WARNING: Contains graphic details.
The terrorist attacks in the United States on September 11, 2001 changed the world forever. Today, on the 20th anniversary, American immigrants now living in the Bay reflect on that fateful day and how it changed their lives.
The effects of that day stuck with many around the world. Twenty years on, the hurt still feels fresh for some.
Mead Norton remembers the first time he saw the images of planes crashing and helpless people falling from the height of 100 storeys.
The American, now living in Rotorua, was in California at the time. He had been for a bike ride before returning to his apartment later in the morning.
"I turned on the TV and thought 'ahh this is a strange daytime movie to be on'.
"I flipped the channel and it was the same thing and it wasn't until I tuned into ESPN and they didn't have sports on and it was the same footage that I realised it wasn't a movie."
Norton remembers hitting the phone straight away, calling relatives in New York to see if they were okay - thankfully they were.
But the news didn't come without a wait.
"It took me about three days, though, to find out about my cousin who was in the city because all the lines were jammed."
At 9.37am, 50 minutes after the first plane crashed into the North Tower of the World Trade Centre, Flight 77 crashed into the side of the Pentagon in Washington, killing everyone on board and 125 in the building.
A minute before 10am, the South Tower collapsed, killing more than 800 people. Four minutes later Flight 93 crashed in a field near Shanksville, Pennsylvania after passengers fought off the hijackers. It is believed the plane was headed for either the White House or the US Capitol.
Jordan Jones has been living in New Zealand for seven years and has made a base in Rotorua with her partner.
She was in her second-to-last year at a Texas high school when the attack happened.
"I was sitting in English class and one of the teachers from the other classes just walked into the room and said "y'all have got to be watching this" and turned on the TV.
"That's pretty much all we did for the rest of the day."
Jones remembers that people were crying, the air was filled with tension, and a sense of disappointment in what people were capable of doing to each other overwhelmed her.
"It was crazy, it was sad and it was a little bit scary because no one knew what else was going to happen."
American Lyn Maner has considered Rotorua home for 15 years. While she is proud to call New Zealand home, she has not forgotten her connection with the United States.
"Thinking back to 9/11 makes me feel really fortunate to live in a country that is so unified, and in a city where I feel absolutely safe, included and respected as an individual and a resident, even with my 'funny accent'.
"New Zealand isn't without its own struggles but it's awesome to see how the country has pulled together in times like these, and how we, mostly, fight side-by-side to stamp out things like the pandemic and terrorism."
American Carrie Brown-Davies, now lives in the Bay of Plenty but told the Rotorua Daily Post Weekend it took her a long time to board an airplane after the events in 2001.
"I remember I was supposed to be heading into the studio that day, I was a television producer. But I got a call from my mother who said 'wake up, get out of bed, our country is under attack'."
With her mother virtually screaming down the phone, Brown-Davies turned the television on and was stuck in front of it for the majority of the day.
"It was absolutely surreal."
Driving down the highway past the exit for Los Angeles airport, LAX, later that day and witnessing the signs informing people it was closed made the situation very real, she said.
"Here we were, across the country from where that happened, and everything was shut down because they didn't know what was going to happen next.
"It was an absolute sense of fear that gripped our nation and I still get goosebumps talking about it."
Brown-Davies said the attacks left her feeling scared, and apprehensive about leaving the house. Being in another large city, she couldn't help but wonder if Los Angeles would be next.
However, as each day passed and more information came to light, the fear slowly dissolved - although not completely.
"Flying was incredibly scary and you started to hear personal accounts, like my friend who was a flight attendant and lost some of her colleagues that were on the planes [that crashed] or another friend who had an apartment near the World Trade Centre - and finding body parts on his window."
Brown-Davies said the fear of being on a plane stayed with her and her friends for years.
When asked how she moved past that fear, she said it was a matter of mental strength.
"It's kind of looking at the odds of it, knowing that if this is going to happen, it's gonna happen. I think a lot of it was saying 'we've got to continue our lives. We can't let terrorism stop us.' Because isn't that mostly what they want?"
The September 11 attacks are among the deadliest terrorist incidents in history
Al-Qaeda hijacked four planes, each with the aim of crashing into a prominent American landmark.
A total of 2977 people were killed in the attacks, along with the 19 hijackers. Of those, 246 were on the four planes, 2606 were in the World Trade Centre and the surrounding area, and 125 were at the Pentagon.
8.46am – Flight 11 crashes into the North Tower of the World Trade Centre in New York City, striking between floors 93 and 99.
9.03am – Flight 175 crashes into the South Tower, hitting between floors 77 and 85.
9.37am – Flight 77 crashes into the side of the Pentagon, killing everyone on board and 125 in the building.
9.59am – The South Tower collapses, killing more than 800 people.
10.03am – Flight 93 crashes in a field near Shanksville, Pennsylvania, after passengers fight off the hijackers. It is believed the plane was headed for either the White House or US Capitol.
10.15am – The outer ring of the Pentagon collapses.
10.28am – The North Tower collapses, killing more than 1600 people.
Firefighters spend hours tackling the blazes and rescuing people from the rubble. Almost 350 were killed during service.
Jetstar's first planes to Sydney and Gold Coast have taken off from Hamilton this week.