UNITED STATES ARMY CENTER OF MILTTARY HISTORY INTERVIEW OF Fort elle ‘Department NEI? 209 CONDUCTED BY ‘The Center of Militery History ar The Pentagon October 30, 2001 ‘TAPE TRANSCRIPTION2 PROCEEDINGS ‘today's date is October 30, 2001. This is an oral 3 history interview. a 46th Military History 4 Detachment. If you would for the text, please state your name and who 5 you are 3 an QIBEMIGF 22 2 work at rort wer rixe 7 Department This interview is unclassified 9 Do you understand that this interview is being given voluntarily? 10 Yes. u Until such time as the transcription is made, and you 12 have reviewed it, do you give permission for it to be used by the U.S 13. amy Center of Militery History for use in official publications, 14 provided you were quoted accurately? 16 (GEDMEIMERG 10 2000 nave you been 2 fizenan? a BRERA 000 seven years 20 BBB. sasaye nore a core wer? 29 MBB. vas in ene tarine comps, and then, also, at 20 Mes (naudibie). 1 came here in August of this year a August. Is this hore, this area, washington, D.c., 22 area?10 a a 2B 15 16 v0 18 1s 20 an 22 Zt is for my wife, yesh. (1naudible.) (PMID 01222 rome £0 you. okay. what, what was going on with you on September ifth before tie World Trade Center bonb? what were you doing when you heard about that? 2 was part of the crew down there at the Pentagon Fize Station. We had justivatch che wwo twin covers get hit, and we were outeide talking about the incident, and that’s when ve saw the plane, and (incident) it thin stareed to run avay from the building -~ and got off the - and started a couple vehicles (inaudible) hen you saw the plane - I mean do you see planes regularly in that'area from the airport? ves So did you know fairly soon that that plane wasn’t where it was supposed to be? Yes, because it vas only 300 yards away when we saw ae mean had it been land how long -- had it departed -~ going in one direction, and you all saw it turn, or did you just ~~ T just saw it about 300 yards away. 300 yards away, and coming right for the building? correct. What went through your head, or did anything?10 an 12 3 Fry 15 16 7 18 1s 20 22 22 Nothing. Just to get out of there Wow! I know this is probably hard to describe ~~ someone who hasn’t got any sleep, or -- what did it feel like, and what did it sound like? QIN 2122 20000 28h0 anything unts1 you actuatty hear it. (inaudible. 1 just remenber starting to run. Heard the horrible crash behind me. Saw the next big orange glow (inaudible) on the ground. Getting myself up from the blast, and got our gear on, and started to go to work. == Did you get burned? MMB 22, = 0% sone minor burns to my arms and my back, and some lacerations (inaudible) . AMMEN 50s sesenter hot vas the ftzst ting you sata? III = 200: conenter. 122 aia, 1 probably couldn't say it here - shouldn't be saying ali that. (MMBBIERIY 22012 be said on ope. So your gear was right there. 1 mean it didn’t take you all hardly any time to probably get it ‘he truck -- if your truck already gone you Do you ma all get to your truck right away, or vas it already toast. PBB 5 co: so, ane tarcea ie. searted te up10 a a2 43 rr 45 16 7 16 as 20 21 22. Gnaudibie.) oh my goodness! So salvaged what gear we could off the truck. Some medical supplies, extinguishers to put out small fires around it, emergency tanks (inaudible) . It’s not funny at all, but isn’t there irony when a fire truck burns up at fire station Did you think that? No, No, it Bidn’t cross my mind a fixe truck is on fire. So you go ~~ are there -- just try, if you could, describe it for me. People are pouring out of the building. What does it look like to you ad you go toward the building? (Inaudible) lots of the airplane burning, some high trees, and glass flying (inaudible), and people are pouring from the exits, from the doors, from che windows. For the most part the people that we saw were (inaudible). Do you have any (inaudible) in effect? Any kind of alarms or warning or sirens or anything that you would ada today, or did you hear Arlington? AH. AB you. Ah10 u a2 a3 aa as 16 0 ae as 20 aa 22 Did you all call arlington, or - Did you call Arlington? or (inaudible) in the truck, started the truck, gave the first dispatch out to our people. Told them that (inaudible). How long before you think before Arlington {inaudible} ? Tt was a real quick response from (inawdihla) You, you probably have heard people -- the emergency crew from around here thought you were sneaking inside the Pentagon guess they had sone kind of security {inaudible} as well (inaudible.) Did you know ~ what to do? -- No. Inaudible.) Were you familfar enough with the building layout and everything (inaudible) to know where you need to go, and how you need to direct people? Yes. (Inaudible) and that’s all I (inaudible) severe (inaudible) triage stations. After it happened you're trying te be (inaudible) you already have an assessment of what you were dealing with in there. I mean you'sre dealing -- I immediately think of, My God, this is -- look at all this jet fuel around us10 a az 13 4 15 16 vv ae 19 20 22 22 What was the thought? How did you know what you were going in for? Did you know what was -~ I've been on plenty of airplane crashes before, in \ the Marine Corps. . (inaudible) oh, okay. I was (inaudibie) part of my career Does it get any easier? Ah, yeah, actually that was probably the worst one Wi I’ve ever been on, because (inaudible) Anybody (inaudible) ? Oh, no, not really. (Inaudibie.) Wag it ~~ what was it likey Lots of smoke, lots of really, really hot (inaudible)? (Inaudible), lots of black smoke and vere -- was it easy -- T don'=t want to say easy, but was the escape route fairly marked where people could get out, or Were people along the way trying to help them through the right corridors? (Inaudible?) T never even made entry to the building until (inaudible) - Oh, okay, yeah. So it's awhile ~~ 10 it's strictly. (Inaudible) windows, and10 n a2. 3B 14 a3. 16 Ww 18 19 20 an 22 (inaudible) MD 20.0106.) there vas something =» at some point people were talking about another plane, or other attacks on the Washington, D.c., area Did you hear any of that while you were out there? QIN 0 01200 ont oF there several tines. (inauaibie.) they in the seme area where you were? Fad z—_ inaudible.) Was there @ point after slow dow, and I’m sure you were there probably most of the day, where they checked on your burns, and everything? exiage (inaudible) GAMING 205, wren you got enny fron the (Lnavatnted nospieat id all this Kind of hit you again? What had happened? Tt all happened at such 2 fast pace when you vere there. Did the reality of It kind of stay until Inter, or did -- is it all zeal to you? RMMMMBIIG 7252 2021, you. RII 30 xe: teagine. ere they working up plane to i (inaudible) the fire department right there at the Pentagon? pid you all1 10 a Fry a uw as 16 vv ae as 20 2 22 have some emergency plan that you practiced, or sone scenarios that ~ ul crashes, you (inaudible) maybe you’ ve department. Is there any way else that, that you could do disaster? po you need to be Station (inaudible) probably have had opportunities to No, no, none Wone of that Right, right Not for that. For Like helicopter Is there ~~ what if you're out of the situation that to be prepared for that? (inaudible) Learned as a person here at the fire to be more prepared for that kind of Is there anything more prepared for that kind of disaster? for the Marine Corps Air Tt’s just (inaudible) working with so (inaudible). QRMBMMIG 2022 svete) major airports (inaudible). Do they not do that here in Washington? Cee MEI 20 1008 to probaniy Probably. Well T guess with your work for the Marine Corps you had to be, 1/11 say brave 1 mean that’s what it is to me, bravery, to risk your life to go help other people. Was this the bravest you ever had to be? Yeah, I think so (inaudible)10 a a a 4 as 16 a7 18 19 20 10 (inaudible?) R (inaudible.) Your family out there -- your wife's heard about all WI this. She about absolutely had gone crazy, but when were you able to talk to her, and tell her you were okey bout four o'clock in the afternoon. So had she already gone crazy twice waiting for the tl hearsay? Oh, no. We never could work (inaudible) nome numbers, so T didn’t get hold of her, and, no, she knows what this is about when 1 told her (inaudible) Yeah. Well 7 have all my regular questions. is there anything that you want to add to the tape ae far ag (inaudible) Something that maybe stands out in your mind as significant, or a picture that you're keeping with you that, you know, you want to ada to the history, or anything you need to ada? No. I sure appreciate your time. (The interview was concluded.)