Survivor Recalls Memories of Pentagon Attack
(September 4, 2008) | 
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| WASHINGTON, Sept. 2, 2008 – The emotional
trauma caused by memories of the Sept. 11, 2001, terrorist
attack on the Pentagon have dulled some for survivor Patrick
Smith, but the pain will never leave him.
“It's an image that haunted [me] repeatedly for at least the
first couple of years,” he said. “I guess the trauma of it
subsides over the years, but it never goes away.”
Smith, an information management specialist for the Army's
deputy chief of staff for personnel, spoke to the Pentagon
Channel last week before the seven-year anniversary of the
morning hijackers drove American Airlines Flight 77 into a
section of the Pentagon next to Smith's office.
His desk sat in a second-floor office on the western side of
the building, in the middle of the Pentagon's five
concentric rings. A nearby coworker watching television
informed Smith and his colleagues that an airplane had
struck one of the World Trade Center towers in New York
City.
The initial confusion crystallized into clear and present
danger, as footage appeared showing another plane barreling
into the second tower.
“Certainly when the second plane hit, all of us knew this
was a terrorist action going on,” he recalled.
Smith, like other coworkers, intermittently checked back at
the TV for updates. Around 9:40 a.m., as he approached the
TV, he heard a loud crash.
“I could see the top of the wall coming inward,” he
recalled. “At the same time, the ceiling tiles started
falling from the ceiling, wires were starting to fall. Of
course, this seemed like a long period of time. Actually, it
was probably fractions of seconds.”
The power shorted. The office fell black. Then a burst of
fire ripped through the ceiling toward Smith.
“I could basically hear the hairs on my head, the hairs on
my arms, crackling from the intense heat -- prior to any
flame ever touching me,” he recalled.
“The fireball starting advancing towards me, and momentarily
I was frozen until I really got the sense of what was going
on,” he said. “I started to turn and get away, and I noticed
one of my coworkers basically inside the fireball, waving
her arms.
“I stood there hoping she could keep on coming. I was at a
standstill. Do I go in to try and get her? Do I wait for her
to come out?” he said. “Unfortunately, she basically went
down, and I just couldn't find her again.”
Smith crawled along the floor until he could feel the
sprinkler system spraying him. He evacuated the building and
received medical treatment shortly after.
Though Smith survived, the attack would claim the lives of
184 victims, to whom the Pentagon Memorial -- a two-acre
park near the point of impact with an illuminated sculptural
element and lighted reflecting pool in memory of each person
lost -- will be dedicated next week.
Smith, who received the Defense of Freedom Medal, the
civilian equivalent of the military's Purple Heart, said the
interview was the first time he'd spoken out about his
experience.
“It wasn't until just this past anniversary last year that I
did go out to Arlington [National Cemetery] with one of my
coworkers who was injured as a result,” he said. “And it was
a good feeling to pay tribute to those resting in Arlington
right now.” | |
By John J. Kruzel
American Forces Press Service
Copyright 2008
Reprinted
from American
Forces Press Service / DoD
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