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The Watonga Chamber of Commerce held a community coffee and ribbon cutting Sept. 8 at the new offices of Ward Glass attorneys on North Weigle across from the courthouse. Shown are (L to R) Sandra Cole, director of the Ferguson Home Museum, Dr. Joe Bryan, Dr. Fred Lucas, Ryan Sproul, field representative for Sen. Jim Inhofe, Bobbi Tillery, administrative director of the Watonga Chamber of Commerce, Tanner France, attorney with Ward Glass, Greg France, Cornerstone Bank and father of Tanner France, Dr. Larry Major, Teresa France, paralegal at Ward Glass, Travis Bradt, Watonga City Council and Woody Glass, attorney at Ward Glass. Connie Burcham

Nineteen years ago Friday, the world, including America, was glued to its television screen as events in Washington, New York and Pennsylvania unfolded. It was the day 19 terrorists associated with al Qaeda commandeered four airliners and turned them into huge weapons. At 8:45 a.m. the first plane, loaded with fuel for a transcontinental flight slammed into the 80th floor of the World Trade Center. Many were killed in the building and many more were trapped above the crash site. Less than 20 minutes later a second plane would crash into the south tower at the 60th floor. That was when the first crash was no longer an accident, and America was under attack.

When the Watonga City Council, meeting Sept. 1 as the Public Works Authority, came to the matter of the Watonga Hospital CT unit expansion, there was one burning question. How could the estimate have been so wrong?