YORK, S.C. — Most people remember where they were the morning the planes hit the Twin Towers on September 11. The deadliest terror attack in the United States left nearly 3,000 people dead.

This year marks 20 years since the attacks, and a man living in South Carolina remembers being on a plane that fateful day.

What You Need To Know

  • 2021 marks 20 years since the attacks of September 11.

  • Jim and Phyllis Knubel were on a plane home to New York when the attacks happened.

  • The Knubels' plane was diverted to Canada, and there the couple met strangers who would become lifelong friends.

Jim Knubel and his late wife Phyllis were headed home to New York after a safari vacation in Africa. They were over the open ocean when two planes slammed into the Twin Towers.

“The first indication we had any kind of problem was when the captain told us there was a problem in New York,” said Knubel.

Their plane was one of 38 that was diverted to Newfoundland, Canada.

“As we were coming in for a landing you just saw all these planes off to the side on the taxiways, and you just thought, something is not right,” Knubel said. “Well it was a little bit scary to me, because you had no communication. We were out of touch with everybody.”

That chance diversion led to a friendship that would span decades. After they got off the plane, the Knubels were taken to a Red Cross shelter.

At the shelter, a woman named Carole Findlay came to help translate for passengers. She eventually invited the Knubels back to the home of Gordon and Alison Head so they would have a comfortable place to stay.

The Knubels stayed with the Heads for five days. Even after they flew home to New York, the friendship stayed strong.

“They’re like an extended family,” said Knubel.

This tradition born out of tragedy is the one bright spot for the group from that dark day.

“It was a sad thing because of what happened to everybody else,” said Findlay. “But for us, for him and Phyllis to come into our lives, it’s just awesome that we have such a nice bond.”

“If we had stayed at the shelter, we would’ve got food, we would’ve got water, we would’ve gotten whatever we needed physically,” Knubel said. “But when you’re with people that really care about you, and you get that emotional connection, it just lifts your spirit.”

Knubel said he is trying to plan a trip to Canada in Spring 2022, depending on the state of the pandemic.