On the tenth anniversary of 9/11 two ethereal beams of light pierce through an inky Manhattan night sky in tribute to the fallen twin towers

Record ID: 1519512

  • Title: UNITED STATES: On the tenth anniversary of 9/11 two ethereal beams of light pierce through an inky Manhattan night sky in tribute to the fallen twin towers
  • Date: 14th September 2011
  • Summary: WTC SITE WITH ONE OF THE BUILDINGS LIGHT UP IN AMERICAN FLAG COLORS JOE CHRISTIE, A LONG ISLAND RESIDENT, LOOKING AT THE TWIN LIGHTS FROM GROUND ZERO (SOUNDBITE) (English) JOE CHRISTIE, A RESIDENT OF LONG ISLAND, NEW YORK, SAYING: "It's actually two things. It's kind of an emptiness for the things that are missing. But it's kind of like the hope of rebuilding and moving forward. So it's kind of conflicting emotions." EAMON NOLAN, A NEW YORKER LOOKING UP AT THE TWIN LIGHTS FROM GROUND ZERO (SOUNDBITE) (English) EAMON NOLAN, A NEW YORK RESIDENT ORIGINALLY FROM AUSTRALIA, SAYING: "I guess it's pretty hard not to think of what was there before, and guess all the photos and stuff, all the videos you see of the towers actually coming down. And I guess Americans love their symbols and this seems to be a pretty classic one, pretty meaningful." WEST SIDE HIGHWAY AND PAN TO THE TWIN BEAMS OF LIGHT
  • Embargoed: 29th September 2011 11:23
  • Keywords:
  • Location: Usa
  • Country: USA
  • Topics: Disasters
  • Reuters ID: LVA72K1W2BHGWG83JIGWJ8J67KLO
  • Aspect Ratio: 4:3
  • Story Text: They can be seen from sixty miles away -- twin beams of light emulating the shape and orientation of the twin towers that came crashing down that fateful day. And on the 9/11 tenth anniversary on Sunday (September 11) the beams pierced through the inky Manhattan night sky again in memorial to the victims and survivors of 9/11.
    The lights were first presented 6 months after the World Trade Center attacks and have been re-created at every 9/11 anniversary.
    While the lights appear to rise from Ground Zero, they are actually beamed from a rooftop four blocks away. The ethereal projections originate from 88 giant 7,000-watt xenon searchlights split into two 48-foot squares. They shoot four miles up and are considered to be one of the strongest shafts of light ever projected onto the night sky.
    On Sunday they were turned on just before sunset and they will be turned off after dawn on September 12th, fading away as the sun rises.
    Gustavo Bonevardi is one of the artists who originally came up with the idea of using beams to recreate the image of the towers.
    "It seemed to be a very easy quick thing. And at the same token we never really thought of it those days as a memorial. For us it was really a way of inspiring the city and more than anything else it was a symbol of perseverance and endurance, something that really reflected the human spirit," Bonevardi said.
    And yet the logistics are not that easy, according to The Municipal Art Society of New York, a nonprofit, which oversees the "Tribute in Light". The organization says it is committed to making New York more livable through dialogue on creative urban planning, design and preservation.
    A spokesperson for the Society said that the tribute takes 10 days to install, including synchronization and testing of the lights and testing the transformers and generators that power them. Personnel consists of 30 lighting technicians, electricians and stagehands. No computers are used.
    Also according to the organizers, the lights cost $500,000 (USD) each year to install and store.
    For Grant and Meredith Goldenstern, a married couple who live in Battery Park City near the World Trade Center site, the effort seems worth it as they say the lights are literally beacons of hope.
    "At first its a combination of chills to see it, it has a haunting sort of look to it. But then I think both wife and I find comfort in the lights. They remind us of what was there and we're sort of drawn to the lights. That's why we're here," Grant said.
    "They're both a symbol of something so tragic but they're so majestic and beautiful and it's that yin and yang of it. Something so horrible had to happen in order for something so beautiful to come about," added Meredith.
    While the couple had access to the rooftop from where the beams are projected from, other New Yorkers and tri-state residents viewed the lights from a distance.
    For Joe Christie, who was on Ground Zero on Sunday night the twin beams led to conflicting emotions -- emptiness at what's missing and yet hope of rebuilding and moving forward. While Eamon Nolan, a New Yorker, originally from Australia summed up the metaphor succinctly.
    "Americans love their symbols and this seems to be a pretty classic one," he said.
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