Looking back at Ground Zero, Part 2: Personal accounts of Omaha District employees who joined disaster response following the 9/11 attacks

Story by Delanie Stafford September 10, 2026 at 12:46PM The images of Sept. 11, 2001, are familiar to generations of Americans - the collapsing towers, the smoke rising over lower Manhattan, firefighters moving toward the devastation and the massive recovery effort that followed. Less visible was the enormous logistical operation required to keep the disaster response moving. The following accounts are from Marilyn Mikula and Dave Holley, two U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, Omaha District employees, who shared their experience as first recorded in December 2001 from an assignment unlike any they had experienced before. They are among seven U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, Omaha District employees to support search and recovery efforts whose experiences are being highlighted again today as part of a short series in recognition of the 25th anniversary of the September 11th attacks. The attacks claimed 2,977 victims and required one of the largest disaster response efforts in U.S. history. Both deployed shortly after the attacks and supported the Federal Emergency Management Agency, the New York City Fire Department and other agencies involved in the search and recovery effort.<br /><a href="https://www.dvidshub.net/news/574294/looking-back-ground-zero-part-2-personal-accounts-omaha-district-employees-who-joined-disaster-response-following-9"><img src="https://d1ldvf68ux039x.cloudfront.net/thumbs/photos/2609/9924313/250w_q95.jpg" width="250" alt="Looking back at Ground Zero, Part 2: Personal accounts of Omaha District employees who joined disaster response following the 9/11 attacks" /></a>

Looking back at Ground Zero, Part 2: Personal accounts of Omaha District employees who joined disaster response following the 9/11 attacks

Story by Delanie Stafford September 10, 2026 at 12:46PM The images of Sept. 11, 2001, are familiar to generations of Americans - the collapsing towers, the smoke rising over lower Manhattan, firefighters moving toward the devastation and the massive recovery effort that followed. Less visible was the enormous logistical operation required to keep the disaster response moving. The following accounts are from Marilyn Mikula and Dave Holley, two U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, Omaha District employees, who shared their experience as first recorded in December 2001 from an assignment unlike any they had experienced before. They are among seven U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, Omaha District employees to support search and recovery efforts whose experiences are being highlighted again today as part of a short series in recognition of the 25th anniversary of the September 11th attacks. The attacks claimed 2,977 victims and required one of the largest disaster response efforts in U.S. history. Both deployed shortly after the attacks and supported the Federal Emergency Management Agency, the New York City Fire Department and other agencies involved in the search and recovery effort.<br /><a href="https://www.dvidshub.net/news/574294/looking-back-ground-zero-part-2-personal-accounts-omaha-district-employees-who-joined-disaster-response-following-9"><img src="https://d1ldvf68ux039x.cloudfront.net/thumbs/photos/2609/9924313/250w_q95.jpg" width="250" alt="Looking back at Ground Zero, Part 2: Personal accounts of Omaha District employees who joined disaster response following the 9/11 attacks" /></a>

MI Reservist Saves New Yorkers (11 SEP 2001)

Story by Erin Thompson September 9, 2026 at 11:11AM On Sep. 11, 2001, New York Fire Department Fire Marshal Ronald P. Bucca gave his life while responding to the attacks on the World Trade Center. At the time, Bucca was also an Army reservist serving as operations chief of the 3413th MI Detachment out of Fort Totten (Queens), New York.<br /><a href="https://www.dvidshub.net/news/574166/mi-reservist-saves-new-yorkers-11-sep-2001"><img src="https://d1ldvf68ux039x.cloudfront.net/thumbs/photos/2609/9921309/250w_q95.jpg" width="250" alt="MI Reservist Saves New Yorkers (11 SEP 2001)" /></a>

Fort Rucker Firefighters Climb to Remember 9/11

Story by John Drew Hamilton September 4, 2026 at 04:36PM Firefighters on Fort Rucker took to the stairs of the Soldier Service Center today executing a memorial stair climb in honor of the 25th anniversary of the Sept. 11, 2001 attacks. More than 20 of Fort Rucker’s firefighters, as well as plenty of volunteers, supporters, and members of Fort Rucker leadership took time out of their day and climbed the stairs of building 5700 repeatedly until they’d reached 110 flights of stairs, representing the number of flights of stairs in the World Trade Center.<br /><a href="https://www.dvidshub.net/news/574017/fort-rucker-firefighters-climb-remember-9-11"><img src="https://d1ldvf68ux039x.cloudfront.net/thumbs/photos/2609/9914553/250w_q95.jpg" width="250" alt="Fort Rucker Firefighters Climb to Remember 9/11" /></a>

Evans personnel participate in Colorado Springs full-scale exercise

Story by Gino Mattorano September 4, 2026 at 01:13PM Evans Army Community Hospital personnel participated in a full-scale Mass Casualty exercise simulating a commercial aircraft crash at the Colorado Springs Airport Aug. 19, 2026. Teams from the City of Colorado Springs, Colorado Springs Airport, fire department, law enforcement, emergency management, community hospitals, Peterson Air Force Base and more than two dozen additional partners participated in a realistic emergency response scenario.<br /><a href="https://www.dvidshub.net/news/573996/evans-personnel-participate-colorado-springs-full-scale-exercise"><img src="https://d1ldvf68ux039x.cloudfront.net/thumbs/photos/2609/9914060/250w_q95.jpg" width="250" alt="Evans personnel participate in Colorado Springs full-scale exercise" /></a>