November 2, 2009 6:31 PM
- Text
Warship Built with Twin Tower Steel in NYC
(CBS/AP)
The new Navy assault ship USS New York, built with World Trade Center steel, arrived in its namesake city Monday with a 21-gun salute near the site of the 2001 terrorist attack.
First responders, families of Sept. 11 victims and the public gathered Monday at a waterfront viewing area, where they could see the crew standing at attention along the deck of the battleship gray vessel.
The big ship paused. Then the shots were fired, with a cracking sound, in three bursts.
The bow of the $1 billion ship, built in Louisiana, contains about 7.5 tons of steel from the fallen towers.
"It's a transformation ... from something really twisted and ugly," said Rosaleen Tallon, who lost her firefighter brother, Sean, on 9/11. "I'm proud that our military is using that steel."
Tallon said her brother, who was also was a Marine, would have been proud.
The symbolism was lost on none of the sailors or Marines on board, reports CBS News correspondent Jim Axelrod.
"I will never forget what that felt like, standing on the flight deck, coming up the Hudson river, passing right by the statue of liberty, paying honor at ground zero," said Capt. Jim Pekula.
JoAnn Atlas, of Howells, N.Y., who lost her husband, fire Lt. Gregg Atlas, draped a flag-themed banner along the fence. The names of emergency workers who died were written on the red stripes.
"We have to remember. It's a way to honor them," she said.
Members of the public included Nancy DiGiacomo, who came from Huntington, N.Y., with her husband, 9-year-old son, mother and sister.
"I just thought it was important to see" the transformation of the tragedy's wreckage, said DiGiacomo. "From that, something else can come of it."
Lt. Cmdr. Colette Murphy, a Navy spokeswoman, said she was excited for those serving on board to see the city's "awe-inspiring" welcome.
Of the 361 sailors serving aboard the ship, around 13 percent are from New York state, which is higher than would normally be the case, Murphy said. There were many requests from Navy personnel to serve on the ship, which will carry some 250 Marines.
After the ground zero stop, the ship - escorted by about two dozen tugboats and other vessels - headed up the Hudson River toward the George Washington Bridge. After a U-turn there, it was to head south to Pier 88. An official commissioning ceremony is scheduled for Saturday.
The New York will remain in the city through Veteran's Day and then head to Norfolk, Va., for about a year of crew training and exercises, Murphy said.
The ship is 684 feet long and can carry as many as 800 Marines. Its flight deck that can handle helicopters and the MV-22 Osprey tilt-rotor aircraft.
It was scheduled to be built before the terrorist attacks. About a year later, the announcement came that the ship would bear the name New York to honor the city, state, and those who died.
It's the latest in a line of Navy ships to bear that name. The others included a Spanish-American War-era cruiser, a battleship that served in World Wars I and II and a nuclear submarine retired from the fleet in 1997.
The ship is technically known as a San Antonio-class amphibious dock vessel. Four vessels in that class are in service, the USS San Antonio, USS New Orleans, USS Mesa Verde and USS Green Bay. Four others are being built. Of those, two also have been named in connection with the Sept. 11 attacks.
The USS Arlington was named to honor the attack on the Pentagon. The USS Somerset was named after the county in Pennsylvania where United Airlines flight 93 crashed.
First responders, families of Sept. 11 victims and the public gathered Monday at a waterfront viewing area, where they could see the crew standing at attention along the deck of the battleship gray vessel.
The big ship paused. Then the shots were fired, with a cracking sound, in three bursts.
The bow of the $1 billion ship, built in Louisiana, contains about 7.5 tons of steel from the fallen towers.
"It's a transformation ... from something really twisted and ugly," said Rosaleen Tallon, who lost her firefighter brother, Sean, on 9/11. "I'm proud that our military is using that steel."
Tallon said her brother, who was also was a Marine, would have been proud.
The symbolism was lost on none of the sailors or Marines on board, reports CBS News correspondent Jim Axelrod.
"I will never forget what that felt like, standing on the flight deck, coming up the Hudson river, passing right by the statue of liberty, paying honor at ground zero," said Capt. Jim Pekula.
JoAnn Atlas, of Howells, N.Y., who lost her husband, fire Lt. Gregg Atlas, draped a flag-themed banner along the fence. The names of emergency workers who died were written on the red stripes.
"We have to remember. It's a way to honor them," she said.
Members of the public included Nancy DiGiacomo, who came from Huntington, N.Y., with her husband, 9-year-old son, mother and sister.
"I just thought it was important to see" the transformation of the tragedy's wreckage, said DiGiacomo. "From that, something else can come of it."
Lt. Cmdr. Colette Murphy, a Navy spokeswoman, said she was excited for those serving on board to see the city's "awe-inspiring" welcome.
Of the 361 sailors serving aboard the ship, around 13 percent are from New York state, which is higher than would normally be the case, Murphy said. There were many requests from Navy personnel to serve on the ship, which will carry some 250 Marines.
After the ground zero stop, the ship - escorted by about two dozen tugboats and other vessels - headed up the Hudson River toward the George Washington Bridge. After a U-turn there, it was to head south to Pier 88. An official commissioning ceremony is scheduled for Saturday.
The New York will remain in the city through Veteran's Day and then head to Norfolk, Va., for about a year of crew training and exercises, Murphy said.
The ship is 684 feet long and can carry as many as 800 Marines. Its flight deck that can handle helicopters and the MV-22 Osprey tilt-rotor aircraft.
It was scheduled to be built before the terrorist attacks. About a year later, the announcement came that the ship would bear the name New York to honor the city, state, and those who died.
It's the latest in a line of Navy ships to bear that name. The others included a Spanish-American War-era cruiser, a battleship that served in World Wars I and II and a nuclear submarine retired from the fleet in 1997.
The ship is technically known as a San Antonio-class amphibious dock vessel. Four vessels in that class are in service, the USS San Antonio, USS New Orleans, USS Mesa Verde and USS Green Bay. Four others are being built. Of those, two also have been named in connection with the Sept. 11 attacks.
The USS Arlington was named to honor the attack on the Pentagon. The USS Somerset was named after the county in Pennsylvania where United Airlines flight 93 crashed.
Latest Now in National
- Endearment terms that don't endear
- THE Dish with Chef Jesse Schenker and wife, Lindsay
- Can Obama's contraceptives compromise quiet critics?
- Valentine's Day highs and lows
- Great time of year to travel
- Victoria's Secret model quits due to her faith
- Could "web-lining" be dangerous?
- Emotions high in UVa. lacrosse murder trial
- What's next in Huguely trial?
- Drama in Huguely trial
- Seeking key to being truly happy
- Abe Lincoln would be turning 203
- Funeral to be held for Powell boys
- Should the U.S. be more involved in Syria?
- Bloodshed in Syria continues
- Contraception flap: How big an issue?
- Romney at CPAC: I'm true conservative
Latest CBS News Headlines
on Facebook
on CBS News
- Jordan to contest EU extradiction ban on preacher
- Egypt's military rulers warn of 'conspiracies' that seek to topple state, spread chaos
- Egyptian security: 3 Koreans kidnapped in Sinai
- Saudi press agency: 1 dead in gunfight with police
on Facebook
- Adele sings a cappella for Anderson Cooper
- Beyonce and Jay-Z post first photos of Blue Ivy Carter
- Occupy protestors kicked out of CPAC
on CBS News
