Names, music, silence at ground zero

NEW YORK – In what figures to be a somberly stirring ceremony, New York – and a nation – will once again mark one of the darkest days in U.S. history today as thousands gather for Sept. 11 memorial services at ground zero in Manhattan.

Marking the sixth anniversary of the terrorist attacks that toppled the World Trade Center’s Twin Towers and killed 2,750 people, the commemoration service in lower Manhattan was to begin at 8:40 a.m. EDT and last almost four hours.

There will be four moments of silence – two marking when hijacked airliners struck the towers and two when the towers fell.

Throughout the ceremony, emergency responders will read the names of victims.

The observance will take place for the first time at Zuccotti Park, across from ground zero. The city, state and Port Authority had said that unlike past years, ground zero was unsafe for a ceremony this year because the reconstruction effort is well under way.

Families will begin arriving at 7 a.m. and the ceremonies will officially begin with bagpipers and drummers leading the World Trade Center flag to a stage.

Members of the Brooklyn Youth Chorus are scheduled to perform “The Star-Spangled Banner” as well as “Bridge Over Troubled Water.”