This is from my cousin who is a truck driver and happened to be at Ft Hood during the shootings. S.
THURSDAY NOV.5,2009...Death next door...
Air raid sirens is what first got my attention, just like in the movies, it was surreal. I looked all around me and thought they may be having a fire drill, but nobody was coming from the buildings...and I am in the big equipment lot where they should gather if the buildings were to be evacuated. But nobody was exiting the buildings. Then I observed the compound gates were being closed, so I figured this must be some training exercise, after all I am in the largest military base in the USA... Fort Hood, Texas.
Why am I here? My job, I am a freight relocation specialist. I had been in Fort McCoy, Wisconsin just two days back, where I loaded Military equipment that was needed at Fort Hood. I had arrived just after 1300 hrs and checked in and got my clearance and visitors badge. Then I was sent to the Equipment yard and was met by the Army personnel who would unload me. They checked the units out that I had brought, and said they would need a huge fork lift for the 26,000 pound unit, and would try to find one and get back soon. Then those air raid sirens went off...The compound gates were quickly locked by security personnel and then... nothing. Finally the air raid horns quit only to be replaced by vehicle sirens, lots and lots of vehicle sirens. Soon I could see a line of Ambulances and police vehicles coming along the perimiter fence, but lost track of their destination due to the huge equipment buildings that blocked my view. My imagination conjured up images of a Helicopter crash, I know I was a long way from the airfield, but...I waited and waited, yet nobody came to unload me, I could not see another person walking around except for the security personnel at the gates. Two hours went by, and then finally someone drove by in a camo painted pickup and said the forklift would be by soon. Another hour went by before the large forklift came and picked the unit off my trailer and without saying a word, drove back to where he came. I moved from the equipment yard to the main gate and observed it was padlocked shut. So I went into the guard house and for the first time heard the terrible news. Several people killed and many wounded, only a few buildings away from where I was at. (The late night news confirmed 12 dead and 32 injured, by a US Army major and two compadres, who shot the victims with handguns). Wow,... the rush of emotion swept over me, hate, fear, and sadness...I asked the guard how long I would have to stay, and he said the entire Fort was on lockdown status, but he would check with his commanding officer. I explained that I did have another load that needed to be picked up, but I was mentally preparing myself to load on Friday morning. Astonshingly, within a few minutes and after a quick search of my sleeper berth, they opened the gate and let me escape.
I avoided the main business district of Killeen, Texas and without incident arrived at my next load destination and was able to get loaded even though it was well past dark, by the time I signed the paperwork and left the facility.