ALBANY, Ga. (WALB) — Communities across south Georgia paused Friday to remember the nearly 3,000 lives lost in the September 11th attacks 25 years ago, including at a ceremony at Marine Corps Logistics Base Albany.

Former base commanding officer, Col. Alphonso Trimble, was the keynote speaker at the ceremony. Trimble was inside the Pentagon when it was attacked on Sept. 11, 2001.

US marks 25 years since the Sept. 11 attacks, ‘moments that divide time’

WALB News 10’s Quinlan Parker sat down with Trimble, who recalled how the day unfolded and how it continues to shape his life 25 years later.

Inside the Pentagon

Trimble said that fateful day started like any other. He was a junior aide to the Commandant of the Marine Corps, sitting at his desk inside the Pentagon.

“I was sitting at my desk, you know, making the plans for the day, scheduling out the General’s overseas trips,” Trimble said.

When he turned his attention to a TV, he watched the first tower burn and then saw the second plane hit.

“As we were watching the first... the fire from the first plane hitting the North Tower, we immediately saw the second plane going to the South Tower. And at that time, we all looked at each other, and we knew that something very, very bad had happened. We knew that this was intentional,” Trimble said.

The attack reaches the Pentagon

Moments later, the attack reached the building where Trimble worked.

“All of a sudden, we heard a loud bang, a loud noise. The whole building shook and rumbled for like a good two minutes or so... we started orderly moving through the building, exiting the building, helping others get out of the building,” Trimble said.

Outside, Trimble and others shifted from surviving the attack to helping those who were hurt. In the days that followed, Trimble said there was little time to process what had happened.

“In the days that followed, your adrenaline was really still high at that point... The only thing that you could think about was just getting back to or getting to what needed to be done... We knew that we had a job to do,” Trimble said.

Lessons 25 years later

Trimble said the greatest lesson from that day is not just about what happened, but about how people treat one another.

“I think moving forward is to, you know, build that muscle memory, right? Do the things today that you expect in a crisis... check in on your elderly neighbor, check in on an old friend, you know, take care of your neighbors,” Trimble said.

The experience at the Pentagon stayed with Trimble throughout his Marine Corps career, including his time in Albany. Trimble served as commanding officer of Marine Corps Logistics Base Albany from 2018 to 2020, leading the base through missions and challenges while emphasizing resilience, teamwork, and taking care of people.

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