I’ll never forget a lot of things. September 11. Newtown. The Boston Marathon. But I wasn’t in those places when tragedy happened. I was in Huntsville in April of 2011 though. I hid in my closet with my laptop posting breaking news alerts. I left my apartment with my dogs’ kennels in a closet with pillows and blankets piled on top not know what Would or could be when I returned.
I was in Arab when the second line came through. I hid in a ditch as sirens wailed. I talked to a woman who’d lost everything. I saw dogs wandering around, not accustomed to being strays. I saw death. I saw destruction. I shared that reality with the world. I worked long days to make sure people knew what was coming. I camped out at the local emergency management agency to share updates. There was no TV. There were few radios. There was the newspaper and a few cell phones. And Twitter. Through it all, there was Twitter. Or as one colleague called it, the cockroach of the Internet. When all else died, it managed to survive.
So today, I remember. Those memories, still vivid and burning, will last a lifetime. I remember the names of those we lost. And the names of the streets completely obliterated. I remember. April 27 is a day I will always remember. It’s the day we started picking up the pieces and remembered why the Madison County community was special. It’s the day we became a family. The day the city etched itself on my heart forever. I remember.