Navy ship built with WTC steel goes into service
By: VERENA DOBNIK
Associated Press Writer
November 7, 2009
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| The crew of the USS New York, a Navy amphibious assault ship containing 7.5 tons of steel salvaged from the World Trade Center, stands at attention as the ship gets formally commissioned in New York Saturday, Nov. 7, 2009. The new Navy assault ship USS New York, built with World Trade Center steel, arrived in its namesake city Monday with a rifle volley salute near the site of the 2001 terrorist attack. (AP Photo/David Goldman) (AP) |
NEW YORK (AP) — The USS New York, built with steel from the rubble of the World Trade Center, was put into service Saturday both as a symbol of healing and strength.
"No matter how many times you attack us, we always come back," Secretary of the Navy Ray Mabus said at the amphibious assault ship's commissioning. "America always comes back. That's what this ship represents."
He spoke on a Manhattan pier where hundreds of Navy officers and sailors joined first responders and families of Sept. 11 victims for the ceremony.
The 7 1/2 tons of steel debris from ground zero had been melted down to form the bow of the USS New York.
The ceremony began with a moment of silence for the victims of the shooting at Fort Hood, Texas, where an Army major opened fire Thursday, fatally shooting 13 people and wounding 29 others.
