1995 — April 19, Terror Bombing, Alfred P. Murrah Federal Bldg., Oklahoma City, OK– 168

— 169  Delatte. Beyond Failure: Forensic Case Studies for Civil Engineers. 2009, p. 155.[1]

— 168  Duwe, Grant.  Mass Murder in the United States: A History. McFarland, 2007, p. 28.

— 168  FBI. Famous Cases & Criminals. “Terror Hits Home: The Oklahoma City Bombing.”

— 168  Jenkins. “Oklahoma City bombing. Terrorist attack, United States (1995).” Britannica.

— 168  Exponent Engineering and Scientific Consulting. Oklahoma City Bombing.

— 168  History.com. “Oklahoma City Bombing.” Accessed 2-25-2016

— 168  National Fire Protection Association (NFPA). Key Dates in Fire History. 1996.

— 168  NFPA. U.S. Unintentional Fire Death Rates by State. December 2008, p. 24.

— 168  Oklahoma City National Memorial & Museum. “History and Mission.”

— 168  Oklahoma Department of Civil Emergency Management. After Action Report. Page 16.

— 168  Wikipedia. “Oklahoma City bombing.” 5-30-2012.

— 167  Drabek, Thomas E. The Human Side of Disaster. CRC Press, 2010, 212.

 

Narrative Information

 

Exponent Engineering and Scientific Consulting: “On April 19, 1995 a 4,800-pound bomb, concealed in a rented truck, exploded 20 feet from the Alfred P. Murrah Federal Building in downtown Oklahoma City. The explosion and partial collapse of the nine-story building killed 168 people and injured several hundreds more.” (Exponent Engineering and Scientific Consulting. Oklahoma City Bombing.)

 

FBI: “On the morning of April 19, 1995, an ex-Army soldier and security guard named Timothy McVeigh parked a rented Ryder truck in front of the Alfred P. Murrah Federal Building in downtown Oklahoma City. He was about to commit mass murder. Inside the vehicle was a powerful bomb made out of a deadly cocktail of agricultural fertilizer, diesel fuel, and other chemicals. McVeigh got out, locked the door, and headed towards his getaway car. He ignited one timed fuse, then another. At precisely 9:02 a.m., the bomb exploded. Within moments, the surrounding area looked like a war zone. A third of the building had been reduced to rubble, with many floors flattened like pancakes. Dozens of cars were incinerated and more than 300 nearby buildings were damaged or destroyed.

 

“The human toll was still more devastating: 168 souls lost, including 19 children, with several hundred more injured.

 

“It was the worst act of homegrown terrorism in the nation’s history….” (FBI. Famous Cases & Criminals. “Terror Hits Home: The Oklahoma City Bombing.”

 

OK DEM: “At 9:02 a.m., Wednesday, April 19, 1995, terrorism struck Oklahoma City, when a bomb exploded in front of the Alfred P. Murrah Federal Building. The bomb was located within the confines of a 24-foot Ryder rental truck. The explosive mixture had been prepared for charge with a detonation cord and pre-positioned, parked parallel, in a loading lane on the north side of the Murrah Building, near the intersection of N.W. 5th Street and Robinson Avenue. The force of the explosion was of such magnitude that it destroyed approximately one-third of the Murrah Building. The entire north face of the structure was reduced to rubble and each of the nine floors, plus the roof, received extensive damage. Contents of the first and second floors were blown against the southern portion of the building, while the third through ninth floors were initially raised by the blast and proceeded to pancake one atop the other at street level. When the dust cleared, approximately one-third of the structure was located in a pile of debris, measuring in some places 35-feet in height and running the length of the building. At the time of the blast, the Murrah Building housed some 600 federal and contract workers, as well as an estimated 250 visitors.

 

“Federal agencies housed in the Murrah Building included the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, and Firearms; the Drug Enforcement Administration; the Secret Service; the Department of Housing and Urban Development; the Social Security Administration; the U.S. Army and U.S. Marine Corps recruitment offices; the Veterans Administration; the General Accounting Office; the Department of Health and Human Services; the Department of Defense; the U.S. Customs Service; the Department of Agriculture; the Department of Transportation; and, the General Services Administration. An office of the Federal Employees Credit Union and the “America’s Kids” Child Care Development Center were also housed in the building…. [p. 4.]

 

“Damage extended throughout Oklahoma City’s downtown, covering an estimated 48-square-block area. The explosion overturned automobiles and numerous vehicles erupted into flames after the blast. Extensive structural damage was not limited to the Murrah Building, but also extended to the Regency Tower, a twenty-four story, 273-unit apartment complex, located one block to the west. Additionally, directly north of the Murrah Building, the two-story Oklahoma Water Resources Board office building, the six-story, historic, Journal Record Building, and the three-story Athenian Building received heavy damage. Surrounding structures which received the brunt of the explosion included the First Methodist Church and YMCA, to the east; the federal courthouse, to the south; and, the St. Joseph’s Old Cathedral and Rectory, and U.S. Post Office, to the west.

 

“The explosion knocked-out primary and back-up phone lines for the Emergency Medical Services Authority (EMSA), the local ambulance service. Subsequently, 9-1-1 was the only communication remaining. The first call for medical assistance was received by EMSA at 9:03:25 a.m. However, upon hearing the blast, seven emergency medical service (EMS) units responded from EMSA’s headquarters (N.W. 10th St. & Walker Ave.).

 

“First-in fire companies were faced with an overwhelming rescue operation. The closest fire/emergency response units to the scene were at the Oklahoma City Fire Department’s Station One, five blocks away. Emergency personnel and equipment from this station responded immediately to the bombing site. A meeting of the department’s chiefs was in progress at Station One at the time of the explosion. They too reacted immediately to the sound of the blast and relocated to each one’s appropriate point of command. As personnel and apparatus approached the scene, firefighters encountered debris scattered throughout the streets, covering several blocks surrounding the Murrah Building. Passages had to be cleared to allow entry of responding equipment. Additionally, firefighters encountered injured victims fleeing the blast site. Realizing that injuries would be numerous, two medical triage areas were quickly established. Primary triage and treatment was initially positioned at N.W. 6th St. and Robinson Ave. (with medical command), but was later moved to N.W. 5th St. and Robinson Avenue. Secondary triage and treatment was established at the federal building. The injured were staged in these areas awaiting assessment, immediate treatment, and prioritized transportation.  Without delay, fire, emergency medical, law enforcement personnel, voluntary organization workers and many civilians, entered the bombed structure in a massive search and rescue effort. In some instances, human chains were formed to accommodate the safe and rapid removal of victims as they were located. A minimum of two subsequent “bomb scares” forced the evacuation of these personnel. The evacuation of the structure allowed officials to create a controlled perimeter around the dangerous site. Rescue workers were not allowed to re-enter the site until confirmation was given that no additional explosive devices were located.  [p. 5-6.]

 

“On the 19th of April, 1995, 168 people lost their lives for no reason.” [p. 16.]

 

(Oklahoma Department of Civil Emergency Management. After Action Report, Alfred P. Murrah Federal Building Bombing, 19 April 1995 in Oklahoma City, Oklahoma. 3-10-2005 mod.)

 

OK City National Memorial & Museum: “On the morning of April 19, 1995, Timothy McVeigh parked a rental truck with explosives in front of the Alfred P. Murrah Federal Building and at 9:02 am, a massive explosion occurred which sheared the entire north side of the building, killing 168 people.

 

“The Alfred P. Murrah Federal Building was a United States Government office building located in Oklahoma City, Oklahoma. The federal building was constructed in 1977 at a cost of $14.5 million, and was named for federal judge Alfred P. Murrah, an Oklahoma native. By the 1990s the building contained regional offices for the Secret Service, the Drug Enforcement Agency (D.E.A.), and the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives (ATF), and other agencies.

 

“Following the investigation which resulted in the execution of Timothy McVeigh and the sentence of life without parole for Terry Nichols, the surviving structure was demolished with explosives on May 23, 1995.” (OK City Nat. Memorial & Museum.  “History and Mission.”)

 

Wikipedia: “The Oklahoma City bombing was a terrorist bomb attack on the Alfred P. Murrah Federal Building in downtown Oklahoma City on April 19, 1995.  It would remain the most destructive act of terrorism on American soil until the September 11, 2001 attacks.  The Oklahoma blast claimed 168 lives, including 19 children under the age of 6,[2] and injured more than 680 people.[3] The blast destroyed or damaged 324 buildings within a sixteen-block radius, destroyed or burned 86 cars, and shattered glass in 258 nearby buildings.  The bomb was estimated to have caused at least $652 million worth of damage.  Extensive rescue efforts were undertaken by local, state, federal, and worldwide agencies in the wake of the bombing, and substantial donations were received from across the country. The Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) activated eleven of its Urban Search and Rescue Task Forces, consisting of 665 rescue workers who assisted in rescue and recovery operations.

 

“Within 90 minutes of the explosion, Timothy McVeigh was stopped by Oklahoma State Trooper Charlie Hanger for driving without a license place and arrested for unlawfully carrying a weapon.  Forensic evidence quickly linked McVeigh and Terry Nichols to the attack; Nichols was arrested, and within days both were charged.  Michael and Lori Fortier were later identified as accomplices.  McVeigh, an American militia movement sympathizer who was a Gulf War veteran, had detonated an explosive-filled Ryder truck parked in front of the building.  McVeigh’s co-conspirator, Terry Nichols, had assisted in the bomb preparation.  Motivated by his hatred of the federal government and angered by what he perceived as its mishandling of the Waco Siege (1993) and the Ruby Ridge incident (1992), McVeigh timed his attack to coincide with the second anniversary of the deadly fire that ended the siege at Waco.”

(Wikipedia.  “Oklahoma City bombing.” 5-31-2012.)

 

Sources

 

Delatte, Norbert J. Jr.  Beyond Failure: Forensic Case Studies for Civil Engineers. Reston, VA:  American Society of Civil Engineers Press, 2009.

 

Drabek, Thomas E. The Human Side of Disaster. Boca Raton, FL: CRC Press, 2010.

 

Duwe, Grant. Mass Murder in the United States: A History. McFarland, 2007.

 

Exponent Engineering and Scientific Consulting. Catastrophe Response, Sample Projects.  Accessed 8-8-2009 at:  http://www.exponent.com/catastrophe_response1/#tab_projects

 

Federal Bureau of Investigation. Famous Cases & Criminals. “Terror Hits Home: The Oklahoma City Bombing.” Accessed 2-25-2016 at: https://www.fbi.gov/about-us/history/famous-cases/oklahoma-city-bombing

 

History.com. “Oklahoma City Bombing.” Accessed 2-25-2016 at: http://www.history.com/topics/oklahoma-city-bombing

 

Jenkins, John Philip. “Oklahoma City bombing. Terrorist attack, United States (1995).” Encyclopædia Britannica. Accessed 2-25-2016 at: http://www.britannica.com/event/Oklahoma-City-bombing

 

National Fire Protection Association. Key Dates in Fire History. 1996, 2010. Accessed at:  http://www.nfpa.org/itemDetail.asp?categoryID=1352&itemID=30955&URL=Research%20&%20Reports/Fire%20statistics/Key%20dates%20in%20fire%20history&cookie%5Ftest=1

 

National Fire Protection Association (John Hall, Jr.). U.S. Unintentional Fire Death Rates by State. Quincy, MA: NFPA, 31 pages, December 2008.

 

Oklahoma City National Memorial & Museum. “History and Mission.” Accessed 5-31-2012.

http://www.oklahomacitynationalmemorial.org/secondary.php?section=1&catid=193

 

Oklahoma City National Memorial & Museum. “Those Who Were Killed.” Accessed 5-31-2012 at: http://www.oklahomacitynationalmemorial.org/secondary.php?section=1&catid=24

 

Oklahoma Department of Civil Emergency Management. After Action Report, Alfred P. Murrah Federal Building Bombing, 19 April 1995 in Oklahoma City, Oklahoma. 3-10-2005 modification. http://www.ok.gov/OEM/documents/Bombing%20After%20Action%20Report.pdf

 

USA Today. “Victims of the Oklahoma City bombing.” 6-20-2001 update. Accessed 5-31-2012 at: http://www.webcitation.org/5wovK3hIw

 

Wikipedia. “Oklahoma City bombing.” 5-30-2012. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Oklahoma_City_bombing

 

 

 

 

[1] Not used as high estimate.  Preponderance of sources cite 168 fatalities.

[2] Cites:  USA Today.  “Victims of the Oklahoma City bombing.” 6-20-2001 update.

[3] Cites:  Shariat, Sheryll; Sue Mallonnee and Shelli Stephens-Stidham. “Summary of Reportable Injuries in Oklahoma.” Oklahoma State Department of Health, December 1998.