9.11 Pentagon Podcast Project Episodes

Release Date October 10

9.11 Pentagon Podcast Project Episodes

Commemorating the 25th Anniversary of the September 11 attack on the Pentagon

Featuring 18 different survivors and new episodes each week

Release Date September 10, 2026

Release Date September 11, 2026

Release Date September 11, 2026

Mary's Story

On the morning of the September 11 attack on the Pentagon, Mary was a soldier in the U.S. Army as she sat at her desk with her two-month-old baby girl in a stroller beside her. Mary says it was when she reached to press the “power on” button for her computer that it exploded in her face, and she immediately thought: "bomb.” Then, during what she described as a "slow period," she saw her daughter blown out of her stroller, flames arising from everywhere, and falling debris which, for a moment, pinned her to the floor. As she frantically worked to free herself and begin the search for her daughter, Mary listened to her colleagues' screams for help and yelled back to them: "Help me find my daughter! I'll help you! But help me find my daughter!"

Andrew's story

When the September 11 attack on the Pentagon occurred, Andrew was an active-duty military officer with 25 years under his belt. When the plane breached the Pentagon, Andrew was not aware of the attacks that occurred in New York City. After feeling the jolt to the building, he recalled joining thousands of others who walked down dark corridors “towards the light” under orders to exit immediately. Following the attack, Andrew described his feelings as muted and disoriented. But more than anything, he remembers feeling embarrassed, because he had left his hat at his desk and was “out of uniform.” Once he made his way home, Andrew’s pets seemed to sense a deeper emotion in him, as they showed heightened levels of devotion.

Alan's Story

On September 11, 2001, Alan worked in an administrative capacity for the U.S. government. Although his office was not stationed at the Pentagon, he was slated to be there for a meeting that September morning. In the immediate hours and days following the September 11 attack, Alan worked as a liaison between the families of its civilian victims and the U.S. government. Beyond interfacing with the families, Alan's job also included finding out "which body parts [of the missing] were there ... making sure that every piece of flesh was examined." Alan said his role was to "keep the families straight ... keep them from going off the deep end”. It wasn’t until many later that Alan realized he was struggling with his own “deep end”.

Release Date September 15, 2026

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Release Date September 15, 2026

Release Date September 17, 2026

Eagle's Story

On September 11, Eagle worked in a civilian capacity in the Pentagon. She recalls an explosion, and then a “big ball of fire” raging through the room. Realizing that she was on fire, she started screaming for help. After her supervisor removed the burning materials from her body, the two of them joined others on a slow crawl — through the debris, water, smoke, and darkness, to find a way out of the burning building. As they crawled, she recalled her colleagues splashing water from the floor over themselves to relieve the sensation that their skin was on fire. At one point, she told her coworkers they needed to pray, and so they huddled and prayed. Eventually, they climbed through a hole, and got outside. Eagle would spend the next six days comatose, in intensive care. It was nearly October before she was released from the hospital. Determined not to allow her life to be diminished by the events of that day, she returned to work at the Pentagon. To this day, she firmly believes that the “Grace of God” and her connection with allies (her husband, family, and friends) helped her survive and grow strong and powerful, “like an Eagle,” with each passing day.

Terp's Story

Terp was working as a military consultant for the U.S. government on the morning of September 11. A former soldier, he recalls that, after learning about the attacks on the World Trade Center, he began contemplating that the Pentagon, too, could be a target. Moments later, hearing a roar and feeling the building shake, he watched the windows around him implode and debris fly everywhere, and he thought: “Bomb.” It wasn’t until he made his way home that afternoon that he began to realize just how close his call with death had been. “If the plane had hit a little more to the left,” he said, “we would have gotten toasted. It was by the grace of God, or whatever, that we made it." Reflecting on that morning, with what he calls “raw anger,” his emotions are heated and intense. "You just feel like you'd like to go after some of these people yourself and wring their necks,” he said. He added that his father taught him: “You're going to have to get down and dirty, and if it means killing these people, you've got to do it." His expressions of rage are also deep and pervasive as he belittles a congressman for proclaiming that those who committed the attacks were “brave.” And about Americans, he declares: “We’re stupid … we’ve gotten a bit too complacent, and I think that’s my greatest fear.”

Scout's Story: Part I

A former U.S. Army officer, Scout recalls that after watching the plane attacks on the World Trade Center, he called his wife to tell her that he loved her. Minutes later, he heard the "high-pitched scream" of jet engines followed by an "indescribable crash." Once safely outside the building, Scout reported seeing palpable fear on people’s faces. But instead of leaving, he joined others who repeatedly went back into the building — searching (i.e., scouting) for those who needed help. And in those moments, covered in soot and sweat and making his way through the smoke, fire, and darkness, he recalled being taunted with thoughts of how much his family needed him. Notably, those thoughts didn’t stop Scout's impassioned search to help others. He said: "I know if I had left, I would have felt like a traitor to everything I ever said was important ... I made the right decision.” Later, he would share these unforgettable words: "... within the Pentagon there's a huge story of heroism and commitment ... as horrific as things were in New York, no one is going to back in the World Trade Center, every day, day after day." [Be sure to listen to Scout, Part II to learn more about his journey.].

Release Date September 22

Release Date September 28

Release Date September 22

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Scout's Story Part II

Following the September 11 attack on the Pentagon, Scout a former U.S. Army officer, worked with passioned determination to save persons who might have been trapped in the building. Aware that his numerous re-entries into the burning building were exposing him to toxins, he did not realize the degree to which his exposure may have impacted his body. After suffering a series of frightening symptoms and numerous hospitalizations in what he called his "2nd bout with death", Scout would eventually receive a diagnosis and surgery to find relief for his physical ailments. However, many months after the attack and his eventual return to work at the Pentagon, remnants of the mental and emotional trauma he endured remained. Interestingly, one of his primary sources of solace was an industrial-sized flashlight he bought after making it home on September 11. He said: “I slept with it. I went to dinner with it. I felt like I was a soldier on the battlefield, and like having a rifle, I didn't want to be anywhere without my flashlight." Scout never wanted to be in that kind of darkness again.

Diane's Story

While her mother worked at the Pentagon, Diane worked in a building within walking distance. Minutes before the attack on the Pentagon, she received a call from her mother expressing concern about the two airplanes that had crashed in New York City and those who were trapped in the Twin Towers. Diane did her best to calm her mother’s worries, telling her that she was certain all that could be done was being done to help those in New York. But Diane says her mother’s anxiety seemed to increase, as she abruptly disconnected the call without saying goodbye. Diane recalled, "I was concerned. My mother has never hung up the phone on me. I called her back, but the phone just rang and rang." Moments later, one of Diane's co-workers entered her office shouting, "Everybody get out! Get out now!" As Diane exited the building, she began to smell fumes from burning oil, and her supervisor told her that the Pentagon had "been hit." Diane says she was standing in the middle of the street when she dropped to her knees and began screaming, "My mom. My mom!"

Flash's Story

Flash was a U.S. Air Force officer working in the Pentagon on September 11. Just before the attack, he and his co-workers had gathered in an office to learn what was occurring in New York City. After watching the televised attacks, Flash said he felt compelled to leave the room. It was on his way to his desk that he was lifted off the ground by an explosion, only to be buried under a pile of rubble. While struggling to remove the debris that pinned his leg to the floor, he saw the walls around him burning and realized he was having difficulty breathing. In those moments, Flash said he prayed: “Lord, help me get my leg loose and show me the way out.” Then, after loosening his leg, he climbed -- bloodied and wounded- over strewn debris. He recalled, “I just kept moving … I knew I didn't have much time in there." Flash would learn later that all whom he had left in the room watching the televised attacks did not survive. Consequently, he surmised that on September 11, his life had bordered on mortality, as he was literally "at the line between life and death." In the days that followed, he immersed himself in efforts to understand the events of September 11, including reading to learn more about Islamic teachings.

Release Date October 5

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Release Date October 10

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George's Story

On the morning of September 11, retired Marine George sat at his desk inside the Pentagon. When the roar and impact of the hijacked airliner tore through the building, his first thought was simple: "Aw man, they hit us too." The force of the blast slammed him into a wall and hurled him beneath his desk, where he was pinned under rubble. "That’s when I thought I was dead," he recalled, "and made my peace." Mustering the strength to claw his way out, George locked away his empathy for the screaming, panicked colleagues around him. Driven by pure survival instincts, he climbed over shattered desks, tumbled walls, and wrecked cubicles to reach the courtyard. Covered in ash and wearing tattered, blood-soaked clothes, he flagged down a stranger and hitchhiked to pick up his daughter from a daycare center a few miles away. It was only after he finally held her in his arms that he noticed the blood, felt the pain, and realized he had been injured.

Jannel's Story

Shortly before the impact, Jannel, a Pentagon civilian employee, was walking through the building on a routine administrative task with a colleague. When the shockwave hit, the area was plunged into darkness and filled with dust. Her coworker grabbed her hand, and the two navigated the dark corridors together. Upon reaching the center courtyard, they encountered emergency response crews, casualties, and other survivors. Overwhelmed by the situation, Jannel began hyperventilating and shaking until a colleague stepped in to comfort her. The emotional aftermath required months of counseling and medical support. Jannel experienced ongoing panic attacks and crying spells, particularly when seeing airplanes. Though she eventually returned to work at the Pentagon, she continues to manage the long-term psychological effects of the event. "I don't really feel safe in this place," Jannel noted, "and I would love to feel safe here."

Martin's Story

On September 11, Martin was working in a radio- and TV-free area of the Pentagon when he and his coworkers learned of the World Trade Center attacks online. Shocked, they didn't immediately suspect terrorism. Shortly after, Martin felt a shockwave but assumed it was nearby construction. Only after stepping into the hallway did he see smoke, debris, and fleeing people. Numb with fear, his instinct was to evacuate. In the Pentagon courtyard, his numbness deepened when he saw a severely burned, frantic woman. He didn't stop to help her—a decision that still haunts him, though someone else fortunately stepped in. Focused on survival, his priority was contacting his distraught wife, who
feared he was dead. Looking back, Martin regrets letting his overwhelming numbness control him, wishing he had turned to prayer immediately instead of freezing.

Coming Soon!

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Coming Soon!

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Coming Soon!

Shortcake's Story

When Shortcake recalled the morning of September 11, she highlighted three things: the beauty of the day, an unexplainable sense of anxiety, and the "big boom" that shook her office. For nearly 14 years, Shortcake enjoyed her work as a Secretary at the Pentagon. But that morning, this single mom said she felt so uneasy after arriving at work that she warned her co-workers: “Whatever y'all do, carry your purses everywhere you go today.” At the time, no one knew about the impending attacks in New York, so they dismissed her remarks as dramatic. Already on edge, it took little more than the jolt and the sound of the plane crashing into the building for Shortcake to grab her purse and head for the door. She said she felt frustrated and even angry at the “men” in her office who dismissed the events as “construction-related.” Once in the Courtyard, frightened and “going into shock,” she said she began digging into the ground for shelter after hearing rumors of a second plane headed towards the building. Shortcake only regained her composure after coworkers calmed her down, but that didn’t relieve the lingering anxiety and emotions that would haunt her – and that she would attempt to hide from her children for months to come.

Joshua's Story

Like many others in the building that September morning, Joshua was a civilian working in the Pentagon. After watching the televised events in New York City, he returned to his office. While seated at his desk, he felt the building shake and saw the room go dark. Joshua noted that fire and smoke immediately filled the room; he added: "Everything was happening so fast; it was faster than snapping your fingers, but [in those moments] it seemed like an eternity." As he made his way toward where he knew a door was, his feet became entangled in fallen debris, so he struggled to free them and kept moving. Despite the intensity of the situation, Joshua said he never felt frightened. Instead, he said, "A peace -- a spiritual peace, came over me while I was in there ... I wasn't hesitating to get out of there, but it was a peaceful thing." Once in the Courtyard, he and two co-workers grabbed fire extinguishers and tried twice to re-enter the burning building to search for others, but each time the thick smoke pushed them back. He said he knew others were still inside, and though he was determined to help, he couldn't. In the end, Joshua was right: Seven of his co-workers had not escaped the building and were killed that morning.

Smiley's Story

Initially, Smiley was hesitant to talk about her experience as she was fearful that doing so might trigger painful memories. "September 11 really took me; it really broke my heart," said the former soldier. However, after friends encouraged her, she decided talking about it might help. That morning, the loud sound of the plane breaching the building made Smiley run. And she kept running until she reached her car. Then, in a surreal twist, she found herself seated in the parking lot of a grocery store. "I ended up at the Food Store," she recalled. "I don’t know how I got there. All I could think of was buying something to cook for dinner for my husband,” -- a husband whose perceived lack of appreciation for her survival left her deeply unsettled. For months, Smiley struggled with anxiety, depression, insomnia, and loss of appetite. Therapy and medication eventually allowed her to return to work, though daily reminders still haunted her. "You come off the Metro, and you've got to be searched before you can come in [into the Pentagon]. You come in, and you see guys with machine guns on the top of the steps; it gets harder and harder every day to come in here," said Smiley.