Wilmington man recalls being inside Pentagon during 9/11 attack

WILMINGTON, NC (WWAY) — Twenty-five years later, Sept. 11 remains a day many Americans can remember with striking clarity: where they were, what they were doing, and how they first learned the country was under attack.

For Wilmington resident Dick McGraw, the memory is especially vivid.

McGraw was inside the Pentagon on Sept. 11, 2001, serving as the number two person in the Pentagon’s public affairs office and working closely with then-Secretary of Defense Donald Rumsfeld.

He was in a meeting that morning when word came that the first plane had struck the World Trade Center. When the second plane hit the South Tower, McGraw and a colleague realized the attacks were intentional.

“We looked at each other and said, ‘This is no accident; we are under attack.’ So, we broke up our meeting, and after going out the door, I said to my friend, ‘I think we’re next'” said McGraw.

Moments later, McGraw heard an explosion, but he didn’t immediately realize the Pentagon had been hit.

“And I heard what I thought was a sonic boom, and then I realized, no, can’t be a sonic boom because the FAA does not allow sonic booms over the nation’s capital. It was some sort of explosion, but I didn’t think the building had been hit because my TV didn’t blink, I was on the phone, the phone didn’t get interrupted, my lights didn’t blink, but in about 5 minutes the evacuation alarm sounded.”

On McGraw’s side of the Pentagon, he said things initially remained relatively calm. But when he made his way toward the impact site, he saw the extent of the destruction.

“When you got around and could see that there was mind-blowing. The amount of devastation – what in the world, how could this have happened? It was then that we learned that an airplane had flown into the building just at ground level and there was nothing left of it,” said McGraw.

The attack also changed the course of McGraw’s life.

McGraw had arrived at the Pentagon in 2001 expecting to stay for only a year. His friendship with Rumsfeld had helped bring him to the position.

“When I went to the Pentagon in 2001 in June, May rather, I went in June, Rumsfeld was a friend of mine, and I told him I’d stay for a year; well, the attack on 9/11 resulted in my staying for 4 years,” said McGraw.

Twenty-five years later, McGraw still remembers the people killed at the Pentagon, the World Trade Center and aboard the hijacked flights.

He also keeps a physical piece of that day to serve as a reminder.

“I have a piece of the Pentagon; this is limestone out of Indiana. The Pentagon is clad entirely in limestone from an Indiana quarry; this is a piece that was burnt, and I was able to get a hold of it.”

For McGraw, remembering Sept. 11 is about more than recalling where he was that morning. It is about remembering the people who lost their lives, the families whose lives were changed forever, and those who ran toward danger as others were trying to escape.

He believes keeping those memories alive is one way to honor their sacrifice — and ensure the events of Sept. 11 are never forgotten.