9/11 25th anniversary live updates: Families gather for ceremonies

Ceremonies will be held in New York City, Virginia and Pennsylvania.

Friday marks 25 years since the Sept. 11, 2001, terror attacks, which claimed the lives of 2,977 people at the World Trade Center, the Pentagon and Shanksville, Pennsylvania.

Another 9,000 people have died from 9/11-related illnesses over the last 25 years.

Victims' families, first responders and politicians are gathering for annual remembrance ceremonies at the memorials in downtown Manhattan, the Pentagon in Virginia, and Shanksville, as Americans across the country pause to remember and reflect.

"9/11 Tribute in Light: Live from Lower Manhattan," a one-hour ABC News multiplatform live special, premieres on Friday, Sept. 11, at 8:00 p.m. EDT across ABC, Disney+, Hulu, National Geographic, ABC Owned Television Stations livestreams and ABC News Live.

9-11 25 Years Later, America RemembersABC NewsKey Headlines 1 minute agoFormer presidents attend New York City ceremony 30 minutes ago'Pass their legacies and stories down' 35 minutes agoTrump to attend Pentagon ceremony instead of ground zeroHere's how the news is developing. 1 minute agoFormer presidents attend New York City ceremonyFormer President Barack Obama, former President Joe Biden, former President George W. Bush and their wives are at Friday morning’s New York City 9/11 ceremony.

Other politicians in attendance include New York Sen. Chuck Schumer and former New York City Mayors Rudy Giuliani and Michael Bloomberg.

Vice President JD Vance is also at the lower Manhattan ceremony. President Donald Trump is instead attending the 9/11 tribute at the Pentagon in Virginia, where he’s expected to deliver remarks.

The New York City Fire Department lost 343 members at the World Trade Center. In the last 25 years, another 453 have died of 9/11-related illnesses, mainly cancer, from their service that day and during the immediate aftermath.

“It’s a heavy day for the fire department,” Commissioner Lillian Bonsignore told ABC News. “It’s not slowing down, unfortunately. We continue to live they day over and over again.”

An American flag stands on the 9/11 Memorial for the North Tower in front of 3 and 4 World Trade Center ahead of the 25th anniversary of the attack on the World Trade Center on September 7, 2026, in New York City.Gary Hershorn/ABC News

The NYPD lost 23 members at the World Trade Center. In the last 25 years, another 469 have died of 9/11-related illnesses.

“We have to remember that the largest crime scene in the world very quickly became the largest race and recovery effort that this city certainly has ever seen,” Police Commissioner Jessica Tisch told ABC News.

She said the “vast majority” of officers working in 2001 are no longer with the department, which “makes it all the more important that we pass their legacies and stories down to the next generation.”

President Donald Trump will attend the 9/11 ceremony at the Pentagon in Virginia and will not be at the New York City ceremony at ground zero, according to a White House official.

Vice President JD Vance will go to ground zero, an official said, adding that the three ceremonies at the Pentagon, ground zero and Shanksville, Pennsylvania, will all have administration officials in attendance.

The Tribue in Light is illuminated over lower Manhattan behind the Statue of Liberty in New York City, September 4, 2026.Gary Hershorn/ABC NewsSep 10, 2026, 4:29 PM EDTRemembering the hero search-and-rescue dogsRobert Schnelle remembers being the first member of the New York Police Department's K-9 Unit on the scene when the first plane struck the North Tower of the World Trade Center on Sept. 11.

Seventeen minutes later, Schnelle watched as a second plane struck the South Tower. Less than an hour later, Schnelle and his rescue dog, Atlas, hid for cover when the South Tower collapsed around them.

An American flag stands on the 9/11 Memorial for the South Tower in front of One World Trade Center ahead of the 25th anniversary of the attack on the World Trade Center, September 7, 2026, in New York City.Gary Hershorn/ABC News

For the next eight months, Schnelle and Atlas remained there at what became ground zero, working 12-hour search-and-rescue shifts at the site of the deadliest terror attack in U.S. history.