Story summary
Twenty-five years have passed since the 9/11 terrorist attacks, which resulted in 2,977 people killed, including 79 workers and 91 guests at Windows on the World restaurant in the North Tower of the World Trade Center. The attacks also caused widespread destruction and changed the world forever.
Many Americans are still affected by the trauma of that day, as seen in the lives of individuals like Colin McShane, who lost his father in the attacks when he was just 4½ years old. McShane's experience is not unique, as many others have been impacted by the loss of loved ones or personal experiences on 9/11.
In addition to the human toll, the attacks also had significant global implications, including a shift in international relations and a new era of terrorism. In response to the attacks, the United States launched the "war on terror," which has continued under various administrations.
However, the impact of 9/11 extends beyond geopolitics. The attacks also led to a surge in Islamophobia and anti-Muslim sentiment in the US, with many Muslim Americans facing harassment, discrimination, and even violence. This phenomenon continues today, as seen in the treatment of Abdul El-Sayed, a Democratic Senate nominee who has been called a terrorist and a radical Islamist.
In the years following 9/11, many first responders have fallen ill or died from related health issues due to their work at ground zero. The World Trade Center Health Program was established to provide care for these individuals, but funding has not kept up with the number of people getting sick.
As the US approaches the 25th anniversary of 9/11, many Americans are reflecting on how the country has changed since that day. With a new generation growing up without memories of the pre-9/11 America, there is a growing concern about the need for continued remembrance and understanding of this pivotal moment in history.
Written for “Anniversary of September 11 Attacks” on 2026-09-08,
grounded in this article and the 37 other(s) covering the same event.
Sekou Siby was supposed to be working the morning shift on September 11, 2001.
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Siby → suppose → September
Instead, he swapped with a young co-worker from Ecuador, taking the afternoon slot.
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he → swap → slot
The decision left him one of the survivors of Windows on the World, the World Trade Center’s legendary top-floor restaurant.
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decision → leave → World
Now, as the 25th anniversary of the terrorist attacks approaches, the story of the venue and its staff is being retold through the eyes of the workers who made it run.
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it → approach → workers
Directed by Oscar nominees Betsy West and Julie Cohen, the new documentary short “Top of the World”, airing Monday night on CNN, offers an intimate look at the fine-dining institution that operated for 25 years, 1,300 feet above Manhattan.
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that → direct → Manhattan
Getting a job at Windows on the World, the country’s highest-grossing restaurant packed with celebrities, tourists and New York power brokers, was seen as a coup among those recently arrived in the United States.
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Getting → get → States
When American Airlines Flight 11 struck the North Tower between floors 93 and 99, all escape routes below the restaurant were instantly severed.
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routes → strike → restaurant
Of the nearly 3,000 lives lost across the country that day, all 170 people at the restaurant died - 79 employees and 91 guests.
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people → lose → restaurant
For the surviving staff, the legacy of Windows on the World rests not on how it ended but on the workplace culture they created for 25 years before that tragic day.
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they → survive → day
Conceived by renowned restaurateur Joe Baum to help revitalize a financially struggling New York in 1976, Windows on the World quickly became a cultural landmark.
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Windows → conceive → World
Occupying the 106th and 107th floors of the North Tower, the restaurant functioned as a quarter-mile-high theater, brought to life through design work by architect Warren Platner and Milton Glaser, the revered graphic designer behind the “I Love New York” logo.
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I → occupy → logo
Anchored by a 107th-floor bar, a glass-enclosed “Cellar in the Sky” and a menu refined by head chef Michael Lomonaco, the venue generated more revenue than any standalone restaurant in the nation.
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venue → anchor → nation
“Everybody knew what Windows on the World was, right there at the top of the World Trade Center,” Lomonaco says, during the CNN Films and TIME Studios short film.
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Lomonaco → know → film
“We were the highest-grossing restaurant in America.
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We → gross → America
The workers came from more than 60 countries — Ecuador, Mexico, Peru, Ghana and Bangladesh, to name a few.
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workers → come → few
The restaurant’s 450 employees built a tight-knit community.
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employees → build → community
They picked up phrases in new languages, joined for soccer matches on days off and explained cultural traditions to one another — like why Muslim staff fasted during Ramadan.
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staff → pick → Ramadan
“We're all children of immigrants, whether it’s this century or two centuries ago,” Lomonaco says.
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Lomonaco → ’ → immigrants
“The immigrants who worked at Windows, I mean, they came from all over the world-and they found a job in the most glamorous, glorious place in New York City.”
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they → work → City
Siby came to the United States from the Ivory Coast in 1996 when he was 31 years old.
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he → come → 1996
“I thought, America is really the country of freedom,” Siby recalls in the film.
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Siby → think → film
He got his start through his roommate, Abdoul Karim Troare, a fellow West African immigrant who was a banquet cook at Windows on the World.
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who → get → World
Troare helped him land a job as a prep cook, where Siby spent his early days peeling carrots, potatoes and, at times, 200 pounds of onions, until his eyes burned.
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eyes → help → onions
On the floor, hostess Nathalie Tolentino saw life at the restaurant from a different angle.
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Tolentino → see → angle
After studying hotel management in Peru and moving to New York with her family to escape political violence, she landed a job as a hostess at Windows on the World.
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she → study → World
Her exceptional work ethic soon led to an offer from ownership for a management role.
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ethic → lead → role
The film opens on archival home video of Tolentino giving her grandmother a tour, in Spanish, through the dining space, showing off the floor-to-ceiling views the restaurant offered.
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restaurant → open → views
“For me, coming from Peru, it was just learning from the best,” Tolentino says in the film.
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Tolentino → come → film
“Living in Lima was chaos, especially during the worst era of terrorism in Peru.”
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Living → live → Peru
On the morning of September 11, 2001, New York City shone beneath bright, clear skies.
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City → shine → skies
At Windows on the World, 79 staff members and 91 guests were on the 106th and 107th floors, preparing for breakfast service and a financial technology conference hosted by the London-based Risk Waters Group.
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members → prepare → Group
Moises Rivas, a 29-year-old cook and immigrant from Ecuador, had asked Siby to cover his Sunday shift so he could perform with his band on Saturday night without having to wake up for a 5 a.m. call.
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he → ask → call
In return, Rivas offered to work Siby’s Tuesday morning slot.
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Rivas → offer → slot
Siby agreed.
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Siby → agree → ?
Rivas, a husband and father of two young children, reported to work in his place that morning.
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Rivas → report → place
Lomonaco also survived due to a chance delay on the lower level before heading up to the restaurant.
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Lomonaco → survive → restaurant
“I parked my car in the garage,” Lomonaco says.
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Lomonaco → park → garage
I could have easily gone up to my office, but instead I
uncertain
I → go → office
went in to the eyeglass shop to get my glasses adjusted.
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glasses → go → shop
I was sitting in the office.
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I → sit → office
…and 18 more, not listed.
