(HARTFORD, CT) – Governor Ned Lamont today announced that he is directing U.S. and state flags in Connecticut to be flown at half-staff from sunrise to sunset on Saturday, September 11, 2021, in remembrance of the nearly 3,000 people who were killed in the 2001 terrorist attacks on the United States. Accordingly, since no flag should fly higher than the U.S. flag, all other flags – including state, municipal, corporate, or otherwise – should also be lowered during this same duration of time.
In addition, Governor Lamont announced that the state will illuminate the Pearl Harbor Memorial Bridge in New Haven – informally known by many residents as the Q Bridge – in red, white, and blue lights beginning at dusk on the evenings of Friday, September 10, and Saturday, September 11, in recognition of the anniversary. Beacons capable of projecting light nearly six miles into the clear night sky will be lit until the early morning hours.
“On this terrible day 20 years ago, tragedy struck close to home, changing the lives of so many families here in Connecticut and throughout the United States,” Governor Lamont said. “We will forever pay tribute to the innocent lives that were taken all too soon and honor the heroism of those who gave their lives while rescuing others, including many first responders. We also pay tribute to the brave men and women of the U.S. military who serve our nation and protect our freedoms, as well as the many military heroes whose lives were lost in the ongoing battle to keep us safe since 2001. Let this anniversary serve as a reminder of the unity and compassion that bonded all of us as a nation in the weeks, months, and years following this tragedy, and recommit ourselves to improving our world for the better.”
“We will forever remember and never forget the tragedies of September 11, 2001,” Lt. Governor Susan Bysiewicz said. “The lives of thousands of American families were changed in a single moment that day, and today we share their grief and pray for their healing. Today and every day, we honor the memories of all those we lost on September 11 and thank our first responders and military personnel for protecting us and defending our country. May this day continue to serve as a reminder that we must remain committed to each other as people and as Americans.”
The State of Connecticut’s official 9/11 memorial honoring the victims of the attacks is located on a peninsula at Sherwood Island State Park in Westport, where on a clear day the Manhattan skyline can be viewed across the Long Island Sound. It features a stone engraved with the names of the people with ties to Connecticut who were killed in the attacks.
The state park was chosen as the site for the memorial because it is the location where many people in the immediate aftermath of the attacks gathered to observe the devastation on Lower Manhattan across the sound. The site was also used by the Connecticut National Guard in the following days and weeks as a staging area for Connecticut’s relief efforts to New York City.