A Prospective Longitudinal Study of Qualitative Disaster Narratives of Highly Trauma-Exposed Survivors of the Oklahoma City Bombing Nearly a Quarter Century Later

Abstract

Objective: To examine highly trauma-exposed survivors of the 1995 Oklahoma City Murrah Federal Building bombing nearly a quarter century later, focusing on survivors’ immediate personal experiences of it through open-ended narratives. Methods: An original sample of 182 bombing survivors, studied approximately 6 months post bombing, was randomly selected from a state registry of 1,092 bombing survivors, with 71% participation. Of the original 182 bombing survivors, 103 completed the longitudinal follow-up, conducted at a median of 23 years post bombing. Qualitative data for the follow-up study were collected using an expanded version of the Disaster Supplement to the Diagnostic Interview Schedule. Of the original sample, 39 were known to be deceased, 25 could not be located, and 15 declined participation. Results: In all, 12 themes were identified, but just 3 (Locations, Bombing experience, and Initial actions) are detailed here. All survivors were in heavily damaged buildings (about one-half in the Murrah Federal building) or directly outside, and the majority (84%) were injured. They described intense and gruesome experiences of the bombing, difficult efforts to escape to safety and help other survivors, and continuing postbombing experiences once outside. Conclusions: A striking finding was the intensity of the survivors’ memories almost a quarter century after the bombing. Their sensory recollections remained vivid, generally as bright and intense as in earlier reporting periods. It may be that the salience of this extreme event stabilized memories of it yielding such vivid descriptions nearly a quarter century later.