In the first few days after the destruction of the World Trade Center, Lower Manhattan resembled a war zone. Fires continued to burn beneath the wreckage, the air was still thick with smoke and layers of ash had accumulated everywhere while rescue workers and dogs continued to search for survivors. It was on September 13, 2001, that construction worker Frank Silecchia witnessed the sign of the Cross. He was neither hallucinating nor experiencing a divine vision: in the chaos and devastation of Ground Zero, a 17-foot-tall steel column and crossbeam had survived the attack in the unmistakable formation of the Cross.
8:00 PM
While the world turns, the Cross stands
An ordinary intersection of steel beams survived the destruction of the World Trade Center and became one of Ground Zero’s most enduring religious symbols
Andrew Cusack
4 min read
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