Bone-Chilling FBI Audio Recording of 9/11 Terrorist Attacks Resurfaces

An uninterrupted audio recording of the 9/11 terrorist attacks has resurfaced online.

The 90-minute audio recording was initially uploaded to YouTube by ElReyDeNorte. However, it was later shared in Reddit's "Today I Learned" (TIL) forum, where it has amassed over 60,000 upvotes and inspired thousands of commenters to recount their own memories from the day of the attacks.

"TIL that an FBI informant secretly wore a wire to breakfast with a city official suspected of bribery, and met the suspect at the WTC Marriott," the Reddit post read. "In the middle of getting a confession, the informant ends up making what is believed to be the only uninterrupted audio recording of the Sept. 11 attack."

According to CNN, the audio was, in fact, recorded at the Marriott World Trade Center Hotel, which was part of the Trade Center complex. The informant, a tax consultant named Stephen McArdle, was dining with the suspect at the hotel's restaurant when the attacks began.

"That was an explosion," McArdle said in response to a loud boom—the sound of American Airlines Flight 11 hitting the first tower. "That was an explosion."

The comment is followed by a loud roaring noise believed to be the sound of "flaming jet fuel from the plane coursing down through the tower to the lower floors," CNN said.

Alarms sound as people begin to panic. At one point, an unknown voice says, "Go, Go!" Meanwhile, McArdle screams, "No, no, no," as he watches people fall, according to CNN.

Roughly 87 minutes into the recording, a woman screams at the sound of a second explosion—the sound of United Airlines Flight 175 striking the second tower. Chaos ensues but, a few moments later, someone can be heard ordering everybody out of the building.

After another minute or so, a woman begins to cry.

"That's my husband inside," she said before the recording ends.

Both McArdle and the suspect survived the attacks, ABC News reported.

Many commenters called the recording "bone-chilling," and some used the post as an opportunity to recount their memories from that day.

"I had just gotten to Japan a little over a month before. That evening there was a welcome party in my honor. I got home late that night, started filling the bath, turned on the TV, and NHK was showing the live ABC feed. Sobered me up very quickly," wrote u/robaato72.

"Our school made an announcement for all teachers to turn on their TVs & next thing I knew everybody was getting called to get picked up. I was last in the class because my mom worked in D.C. & was using the bus to get home. My stepdad picked me up & my mom caught up with us at home & we watched the news in silence. That's pretty much when I lost my innocence," said u/Alwayspacing92.

"I was working outside that day. Construction on the river, NJ side. I was up high, eating a pork roll, egg and cheese with a few other guys. it was beautiful out. Perfect weather. We were talking about the football season coming up. Then we saw smoke across the river. Then we realized it was coming from the 'Twin Towers.' Then we saw the second plane come in," added u/akitemime. "Everything changed after that."

The September 11 terrorist attacks killed over 2,600 people at the World Trade Center, 125 people at the Pentagon and 256 plane passengers, Newsweek previously relayed.

Last year, in honor of the 20th anniversary of the attacks, President Joe Biden visited New York City, Shanksville, Pennsylvania, and Arlington, Virginia—the three locations targeted during the 2001 attacks—to pay his respects.

Uncommon Knowledge

Newsweek is committed to challenging conventional wisdom and finding connections in the search for common ground.

Newsweek is committed to challenging conventional wisdom and finding connections in the search for common ground.

");jQuery(this).remove()}) jQuery('.start-slider').owlCarousel({loop:!1,margin:10,nav:!0,items:1}).on('changed.owl.carousel',function(event){var currentItem=event.item.index;var totalItems=event.item.count;if(currentItem===0){jQuery('.owl-prev').addClass('disabled')}else{jQuery('.owl-prev').removeClass('disabled')} if(currentItem===totalItems-1){jQuery('.owl-next').addClass('disabled')}else{jQuery('.owl-next').removeClass('disabled')}})}})})

ncG1vNJzZmivp6x7r7HWrK6enZtjsLC5jpump51dmLWquMuipaBllpe2bq3UnaCoZaKasLC%2Bw6KloGVpYn5yedOeqaunop7AtXnArauam5uoerOx0q6pn5mTmsBufZZqbWtsaA%3D%3D