World

Widower Recalls Watching Hijacked Plane Before Wife's Death in 9/11 Attacks

By Today News Hours Editorial Desk

Twenty-five years ago, Charles Wolf watched a plane fly low over his New York City apartment on a clear morning and immediately sensed something was wrong. Moments later, the aircraft struck the north tower of the World Trade Center, where his wife Katherine, originally from Swansea, was working. Katherine died instantly, becoming one of 2,977 people killed in the al-Qaeda attacks on the United States on 11 September 2001.

Charles, who later led efforts to secure fair compensation for victims' families, said his "wonderful" wife would be proud of the campaign he waged in her memory.

The couple met in New York in 1988, when Charles was singing with a theatre group and Katherine worked as a piano accompanist. "We met quite accidentally outside the rehearsal hall and we fell in love with each other in about two minutes, and that was it," he recalled. He said meeting her felt like hitting "the jackpot," adding, "There was no parting us."

In 1989, Katherine brought Charles to the UK, including visits to Welsh towns such as Machynlleth and Llanfairpwllgwyngyll, whose names he admitted he struggled to pronounce. "It was just the beginning," he said. "We had a wonderful, wonderful relationship."

On the morning of 11 September 2001, Charles kissed Katherine goodbye at 08:06 EDT as she left their New York apartment. Forty minutes later, a hijacked jet struck the 97th floor of the north tower — the exact floor where Katherine had begun a new job less than two weeks earlier.

A trained pilot himself, Charles recognized the danger the moment the aircraft flew over his building. "I knew instantly... that it was a twin-engine jet at full throttle," he said. He immediately called the FBI to report that the crash was no accident. A year later, an FBI agent told him he had been the first person to alert authorities that the crash was deliberate.

Katherine had told her husband she worked in "building one," but confusion over which tower was which left Charles uncertain of her fate. He could see smoke rising a mile from their home but could not reach her by phone. Three days later, her employer confirmed that no one had escaped above the 91st floor of the north tower — six floors below her office.

"She didn't know it was going to happen and she never felt a thing," Charles said, adding that all those on her floor "were vaporized instantaneously." He said he found some comfort in knowing she did not suffer, unlike others who faced impossible choices as the towers burned.

In total, 2,977 people, not counting the 19 hijackers, died in the 9/11 attacks. Thousands more were injured or later fell ill due to exposure to toxic debris, including many first responders.

After the tragedy, Charles became a prominent advocate for fair compensation for victims' families, pushing back against the U.S. government-run September 11th Victim Compensation Fund until it was expanded to cover more people more equitably. His story later inspired the Netflix film Worth, in which he was portrayed by actor Stanley Tucci.

Speaking to BBC-produced Newyddion S4C from New York, Charles said Katherine would have been proud of his efforts. "She would say, 'I knew you could do it.' Katherine had absolute faith in me. She was wonderful, absolutely wonderful."

Wales' First Minister Rhun ap Iorwerth, who was a BBC journalist at the time, also reflected on the aftermath of the attacks. He had been on holiday in Vermont with his wife and daughter when the attacks occurred and later traveled to New York to report on the unfolding crisis. "I remember arriving and it being a distinctly different city... the sense of shock, which was palpable on the streets of New York," he said.

He added that much of the past 25 years of global history had been shaped by that day, including the rise of the "war on terror," heightened tensions, and Islamophobia. "We've also learnt that cool heads are needed, even in those most horrific of circumstances," he said.

Last weekend, more than 200 firefighters from across the UK marked the 25th anniversary of 9/11 by climbing 110 floors — roughly 2,226 steps — in full protective gear in Atlanta, Georgia. Each participant represented one of the 343 firefighters who died responding to the attacks.

Among them was Carl Williams, a station manager with Mid and West Wales Fire and Rescue Service, who took part with eight colleagues. He described the climb as "quite humbling," recalling the emotional scenes as participants finished. "Nobody expects to go to work and not come home that day," he said.

A documentary marking 25 years since the 9/11 attacks, produced by Newyddion S4C, is now available to view on YouTube.