Thursday, April 20, 1995, front page: Bombing in Oklahoma City

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Youngsters at day care center bear brunt of car bomb horror

By Tracy Everback and Barbara Kessler

Dallas Morning News

OKLAHOMA CITY ─ One of the worst terrorist attacks in the United States was, by intent or tragic coincidence, a horrific assault on children.

At least 12 of the 31 dead last evening were infants through pre-schoolers who attended a day care center on the second floor of a federal office building where a bomb exploded.

The center was just above the site of the explosion that sheared off the front of the Alfred P. Murrah Federal Building. It was destroyed by the blast and debris from collapsing upper floors. After the explosion, toys were found blown across the street from the center, which an assistant fire chief said appeared to take the brunt of the blast.

Two of the children killed were burned beyond recognition. The other bodies were mangled.

Some reports said only two children survived. One was in surgery and the other was in intensive care.

However, Assistant Fire Chief Jon Hansen of Oklahoma City said rescue workers helped some children from the scene.

"We were just picking them up, giving them a hug and passing them along as quickly as we could," he said.

With 10 to 20 children unaccounted for late yesterday, the number of youngsters among the dead was expected to grow.

The young victims were believed to be infants through 5-year-olds, the ages served by the America's Kids day care center. About 30 children, of the 41 enrolled, were believed to be at the center at the time of the 9 a.m. explosion.

Some other children injured and killed in the blast were reportedly older and may have been visiting the federal building with adults, officials said.