You may know that I worked in the Pentagon for nine years–before 9/11. A former co-worker, Paul, told me his story when I visited a year later.
On 11 September, I was heading from our new offices on the 3rd floor, C Ring to the office of Paul, our UK LNO [liaison officer], on the E ring (outer ring) to give him a CD I had with 1200 house plans on it. My wife and I had finally selected one plan for our new home and I knew he and his wife were about to do the same when he returned to England. As I reached to push the door to leave our office with the CD in a file folder, I had the strongest sense that I should not go out the door and head for the E ring. (It is hard to say whether it was a ‘voice’ or just a strong ’sense’ that I should not go out that door). I instead went to my Colonel’s office near the door and watched the President’s brief announcement that he was heading back to Washington (from Florida).
The time that passed from when I turned away from the door, watched the President and headed back to the door, was less than a minute. Both the COL and I headed toward the door when the building shook and we heard a loud ‘thud’. Then a ‘wave’ of air blew by us and I recall my hair being blown upwards as if I had just walked in front of a large fan. We looked at each other and he said ‘get out’. I opened the door and looked toward the E ring. The blackest smoke I had ever seen (it looked like what I envision Hell to be like) was billowing down the corridor from the D and E rings toward where I was standing. Had I ignored my warning and ventured out, I would have been walking, in the area that was now covered in debris and smoke. I turned away from it towards the A ring and the exit.
The office directly across from ours had their ceiling tiles down or hanging down and people were exiting screaming. I meet a person coming out of that office with blood trickling down his face (I later found out that those offices across were the ‘end’ of the explosion area). We walked together towards the center courtyard where we were immediately met by medical personnel from the Pentagon’s health unit. Since I knew he was in good hands, I went on to the South parking lot as the center court filled with the smell of jet fuel and thick smoke. As I entered the parking lot, I realized I still had the folder with the CD in it. It was 3 months before I finally gave the CD to Paul with this story to go with it. He did not know I was coming to meet him that day.
The planes’ angle (just to the left of our office), saved the entire DCSLOG family from immediate damage. If the plane had flown straight down the 4th corridor, many in DCSLOG would have perished, along with the COL and I; of that I am certain. Most of the DCSLOG offices, fortunately, were untouched except for smoke and some water damage from the subsequent fires and fire fighting efforts.
The next day I was in the LOC [Logistics Operations Center], just trying to be helpful. I believe that returning to the Pentagon and working 14-16 hour days, helped me overcome some of the psychological scars (the horrible vivid dreams and ‘guilt’ feelings that I survived and others had not) that followed me for a few nights after 9-11.
John was pleased that I wanted to share his story, but he added this caveat: “Please make it clear that I was saved by divine intervention. Guardian angels do exist and only by the grace of God am I here to tell you this story.”
