EL PASO, Texas (KTSM) — Twenty-two years ago, everything seemed to change in an instance of pure horror.

Terrorists hijacked four airplanes, flying two into the World Trade Center in New York City and a third into the Pentagon in Washington. A fourth plane crash landed in a field in rural Pennsylvania after passengers learned about the earlier attacks and attempted to overtake the hijackers.

Nearly 3,000 people died in the attacks, including 343 members of the New York City Fire Department and 72 law-enforcement officers. At the time, that was nearly half of the number of on-duty deaths in the NYFD’s entire history.

The aftermath plunged the United States into two wars — in Iraq and Afghanistan, lasting more than a decade.

The El Paso Fire Department held a memorial ceremony on Monday, Sept. 11, in commemoration of those who lost their lives during the terrorist attacks on Sept. 11, 2001. Tony Pina/KTSM 9 News

Even after two decades, it is hard to look back on that day and not think it was some sort of hideous nightmare.

Starting this weekend, the Borderland will remember that day with a handful of events.

Here is a look at a few.

  • El Paso Fire will be hosting a 9/11 Memorial Ceremony at 10 a.m. Monday, Sept. 11, at Fire Station 18, 7901 San Jose Road.
  • Las Cruces Fire will hold a silent watch at 8:30 a.m. Monday at Fire Station 1, 201 E Picacho Ave. Starting at 8:46, they will sound bells in commemoration of the first attack on the World Trade Center on 9/11.
  • Starting at 8 a.m. Sunday, Sept. 10, Las Cruces firefighters will be participating in a memorial stair climb at the Electronic Caregiver Tower, 506 S. Main St. Note: The stair climb, while not closed to the public, will be held in a private building and the stairwell is not conducive to public viewing.
  • The U.S. Border Patrol Big Bend Sector will host a 9/11 event at 8 a.m. Monday, Sept. 11 at the Alpine Border Patrol Station, 3003 West Highway 90 in Alpine.

Of course, if you want to remember quietly at home, that is great too.

Here are some movies that involve 9/11 or its aftermath: “Extremely Loud and Incredibly Close” from 2011; “Reign Over Me” from 2004; “United 93” from 2006; and “Zero Dark Thirty” from 2012. There are a slew of movies, but those are some of the top critically acclaimed films on the topic.

And of course, there is the epic cable TV series, starring Denis Leary, “Rescue Me” which revolves around New York City firemen who are all haunted by 9/11. Series ran from 2004-2011.