When a bomb exploded the morning of April 19, shearing off the front of the nine-story Alfred Murrah Federal Building in downtown Oklahoma City, neurosurgeons Emily D. Friedman, Don F. Rhinehart, Glenn W. Schoenhals, Robert L. Remondino and Harry B. Tate were among the medical professionals who responded to the calls for help. From triaging patients, to evaluating the injured and performing surgery, they all were caught up in one of the country’s most devastating disasters.
Controlled Chaos
On the morning of April 19, Dr. Friedman was in the operating room at St. Anthony’s Hospital, when she heard a loud rumbling sound. She thought perhaps a furnace had exploded in the building. Not knowing what had occurred, she finished her case and 20 minutes later emerged into a scene of controlled chaos.
“We were told that all elective surgeries were canceled immediately to free up operating rooms and surgeons and all medical personnel were told to go to one of three area hospitals: Presbyterian/University Hospital, Children’s Hospital and St. Anthony’s,” she recalled. “Within one hour, hundreds of physicians, nurses and support staff poured into St. Anthony’s. We were all standing by, waiting for a rush of patients.”
They didn’t have long to wait. Within minutes a flood of patients, many of them bloodied from the flying shrapnel generated by the bomb, began to arrive. It was like a scene from the strife-torn Middle East, Dr. Friedman noted. “Nothing in my prior experience could compare to what we were going through,” she said. It was like a war zone.”
Christy Self, MD, a colleague of Dr. Freidman’s and Medical Director of the nearby Rehabilitation Unit at Bone and Joint Hospital, said, “Our facility was less than 10 blocks from the site of the blast and when you looked out the window, there was a steady stream of victims approaching St. Anthony’s. All you could see was bloodied people walking, being carried, or riding on car tops. It was surreal.”
The scene was really hectic, Dr. Friedman noted, but the hospital’s emergency plan worked well. The most seriously injured received preliminary treatment in the Emergency Room, with the less seriously hurt being sent to alternate locations within the hospital, such as the dental clinic, intensive care units, endoscopy or patients which were transformed into minor trauma treatment areas. Dr. Freidman helped triage and stitch up patients.
Within the first two hours following the bombing, more than 150 patients were treated at St. Anthony’s for injuries ranging from minor lacerations to fatal crushing injuries. Within the days that followed more than 300 patients were seen at St. Anthony’s. Twenty-seven patients were admitted, 156 persons were injured seriously enough to create a medical record, and four were DOA. Many others received first-aid and were sent home. “We saw a lot of major open wounds, open femur and pelvic fractures, facial and scalp lacerations, and skull fractures,” Dr. Friedman said.
Community Response
The community’s response was amazing, said the neurosurgeons. Everyone looked for a way to help. There were plenty of doctors, nurse, paramedics, blood donors and volunteers who knew first aid who pitched in. Food, medical supplies, even sunscreen was quickly made available to rescuers.
A free pharmacy was set up around the corner from the Federal building, at St. Luke’s Methodist Church, and staffed by volunteers. It was open for approximately one week following the bombing. Dr. Self noted that they had a fully-stocked pharmacy up and running in just four hours. “The area drug reps and pharmacists offered supplies free of charge, no questions asked. When I mentioned we could use oxygen and valium, they just appeared from nowhere. It was amazing.”
“One thing that really impressed me was the level of volunteerism,” Dr. Freidman recalls.” The hospital, itself, opened up its closets and poured out supplies. During the height of the crisis, no one was bothering to take names or insurance numbers. We just treated patients. Virtually every employee, among probably 1,200 at work at that time, played a role in the hospital’s response to the tragedy. St. Anthony’s is a non-profit hospital, managed in part by a Catholic charity. In this era of managed care, I wonder if a for-profit institution would have done as well.”
Life-Changing Event
The tragedy has personally touched everyone in the community. Almost everyone knew someone who was injured or killed in the blast. “All of us were counseling patients,” said Dr. Self. “The medical professionals initially ran on adrenaline. When the immediate rush was past, they crashed and crashed hard. I went down to a clinic area set up adjacent to the blast site the first and second day to wait for additional victims, but no one came out. The next day they turned the clinic into a morgue.
“This was a life-changing event. It deeply touched the medical community. There was nothing like the emotion, especially when it came to the babies. We all felt numbed by what the rescuers were doing. Three months later, people still cry easily.”
The scope of the damage caused by the bomb was hard to comprehend, according to Dr. Self. “The damage done was not well portrayed on television,” she said. “The news reports did not come near to showing how bad it really was. Buildings for several blocks around the blast site were severely damaged. Some had collapsed.” Dr. Freidman added that, “St. Anthony’s, which is approximately a mile from the Federal building lost bricks and decorative molding from its outside walls.”
Three months later, the people of Oklahoma City are trying to get on with their lives, but the emotional scars and battered buildings remain, with one exception. What remained of the Murrah Federal Building has been destroyed, brought down in one final, controlled blast. The lone suspect charged in the bombing remains in custody awaiting trial. Notes Dr. Freidman, “Nothing will ever be the same again.”