Thomas O’Connor

Members of the public are observed removing—or trying to remove—debris from the crash site shortly after Flight 93 goes down and some of them are arrested for doing so. [Pittsburgh Post-Gazette, 9/18/2009; Thompson, 2017, pp. 6-7] Flight 93 apparently crashed in a field in rural Pennsylvania at 10:03 a.m. (see (10:03 a.m.-10:10 a.m.) September 11, 2001 and (10:06 a.m.) September 11, 2001). [9/11 Commission, 7/24/2004, pp. 30] Emergency responders soon start arriving at the crash site. “Almost as quickly,” however, according to author J. William Thompson, “legions of curiosity seekers and souvenir hunters showed up.” The “dozens of souvenir hunters” who converge on the scene are observed “stuffing objects in their shirts.” [Thompson, 2017, pp. 6-7] Sergeant Thomas O’Connor and Corporal Ronald Zona of the Pennsylvania State Police are among the first people to arrive. During their first few hours at the site, they have to prevent “souvenir hunters from coming near the downed plane,” according to the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette. While doing so, they make several arrests. [Pittsburgh Post-Gazette, 9/18/2009; PAMatters (.com), 9/10/2011] Eventually, a security perimeter will be set up to protect the site and only authorized personnel will be allowed through it. [McMillan, 2014, pp. 131; Thompson, 2017, pp. 27-28] But two “curiosity seekers,” one of them on an all-terrain vehicle, will be arrested later today for trying to get through the perimeter. [Pittsburgh Post-Gazette, 9/12/2001] People are similarly observed removing—or trying to remove—wreckage from the crash site at the Pentagon, following the attack there (see (After 10:15 a.m.) September 11, 2001). [Library of Congress, 11/30/2001; Library of Congress, 12/3/2001]