The town of 10,000, which rallied to house and feed 6,500 stranded passengers for several days after North American airspace was shut down in the hours following the terrorist attacks of Sept. 11, 2001, will receive the International Resilience Award from the Center for National Policy.

"The story is an amazing one. The townspeople, with literally no warning, took into their homes 6,500 passengers who were strangers in need at a time of crisis," said Scott Bates, the centre's vice-president.

"For us, this is a moment of community heroism," Bates said. "It's something that we want to showcase so that people in the United States remember what Canada did for us and also, perhaps more importantly, how Gander is an example of how communities across North America should respond in a time of crisis.

"Rather than coming apart, they came together."

Zane Tucker, Gander's deputy mayor, said the town is humbled by the recognition of its efforts 10 years ago.

"We didn't do it to be recognized, or for thanks or accolades, but it is humbling that people still remember what Gander did 10 years afterwards," he said from Gander Wednesday. "One thing that Newfoundlanders and Labradorians are known for is their generous hospitality. What happened in Gander 10 years ago just exemplified the spirit that we as a province have."

Gander has been given two pieces of twisted steel from the World Trade Center wreckage as recognition of the town's gallant efforts in the aftermath of 9-11. The second piece arrived Wednesday, and Tucker said the twisted steel will be housed at the town's aviation museum as part of the 9-11 display.

Defence Minister Peter MacKay is also expected to give a keynote address at the summit in D.C. Thursday.

In the hours following the 9-11 terrorist attacks, some 38 transatlantic flights were diverted to Gander. Newfoundland took in almost half of all the flights rerouted to Canada from U.S. destinations when North American airspace was shut down on Sept. 11, 2001.

bryn.weese@sunmedia.ca

"The actual number of diverted aircraft and passengers varies from each source. Transport Canada said over 33,000 passengers on 224 flights arrived in Canada, whereas Nav Canada said 239 flights. According to Chrétien, the number of flights was anywhere between 225 and 250 and the number of passengers between 30,000 and 45,000."