Rare 9/11 footage capturing new angle emerged 20 years after horrific attacks

Warning: Contains Distressing Footage

It's been 22 years since two planes crashed into World Trade Center.

Almost 3,000 people died that day, with many more lives lost and affected in its aftermath.

In the time that's passed, we've seen countless harrowing images and videos, which showed the devastation caused by the 11th September attack.

But last year, a piece of footage that had never seen the light of day was finally released.

Uploaded to YouTube on 24 February 2022, the nine-minute clip shows the horrifying moment the second hijacked plane - United Airlines flight 175 - flew into the South Tower, less than 20 minutes after American Airlines flight 11 hit the North Tower.

YouTube/Kevin Westley

The person filming, Kevin Westley, appears to have been standing with a large group by the water's edge at the time.

There are audible gasps as the second plane appears in the sky and heads straight towards the Twin Towers.

When the plane crashes into the second tower, a huge fireball erupts, with the crowd heard screaming and someone saying: "Did you see that? He did it on purpose!"

Since the video was uploaded, it has been viewed millions of times and sparked a visceral reaction with those who've seen it.

"I’ve never seen this. Hopefully this video won’t get taken off. The fact you captured this happening is so surreal," one person commented.

"This video is incredible. It doesn't zoom in on the 2nd plane. It's like you're there," another said.

While someone else pointed out: "It’s so bizarre to see a new angle of something traumatic and disastrous that you’ve seen so many times before so many years later."

You can watch the clip here:

Others, however, were left with more questions than answers, some suspicious as to why the uploader had waited so long to release the footage.

One user asked: "Why did it take Kevin over 20 years to upload the best quality video of the 9-11 attacks?"

Seemingly responding to some of the questions, Mr Westley explained in the clip's caption that he had actually posted it a long time ago.

"I posted this video in the 2000's but accidentally left it private for until now," he wrote.

Concluding his post, he said: "Let us Pray. God we pray for those some 3000 that died on these fields as their life blood flowed out.

"Also we pray for those 100,000 who spilled that life blood and left a piece of their soul on this battlefield. Amen."