Remembering the Oklahoma City bombing 20 years later

Remembering the Oklahoma City bombing 20 years later

By Deborah Grau

When T.S. Eliot wrote, “April is the cruelest month,” he probably didn’t know how prescient that observation would be.  In fact, so many tragic stories have happened during this month.  The Columbine High School massacre, The Virginia Tech shooting and just two years ago, the Boston Marathon bombing.

And on April 19, 1995, the deadliest domestic act of terrorism in U.S. history took place when a truck bomb detonated and blasted through the Alfred P. Murrah Federal Building in Oklahoma City.  168 people were killed, including 19 small children and injured hundreds more.

This Sunday marks the 20th anniversary.  Yahoo Global News Anchor Katie Couric revisits that day which changed “the heartland” of America forever.  In their own words, a mother, first responder, sister and survivor recount that fateful day.

Kathleen Treanor lost her four year-old daughter Ashley and her in-laws.  Oklahoma City firefighter Cecil Clay was part of the rescue and recovery efforts. Susan Winchester lost her sister Dr. Margaret “Peggy” Clark and is now the chairman of the Oklahoma City National Memorial Foundation.  Ruth Schwab survived the blast that killed many of her co-workers.  All four of them have different stories but are inextricably connected by the tragic event that took place on April 19, 1995 at 9:02 am.