Army Major David King was working in the Office of the Chief of Staff of the Army when American Airlines Flight 77 slammed into the Pentagon on September 11, 2001. As the Twin Towers fell in New York, King had been typing a warning email to colleagues moments before the building shook. He survived by taking cover behind filing cabinets and a support column, even as his synthetic uniform pants melted into his skin, making him the sole survivor from his immediate office.
King's account, detailed in a video interview with NBC4 Washington, describes his attempt to save colleagues in the chaos following the impact. He spent five weeks in intensive hospital care before returning to military service in January 2002, according to MedStar Health. He went on to retire from the Army in 2008.
On the 25th anniversary of the attack this week, King joined fellow Pentagon burn survivors at MedStar Washington Hospital Center to tour the Burn Center's newly renovated intensive care unit and physical therapy gym, per the same account. The facility operates the only adult burn treatment center serving Washington, D.C., Maryland, and Northern Virginia. Also on hand were retired Lieutenant Colonel Brian Birdwell and security manager John Yates, both of whom endured their own harrowing escapes from the burning building that morning.
A Reunion Rooted in Shared Trauma
Birdwell's experience was, by physical proximity, even more dire than King's. He was located just 15 to 20 yards from Flight 77's impact point in the outer E-Ring, suffering severe burns across 60 percent of his body, according to Military.com. He received his first emergency triage inside the damaged Pentagon before being transferred to Washington Hospital Center, and underwent dozens of surgeries during his recovery. Birdwell later served as Assistant Secretary of War for Sustainment.
That initial triage occurred before civilian ambulances could transport the injured. Inside the damaged building, an Air Force doctor administered morphine and started an IV, the outlet reports. Post-attack airspace restrictions remained in place until Birdwell was flown to Washington Hospital Center after they were lifted.
How the Building Itself Saved Lives
The hijacked aircraft struck the Pentagon's western facade at 9:37 a.m. at a 42-degree angle, penetrating the first floor of the recently renovated Wedge 1 near Corridor 4 before continuing into the unrenovated Wedge 2, according to the 9/11 Pentagon Memorial. Renovation of Wedge 1, including blast-resistant windows and broader structural, fire, and safety upgrades, was still five days short of completion when the attack occurred.
Those enhancements delayed structural collapse and saved hundreds of lives inside the building, according to the American Society of Civil Engineers. The Pentagon Renovation Program had been approved in 1990, more than a decade before the retrofits would prove critical to survival. The attack ultimately killed 184 people — 125 military and civilian personnel inside the building and 59 passengers and crew aboard Flight 77, per the Pentagon Memorial's official figures, along with the five hijackers aboard the aircraft.
Mass-Casualty Medicine Under Pressure
MedStar Washington Hospital Center cared for 10 acute burn victims from the Pentagon that day. The Burn Center's regional role underscores how extraordinary the 2001 surge truly was.
An Enrollment Gap Persists a Quarter-Century Later
The federally operated September 11th Victim Compensation Fund remains part of the broader aftermath of the attacks, according to the Los Angeles Blade. The fund's long-term role remains part of the continuing federal response.
Questions about how many eligible civilian survivors have filed claims or registered remain part of the discussion. The Quartz report also highlights the continuing urgency of outreach to those who lived through the attack but never filed a claim.
For survivors like King and Birdwell, the anniversary reunion at MedStar Washington Hospital Center offered a chance to reconnect with the medical teams who treated them a quarter-century ago. Their stories, and the ongoing gap in federal enrollment among civilian survivors, remain part of the unfinished business of September 11 in the National Capital Region.
