Volume 6, Issue 14 n September 11, 2011

www.usuhs.mil

The Official USU Newsletter

Ten years later:

USU remembers 

September 11
Sharon Willis

Deputy Vice President 

for External Affairs and 

Managing Editor

Ken Frager

Public Affairs Specialist

Staff Sgt. Matthew Rosine

Production Editor

MC1 Chad Hallford

Writer

Christine Creenan-Jones

Contributing Writer

Lori Fields

Layout and Design

2 The Pulse The Official USU Newsletter

Sunday, September 11, 2011, marks 

the 10th anniversary of the terrorist 

attacks on America. Almost immediately after the planes hit the World Trade 

Center, the Pentagon, and crashed in the 

field in Pennsylvania, USU staff, faculty, 

alumni and students were responding 

in a number of ways, highlighting their 

commitment to the university’s mission of 

“Caring for those in Harm’s Way.”

In this issue of the Pulse, USU personnel 

look back on what they remember about 

that day, how they were called to respond, 

and how that day affected their lives. 

I know that each of us can recall exactly 

where we were when we heard the news and 

then saw the terrible events unfolding on 

the television. I know that I do. 

That day has transfromed our country in 

ways that probably won’t be fully apparent 

for many years to come, but in ways that are 

already quite obvious. From Iraq to Afghanistan, to long lines at security checkpoints 

at airports, these things have come to define 

the past decade.

As we remember those who lost their 

lives on September 11, those who have lost 

their lives since defending our country, 

and those whose lives have been forever 

changed by wounds they have incurred, let 

us also be thankful that we have endured 

and that we will unite around the common 

cause of protecting our country for those 

who will follow us.

Charles L. Rice, M.D.

President

Steaming to Assist

by Christine Creenan-Jones

USU Remembers 9/11

It was a Tuesday morning and a small leak had sprung on 

the second floor of Building A, creating quite a stir among 

USU’s researchers. Growing pools of water inside campus 

laboratories threatened to slow their important work.

Lt. Col. Kevin Riley, Ph.D., a senior administrator in USU’s 

Department of Military and Emergency Medicine at the time, 

was sympathetic but not overly concerned. The seasoned 

officer had travelled to Somalia in the crux of civil war, helped 

bring democracy to Panama, and organized special military 

operations on a battlefield in Saudi Arabia.

Dripping pipes was an easy fix, he thought. So, Riley was 

surprised to find groups of people clamoring down USU’s 

halls – confused and forlorn.

Their worry had shifted from the research they were 

conducting to a much bigger tragedy. The World Trade 

Center in New York had been struck by two planes. A short 

time later, the Pentagon in Washington, D.C. was hit.

Riley – trained by the Air Force to manage such disaster 

– immediately went into action.

He and several other USU leaders met with thenpresident James Zimble and the Brigade Commander to 

formulate emergency plans. Dr. Zimble, a retired Navy rear 

admiral, was “steaming to assist,” but like all good leaders, 

wanted to make sure his crew was taken care of first. 

“Our top priority was getting immediate accountability 

for all USU 

people, including our students and faculty stationed across 

the United States,” said Riley. “Then we began figuring out 

ways to help.”

These combined efforts and President Zimble’s decision 

to continue holding classes helped create a sense of 

normalcy on campus, despite the external chaos.

“I had worked many special operations for the military 

before coming to USU, so I know it’s really important to 

maintain order during crisis moments,” Riley said. “The 

university performed exceptionally well in this vein, 

showing incredible discipline and restraint when panic 

could have easily taken over.”

USU was so organized, in fact, that even complex 

pieces of the curriculum continued despite considerable barriers. Operations Kerkesner and Bushmaster, for 

example, normally held in Texas, were carried out on 

baseball fields adjacent to the university instead just a 

few days after Sept. 11.

“The academic program had to continue, and field 

exercises are important pieces of the curriculum, especially 

during these tumultuous times.” Riley said. “Since our 

students couldn’t fly to the normal training grounds, we 

improvised. Both operations went off without a hitch thanks 

to a lot of hard work from many volunteers.”

“USU’s motto, learning to care for those in harm’s way, 

existed before the September 11 attacks on America,” 

Riley said. “But never before was there such purpose to 

our resolve, which continues for our doctors and nurses 

today in Iraq and Afghanistan, and in our military 

hospitals at home and abroad.”
For MEM professor, memories remain

by Staff Sgt. Matthew Rosine

While many people have a myriad of 

pictures, feelings and memories about 

September 11, 2001, one USU professor 

has a unique perspective to the events. 

On that morning, Jim Holliman, 

M.D., F.A.C.E.P., Center for Disaster and 

Humanitarian Assistance Medicine and 

professor of Military and Emergency 

Medicine was playing host to a special 

group of international visitors. 

“I was hosting a group of four physicians from Iran who were being trained 

in my faculty development program 

conducted by Penn State University in 

conjunction with George Washington 

University,” Dr. Holliman said. 

Dr. Holliman was driving the group 

in a van to Reading, Pennsylvania so 

they could ride along on ambulance 

calls, when the rock ‘n’ roll radio station 

interrupted regular programming with 

an announcement that a plane had 

struck the World Trade Center. 

“I remember thinking how weird 

it was,” he said. “But, after the second 

plane hit, I told my visitors that it had to 

be a terrorist attack. Their eyes got wide, 

and things got really tense.” 

Following the initial attacks, Holliman 

and his visiting physicians took action. 

“These physicians volunteered to 

donate blood if required and travel with 

me to assist if we made a travel response 

to New York City,” Dr. Holliman said. 

Traveling to New York was a very 

real concern for Dr. Holliman. Not 

only was the number of casualties a 

concern, but he also knew the immense 

dust cloud following the attacks would 

severely threaten people suffering from 

asthma or respiratory diseases throughout New York. 

The Pennsylvania Department of 

Health asked Dr. Holliman to collect 

and organize a group of emergency 

physician volunteers to provide 

backup response for New York City. “I 

was able to organize a volunteer group 

of several hundred emergency physicians, nurses and emergency medical 

technicians with transportation assets 

fairly quickly,” said Dr. Holliman. 

“We were also able to communicate with the affected hospitals in 

New York City by email and placed 

our volunteer group on standby to 

respond to New York only if directly 

requested by the hospitals or civil 

authorities there,” he said. “This 

valuable team of medical professionals vigilantly stood by and waited, but 

eventually received notification that 

our volunteer group was not needed 

and we stood down.” 

The September 11 attacks didn’t just 

affect Holliman locally. For some time, 

he had been working to establish the 

first Multi-National Middle Eastern 

Conference on Emergency Medicine. 

The conference had been scheduled 

for October 2, 2001 in Istanbul. But, 

because of security concerns for Americans flying following the attacks, dozens 

of presenters canceled. 

“I had to completely reorganize the 

event,” Dr. Holliman said. “In fact, I 

had to give 28 presentations to fill in for 

cancellations.” 

Now, 10 years after that tragic 

day, the memories remain strong for 

Dr. Holliman. 

“I remember at first how worried I 

was that we would have to activate the 

plan from Operation Desert Shield/

Desert Storm for casualty backup,” Dr. 

Holliman said. “Later, when I heard 

about the limited number of survivors, it left me feeling very depressed. 

But I was also inspired and reassured 

by the tremendous domestic volunteer response we had to the events 

and by the strong and genuine international support we received. I still 

receive condolence memory messages 

from international colleagues on 

every anniversary of September 11.”

September 11, 2011 3

Personal grief for a very public event

by Ken Frager

Daniel K. Jackson, an education 

technician in the USU multidiscipline 

laboratories heard about the attack 

on the Pentagon while working in the 

anatomical labs and listening to the 

radio. A sinking feeling in his stomach 

told him that something terrible was 

happening. Like many who worked 

in the Washington metropolitan area 

at the time, Jackson knew people who 

worked at the Pentagon, including his 

father, Jimmie Holley.

“My parents had been married for 

two years in 2001 but they had been 

together for more than 20 years,” said 

Jackson. “He wasn’t my birth father, 

but he adopted me and my sister 

and treated us like we were his own, 

always calling me his son. He was a 

great man.” 

Mr. Holley worked in accounting for the Army at Ft. McNair and 

Jackson’s mother, Martha JacksonHolley, worked at Ft. Myer, with an 

office that overlooked the Pentagon. 

When the plane hit the Pentagon it did 

so right where Mr. Holley happened to 

be working, killing him instantly, and 

within sight of Mrs. Jackson-Holley. 

Educational technician Daniel Jackson 

displays photos and memorabilia from 

September 11, 2001 to remind him of his 

father, who was killed while working at 

the Pentagon.

Photo by Ken Frager

Continued to page 4
4 The Pulse The Official USU Newsletter

Answering the call

by Ken Frager

Toya V. Randolph, PhD, MSPH, 

Director, Office of Sponsored Programs 

at the USU, was in Atlanta on September 11, 2001. An Epidemic Intelligence 

Service (EIS) Officer at the Centers 

for Disease Control and Prevention, 

Dr. Randolph was participating in the 

weekly rounds with her colleagues 

over a video feed. Not long after the 

rounds began the video feed went dead, 

something that wasn’t too uncommon 

and usually resolved relatively quickly. 

But the signal didn’t return so the group 

completed their discussions locally and 

was preparing to break when they were 

told to evacuate the building.

“We didn’t know what was happening, but we all complied, returning to 

our desks to get personal items and then 

went home to wait,” said Dr. Randolph, 

who was also a Lieutenant Commander 

in the U.S. Public Health Service 

Commissioned Corps. “I watched the 

news reports on television in shock, but 

knowing that at some point our team 

would be called. When the call came in 

later that day to report to headquarters 

I did so without hesitation. Being in 

uniform made packing pretty easy,” she 

said. “But the wait went on for several 

days before we were allowed to respond 

to the request for assistance from the 

New York City Department of Health.”

Dr. Randolph and 13 other EIS 

Officers were part of the first group 

assigned to support the hospitals 

in the New York City area, with the 

primary assignment of identifying 

signs and symptoms of bioterrorism 

among emergency room patients. 

Following a six-hour crash course in 

bioterrorism, she was assigned to a 

Toya Randolph’s office walls are adorned 

with recognition she received for her role 

in the aftermath of the September 11 

attacks in New York.

Photo by Ken Frager

Continued from page 3

Personal grief...

hospital on Coney Island. During her 

three-plus weeks of 12 hour shifts 

Dr. Randolph said she tried to avoid 

visiting the actual Ground Zero site. 

“I decided that it would have been 

too difficult to focus on my assigned 

duties so I tried to avoid it.” 

Try as she might, she found herself 

looking out at the devastation following a double-shift one morning. “I was 

exhausted and fell asleep in the shuttle 

from the hospital to the hotel,” said Dr. 

Randolph. “When I woke up, apparently 

someone had asked the shuttle driver to 

drive by the site. I woke up to the smells 

and sounds and sight of people who 

were working so hard. They had the look 

of determination on their faces, mixed 

with so much sadness. I found myself 

shaking and crying. When we finally got 

back to the hotel I slept for 20 straight 

hours, but when I woke up the smells 

were still stuck in my head.”

As traumatic as the experience was 

for Dr. Randolph, the effects of the visit 

were even more long-lasting as she 

and her colleagues are now listed on 

the World Trade Center Health Registry, which was established to monitor 

the health effects of the workers and 

volunteers who visited and assisted in 

the recovery efforts. “Although I will 

be monitored for the rest of my life for 

potential health issues resulting from 

the 9/11 tragedy in New York City, I 

wouldn’t have changed how I participated,” she said. “I also developed many 

friendships and relationships that are 

everlasting. We stay in touch and often 

reflect on our experiences. We are a 

family...a family bonded together for 

unfortunate reasons.”

Today, Dr. Randolph’s office is 

adorned with awards and honors for 

her participation. “It was an honor 

to serve and I am thankful that we 

were recognized for our efforts,” she 

says. “The sadness of the events and 

the memories are hard to set aside. I 

feel good about the service we gave 

and that we didn’t allow fear to stop 

us from acting in the name of helping 

our nation.”

An article in The Washington Post said 

that nearly a year after the event, the 

only remains directly connected to Mr. 

Holley were a handkerchief and some 

other personal items.

“I was angry at first. My first 

reaction was to blame everyone,” 

said Mr. Jackson. “But over the last 

10 years I have come to terms and 

realized that I have too much to 

do taking care of two households, 

being a father figure to my niece and 

being there for my mom, so I can’t 

be as angry anymore. They weren’t 

emotionally able to view the remains 

when they were found, but they did 

attend the burial and had written 

letters instead that were read. They 

do try now to attend many of the 

remembrance ceremonies that are 

held. Personally, I would rather pay 

my respects privately, outside of the 

limelight and away from the cameras. 

That means I can’t easily visit on the 

anniversary of his death, but I can 

remember him in my own way.”

According to Mr. Jackson, 

the USU community has always 

been supportive and respectful, 

many knowing how the tragedy 

effected his family. “People called 

and checked on me often and my 

workmates were there with me at the 

time and still are today,” he said. 

“It is with their support that I know 

I can keep doing what I do.”
Ronald Rivenburgh remembers not 

only the iconic images of September 

11, 2001, but also the images of that 

day that he captured for others. 

When the attacks began Rivenburgh was a hospital corpsman at the 

National Naval Medical Center. And, 

like so many others, he experienced 

“shock and disbelief ” as he watched 

the continuous news reports. 

But, Rivenburgh’s role would not 

remain as a spectator for long. 

Now an anatomical curator for 

USU’s Multidiscipline and Anatomical 

Labs, Rivenburgh was sent on a temporary duty assignment to Dover Air 

Force Base to support recovery efforts. 

“As a funeral director/embalmer for 

the government, I was sent TDY for 

30-plus days to the Dover Port Mortuary to prepare remains and track and 

photograph personal effects of victims,” 

Rivenburgh said. “I also did hands-on 

preparations to include embalming, 

bathing, dressing, casketing and shipping 

casualties of that horrible tragedy.” 

And these images have had a lasting 

effect for Rivenburgh. 

“What stands out most is my mind 

is photographing the personal effects 

of each victim,” he said. “When you 

go through someone’s wallet, pockets 

or purse, you see who they are—their 

family pictures, the good luck charms, 

military coins, etc. 

“In a job where death is how I meet 

the deceased, it’s different when you 

see their personal effects, and then 

read about them in the Washington 

Post,” he said. “These memories are 

forever etched in my mind.” 

As these memories become stronger on the anniversary of September 

11, Rivenburgh has not forgotten the 

images of that day or the impact these 

events had on him. 

“As a funeral director, my perspective 

is different. I am employed in a government job where I wouldn’t have a job 

if some one did not die,” he said. “After 

September 11, 2001, it made me appreciate my family more, strengthened my 

support of our military. I saw first hand 

what these events did to the victims, 

not from some news report. It made me 

realize that I chose the right career path.” 

Images forever etched

by Staff Sgt. Matthew Rosine

Ronald Rivenburgh, a hospital 

corpsman at NNMC on September 11, 

2001, was detailed to Dover Air Force 

base to support recovery efforts.

Photo by Ken Frager

September 11, 2011 5

Proud to be an American

by Christine Creenan-Jones

Raymond Handel could barely 

make out the Pentagon, even from the 

central courtyard. The iconic building 

was badly damaged when a hijacked 

commercial airplane slammed into 

the west-side on September 11, 2001. 

The carnage was palpable – fires raged 

through battered office corridors and 

tar-colored smoke billowed from the 

gutted facade. Worse yet, more than a 

hundred Americans died – some aboard 

the plane, others inside the Pentagon. 

Handel, an operations manager at 

USU’s Center for Disaster & Humanitarian Assistance Medicine and a trained 

paramedic, was among the legion of local 

volunteers rearing to help.

For hours, his Bethesda-based 

rescue squadron fought intense fires 

from inside the open-air courtyard. 

“Access was restricted, but our vehicle 

was able to fit through the narrow 

spaces that separate the old World 

War II buildings,” he said. “We could 

see where the plane’s airframe had 

penetrated four of the Pentagon’s five 

rings, and it was bulging through the 

remaining wall like a giant torpedo.” 

Handel’s rescue team, fighting from 

the inside, used high-powered water 

jets to control the rising temperature. 

“We feared the last wall would ignite 

and cause more damage,” he said.

Their concerns were eventually 

tempered when a new round of volunteers was finally able to snuff all of the 

Pentagon’s fires several days later. By 

this time, Handel had already worked 

for more than 18 hours – both inside 

and outside of the Pentagon’s walls. 

“Smoke had thoroughly invaded the 

ventilation system, so we had to look 

inside each room to make sure nobody 

was left behind. Thankfully, we did not 

find any casualties. But it was still a 

surreal experience. Office clocks were 

frozen at 9:37 – the time of impact, walls 

had turned black with soot, and debris 

was scattered everywhere,” he said. “I’ll 

never forget the wreckage we saw.”

Handel may have been grieving with 

the rest of America that day, but he was 

also overcome with feelings of hope. 

“Around midnight, my crew finally had 

an opportunity to grab something to 

eat. On our way back to the Pentagon, 

we saw an enormous flag draped over 

an industrial crane,” he said. “It was 

incredible – for a moment, everyone on 

the crowded streets stopped and stared, 

proud to be an American.” 
In their own words 

ENS Austin Yoder, MS3

USUHS SOM Class of 2013,

Former Navy MH-53E 

helicopter pilot

On the morning of 9-11-2001 I was 

driving to work at Naval Advanced 

Helicopter Flight School at Whitting 

Field, FL when I heard on the radio of 

a plane crash in New York City. By the 

time I arrived at the Ready Room and 

began preparing for my flights that 

day we were all transfixed on the TV, 

which was broadcasting live footage of 

the second plane crash into the World 

Trade Center. During the next few 

hours the FAA grounded ALL flights 

across the U.S., including comercial 

flights enroute to their destinations, 

and including military training flights. 

All aircraft were directed to land as 

soon as possible regardless of their 

location. We didn’t fly that day or 

the next, and were glued to the TV 

trying to sort out what was happening. The following months of training were intensified with a direction 

and a zeal for duty and obligation that 

didn’t exist before the attacks. Having 

an enemy identified as a target for 

our energy and focus sharpened us 

and made us work harder to begin 

the task at hand... fighting a war that 

was just beginning to materialize. 

We all went our separate ways, some 

directly to the desert in Cobras and 

Hueys in the Marine Corps, and some 

directly to sea flying Sea Knights and 

Sea Stallions in the Navy. No matter 

what our destinations were, we were 

all changed on 9-11 and will probably 

not forget it.

James G. Smirniotopoulos, M.D.

Program Director, Diagnostic 

Imaging Program

Center for Neuroscience and 

Regenerative Medicine (CNRM)

Professor of Radiology, Neurology, 

and Biomedical Informatics

It was the first day of the MS2 

Radiology course and we were 

preparing for a lecture. The students 

asked if we could watch CNN for a few 

minutes. We had all just learned of the 

second plane strike, so students and 

faculty were beginning to grasp what was 

happening.

After a few minutes, one of our Radiology faculty members said, “We are now 

going to have class, because what we are 

all about is working while bad things 

happen all around us.” That was the 

last lecture of the day, followed by the 

“evacuation” of the school. Many of us 

stayed here on campus - basically “against 

orders” - to be available for the hospital if 

we were needed.

Air Force Capt. Carol Kelley

USU GSN Family Nurse Practitioner 

Class of 2012

I became a nurse after September 11, 2001.

On September 11, 2001 I was a Flight 

Attendant for United Airlines (UA) 

based in New York City flying out of 

La Guardia and JFK airports. I also was 

a Medical Technician in the U.S. Air 

Force Reserve based at Ft.Hamilton in 

Brooklyn, NY. I was on a Boeing 757 in 

flight near Chicago when the first plane 

struck the World Trade Center. I was en 

route to San Francisco with a scheduled 

layover at Chicago O’Hare. We landed 

as planned, got off the jet way to change 

aircraft and found pandemonium in 

the airport. We, the crew, went to the 

domicile to see what was going on. As I 

entered the domicile I saw the South 

tower go down on the TV! I could not 

understand how this happened! We 

had just left New York City and it was a 

very clear day, so it was inconceivable 

that it was an accident. My vocabulary was unaccustomed to the word 

“terrorism” and I was dumbfounded 

and stunned.

 The crew and I were grounded and 

stranded at an airport hotel for five 

days, during which time I watched the 

news 24-7. It was mind-blowing.

 I called my Reserve medical unit 

to report my absence, thinking we 

had been activated. As it turned out, 

New York City did not know we were 

an available asset, and we were not 

called upon. I volunteered to work 

the first flight back, so I could get 

back to my apartment in Queens, 

and figure out what to do next. It 

was a sad and desperate time; we 

spent many days going into Manhattan trying to help-out. New Yorkers 

rallied well, but laymen were not 

needed. Instead, we would stand 

around cheering the crews coming 

and going to clear debris. We also 

participated in many bike rallies to 

raise money for our fire departments.

One year later on September 11, 

I again volunteered to fly, as many 

of my peers were too affected to 

fly. United Airlines, operating in 

bankruptcy, began a series of lay-offs 

and furloughs. I had six years seniority, which was not enough to be 

protected so in 2003 it was my turn 

to be furloughed. I was given a two 

year furlough, which means no job 

or paycheck, still an employee but no 

benefits, except flying space available 

for a fee. As a result of bankruptcy, 

the fees were no longer as cheap as 

they originally had been. Over the 

years many things changed, and the 

flying was not as enjoyable or profitable. The pay was cut, the flying 

hours lengthened, and the layovers 

became shorter.

 When I got furloughed I decided 

to use the GI Bill to go to nursing 

6 The Pulse The Official USU Newsletter
school. I moved back to my hometown, 

Tupelo, Mississippi, and earned an 

ADN. After the first semester of 

school I was recalled, at that point I 

was enjoying school and so I decided 

to resign from United Airlines. The 

first year I worked as a nurse, I went 

to school on-line to earn the BSN. A 

year later I went active duty Air Force. 

After two years of Air Force nursing, I 

applied for the GSN program and now 

I am here working on the FNP.

 From time to time I miss flying, the 

way it was in the old days. However, 

life can never be the same again, so 

carefree. Now I am a Captain in the 

Air Force, serving my country, married 

with two crazy-little girls and feeling 

fulfilled and proud of my country.

Jennifer Bornemann, M.S.S.W.

Lieutenant Commander, United States 

Public Health Service

Center for the Study of 

Traumatic Stress

I lived in NYC from February 1998 

- March 2010. On September 11, 2001, 

I was attending a meeting in Jamaica, 

Queens. At the time I was working 

on a faith-based initiative with NYC’s 

Human Resources Administration. I 

guess you could say I was lucky as our 

meeting that morning was at the Allen 

AME Church which is led by former 

U.S. Congressman Rev. Floyd Flake. 

Even though I am not particularly 

religious, we all participated in prayers 

at the church all day. In between prayer 

sessions, we attempted to contact our 

family and friends to let them know we 

were okay (which took many hours). 

Knowing that we were not allowed 

to return to our respective homes in 

Manhattan, my boss and I drove closer 

to home and stayed at a colleague’s 

apartment in Long Island City, Queens. 

We all walked around in a bit of a 

zombie-like nature while watching the 

coverage. I kept wondering how all of 

my friends were doing, when could I get 

home to my apartment in Manhattan 

and what could I do to help. 

We were able to return across the 

Queensboro/59th Street early on the 

morning of September 12. That day was 

marked with information gathering 

from friends and loved ones. “Are you 

okay?”; “Did you know anyone?”; and 

“What can I do?” were the questions 

often spoken and heard.

I vividly remember the city in 

those days immediately following 

the attacks - the smoke from Ground 

Zero filled the air (I will never forget 

that smell), silence in the skies with 

the exception of the occasional jet 

fighter, the fear yet resiliency of the 

residents. Some colleagues and me 

(all social workers) went to the Javitz 

Center to see what we could do to 

help - EVERYONE wanted to help 

- but they were not able to accommodate the intense demand. It was 

incredibly frustrating wanting to help 

but not knowing how. 

It did inspire me to join the NYC 

Medical Reserve Corps so that I would 

be able to help during another time 

of need, which led to me serving as 

an American Red Cross volunteer 

immediately after Hurricane Katrina 

and eventually on to the U.S. Public 

Health Service.

That was my 9/11. Not too exciting 

but a time that I will never, ever forget.

Stephen J. Cozza, M.D.

Professor, Department of Psychiatry

Center for the Study of 

Traumatic Stress

As chair of the Department of 

Psychiatry at Walter Reed Army Medical 

Center (WRAMC) on September 11, 

2001, I was in the dental clinic at Walter 

Reed having a filling replaced when the 

attacks began. I had forgotten to wear 

my contact lenses that day, so my vision 

was slightly blurry. When I saw the 

image on the clinic waiting room television of the first tower of the World Trade 

Center smoking, my initial impression 

was that it was a news story about a 

nuclear reactor plant. I didn’t initially 

realize the seriousness of the event. 

I returned to my office to learn 

that the second tower had been hit. 

Shortly thereafter, we heard rumors 

that a bomb had exploded at the 

Pentagon. My first thoughts were for 

the safety of my family. Fortunately, 

my wife was off from work that day, 

the children were cared for, and the 

home front was secure. 

WRAMC contained the largest 

number of mental health workers 

in the National Capital Area and I 

knew that the effective use of those 

resources would he key to a successful mental health response. I attended 

the WRAMC command Emergency 

Operation Center meetings and 

planned for our participation. We 

focused on the patients and staff at the 

hospital first, deploying to the Pentagon the following morning. 

I remember thinking that the attack 

would have a major impact upon all 

of our lives. But I didn’t comprehend 

the magnitude it would have on my 

colleagues at WRAMC and me over the 

weeks, months, and years to come. The 

lessons we learned that day and for the 

following weeks have been used to help 

others touched by tragedy and trauma 

recover and cope.

William Kelly, M.D.

Assistant Professor

Department of Medicine

I was the rotating Fellow through 

the surgical intensive care unit (SICU) 

at Walter Reed Army Medical Center 

and had just started rounds with the 

residents. Each patient room has a 

television, even if the patient is too 

sick to watch it. We looked up and saw 

the first news reports of a plane hitting 

the World Trade Center. Shocked, we 

still came up with a plan for our first 

patient and then moved on to the next 

room. By then, the second tower had 

been hit and I knew there was no hope 

of this being a crazy accident. Shortly 

thereafter we saw that a plane hit the 

Pentagon 

September 11, 2011 7

Continued to page 8
8 The Pulse The Official USU Newsletter

An FNP student remembers

by Staff Sgt. Matthew Rosine

For one USU family nurse practitioner student the events of September 11, 2001 remain vibrant. 

“I was at home when the morning 

news shows began to show the aftermath 

of the first World Trade Center impact. 

I watched the second aircraft ram the 

second tower and immediately knew that 

it was an intentional act on the part of 

pilots (unknown to be terrorists at that 

initial time),” said Maj. William Meek, 

who was an emergency nurse at Walter 

Reed Army Medical Center (WRAMC) 

at the time. “I called the WRAMC ER 

and spoke with the charge nurse about 

the incident. After the immediate 

response of ‘you’re pulling my leg again’ 

I was able to talk the charge nurse into 

going to the television in the waiting 

room to check the news.” 

The shock of the event was initially 

overwhelming.

“When the plane hit the Pentagon, I called and spoke to the charge 

nurse again,” said Meek. “I told him 

the Pentagon had been hit, and they 

needed to send ambulances to the site. 

I got off the phone, took a shower, 

packed a three-day bag and headed to 

the WRAMC ER—I received the alert 

recall while I was packing my bag.” 

When Maj. Meeks arrived at 

WRAMC he had his hands full. 

According to Meek, this officer 

survived his wounds and was 

medically retired from the service. 

Maj. Meek’s medical support 

efforts did not end there. He continued to work at the WRAMC ER as a 

manager and as a staff nurse through 

the hard days that followed.

Ten years later, Maj. Meeks said 

his memory is clear about the role he 

played that day. 

“It was a surreal day and I am proud 

of the manner in which the WRAMC 

ER nursing team responded to and 

cared for victims of that tragic day,” he 

said. “I am proud of having been part of 

a team of physicians, nurses and medics 

that were not only witnesses to a critical 

moment in the history of our country, 

but active participants working our 

hardest to save lives that day.”

and we knew we were at war. My staff 

(supervisor) doctor that day, Col. Jim 

Geiling, happened to be the chief of the 

Pentagon medical clinic at the time, 

and he left right away to try to help. 

This left me in charge of the SICU. He 

told me later that even he had trouble 

getting in due to the chaos/security at 

the crash site. He also had to break the 

glass on the medicine cabinets there 

as the computers/electric locks were 

down. My wife and young son could 

see the Pentagon burning from our 

apartment. There was also a rumor 

that the State Department has been 

bombed. Our medical campus that had 

been wide open like any other hospital was now locked down with armed 

soldiers. It truly seemed to be the end 

of the world -- but we had work to do.

We got supplies ready for the anticipated wounded. I remember photocopying a handout on burns management for 

the teams to review. There was an eerie 

quiet for a while but we soon got our first 

-- and one of our few -- victims. He was a 

middle-aged man, badly burned, crying 

and with an intermittent terrible highpitched scream. With a 15:1 provider to 

patient ratio at the time, he certainly was 

getting plenty of attention, being put on 

a ventilator, having his wounds treated 

and given lots and lots of intravenous 

fluids. There was not much for me to 

do. My contribution was expediting the 

delivery of the morphine into his body 

to numb his pain. I recall being so angry 

that someone could do this to this poor 

man. In the end, the best we could do, 

and the appropriate thing to do, was to 

stabilize him and then transfer him out 

to a specialized burn center. It was a long 

night. After that shift I volunteered to go 

to the Pentagon. There were still rumors, 

including risk of secondary explosions 

and the possible presence of chemical 

weapons/biologic agents being on the 

planes when they crashed. Me and a few 

other doctors and nurses were bussed 

down in the evening. It was surreal. 

We had a police escort from the start, 

but along the way, other police officers, 

perhaps looking for a way to contribute 

or just do something, anything, joined 

our motorcade. We certainly got through 

traffic quickly with more than 20 police 

cars and motorcycles escorting our bus 

by the end of our ride.

There were tons of ambulances 

and construction and rescue workers 

walking around. But it also was part 

carnival, with perhaps 100 different 

trailers and tents set up on the Pentagon lawn and parking lot. The Red 

Cross and other organizations were 

there handing out food and water. 

I was frustrated that FEMA (civilian emergency agency) got to run 

the show despite it being a military 

facility. We did set up our own tents, 

a complete emergency room/intensive care unit, and waited. But because 

the blast was so devastating, there 

were very few people to rescue—it 

was mostly “recovery.” The big hole 

in the building still smelled of smoke 

and jet fuel. Water poured out of the 

cracks and saturated the ground. I got 

a shift as the doctor with “casualty/

mortuary affairs,” basically going 

in and waiting for “remains” to be 

found. I had a stethoscope, but there 

was not much use for it. Some of the 

young soldiers doing the real work 

had special jumpsuits on. I just wore 

a mask and some gloves. There were a 

lot of salutes. I just tried to put them 

at ease and kept thinking how stressful it must have be for them.

A couple weeks later I was back in 

the Walter Reed SICU when First Lady 

Laura Bush came through to visit some 

of the recovering wounded. It’s hard 

to believe it has been 10 years. On my 

desk as a reminder, I keep a copy of a 

picture I took that night showing the 

hole in the Pentagon.

Continued from page 7

In their own words