Panhandle residents may find it hard to believe that today marks the 17th anniversary of the Oklahoma City bombing.
It was April 19, 1995, when the Alfred P. Murrah Federal Building was bombed. It was a normal, beautiful, spring day that turned tragic.
"We were stunned," said Pronews 7 Anchor and Oklahoma native Steve Myers. "No one could believe it was intentional, then add on to that it was a domestic terrorist, made it even more incredulous. The people here I think were more touched by the bombing, due to the close proximity with OKC."
Pronews 7 covered the event and Myers, himself, traveled to Oklahoma City to cover the tragedy. He explains that Panhandle residents felt connected because the tragedy was right here in our backyard.
"It was huge," he said. "Depsite the jokes about Oklahomans and Texans disliking each other, mostly during the Red River Rivalry, everyone here felt a closeness and wanted to help out their neighbors to the east."
"Being able to go over to OKC showed people the devastation from their own news team," he added.
Before 9/11, the Oklahoma City bombing was the single most destructive act of terrorism on American soil. It claimed 168 lives, including 19 children under the age of six. More than 680 people were injured.
The blast destroyed or damaged 324 buildings and was estimated to have caused more than $650 million.
Timothy McVeigh paid for his crimes by being sentenced to the death penalty. He was executed on June 11, 2001.
____
What do you remember about the bombing? Where were you? Let us know in the comment section below! Or join the conversation on Pronews 7's Facebook.
.png "newfblogo1")
