Rep. Frank Lucas reflects on 9/11, 24 Years Later

Today marks 24 years since the September 11th terror attacks. Oklahoma Representative Frank Lucas sat down with our Alex Cameron to reflect on the day.

What do you remember about the day of 9/11?

"I remember that day clearly. I was here. Matter of fact, I was in my office that morning waiting on delegation from the Oklahoma Bankers Association, who, because of the circumstances, never made it to the building. I was standing with my staffers, discussing the coming day's activities, and one of the junior staffers rushed in and said 'Turn on the television,' something horrendous has happened in New York City. And we flipped the TV on and we're watching on of the World Trade Center's burn. We say the second plane plow through the second building, and at that point, I and my staff knew this was not an accident, that we were under attack.

There's now a generation of kids who were either born either just around that time or after who may not have any personal recollection of 9/11. What would you want them to know about that day and how this nation responded?

"No matter how amazingly strong this country is, the principles of our republic are the constitution. No matter how strong our military and our national security are, we are always subject to threats. People who don't understand out way of life, don't understand our system, don't understand us. And that day demonstrated that misguided, I would argue sick or deranged minds working hard enough can cause horrendous damage and death. We have to be ever vigilant and know that can happen again. Just because it may not have happened in the memory of many of my fellow Americans who are alive, born since then, or come of age since then, it can happen."

Of course, it immediately created a bond between New York City and Oklahoma City. What similarities did you notice in the way both places handled tragedy.

"Well first, both were unimaginable tragedies that happened instantly, by total surprise. But the response, whether it was in Oklahoma City, and my office at the time was a block and a half away from what had been the Murrah Building, or the response in New York City. When tragedies occurred, people didn't run away. They came charging to help. Whether it was the police men, the firemen in Oklahoma City who responded immediately to begin the rescue efforts to save those who could be saved at the Murrah site, or in New York City, the firemen and police men who rushed to those burning buildings before they collapsed down to try and save people. People didn't step back. They stepped up and went forward. The process of rebuilding the communities and having a forward focus.