Description:
Oklahoma City had the dubious distinction of being the site of the worst terrorist act in the United States, until the events of September 11th, 2001. On April 19th, 1995, a bomb hidden inside a rented truck exploded outside the Alfred P. Murrah Federal Building. The explosion reduced the building to rubble, killing 168 people. 19 of the victims were children.
Oklahoma City responded to the tragedy with what later became known as the “Oklahoma Standard.” Fire personnel were at the scene in minutes. Police, sheriff’s deputies, state troopers and EMSA units quickly converged as well. A disaster management plan went into effect with relative calm and smooth coordination. Ordinary citizens poured downtown to offer assistance. People lined up to donate blood. Local restaurants and businesses donated food and materials to rescue workers as needed. The local media made themselves available to get important information out to the public. Medical personnel flooded into hospitals, offering their assistance.
Two men were charged with the crime: Timothy J. McVeigh and Terry L. Nichols. Both men had in the past expressed strong opposition to the Federal government. A third man, Michael Fortier, was charged with aiding McVeigh and Nichols. All three men were American citizens. McVeigh was convicted and received the death penalty. Nichols was also convicted and sentenced to life in prison without possibility of parole. Fortier was given a 23-year sentence.
Dedicated in 2000, the Oklahoma City National Memorial was built on the site of the destroyed federal building. Clustered on a grassy slope are 168 empty chairs, overlooking a healing pool of water. Beyond the pool stands the Survivor Tree, an American elm that lost all its leaves after the bombing and became a gathering place for family members and survivors.
Resources:
Forever changed. Prometheus Books. Amherst, NY. 1998.
Hansen, Jon. Oklahoma Rescue. Ballantine Books. New York. 1995.
Sherrow, Victorial. The Oklahoma City Bombing. Enslow Pub. Springfield, NJ. 1998.
Further Reading:
Final report on the bombing of the Alfred P. Murrah Building. Oklahoma City. Oklahoma Bombing Investigation Committee. 2001.
Linenthal, Edward T. The Unfinished Bombing. New York. Oxford University Press. 2001.
Michel, Lou, and Herbeck, Dan. American Terrorist. New York. HarperCollins. 2001.
We will never forget. Austin, TX. Eakin Press. 1996.