Lynn and Emma Mae Pruitt reflect on their son, Steve surviving the Oklahoma City Bombing on the 25th anniversary. They say they still remember the tragic event like it was yesterday. Steve was on the third floor of the Murrah Fedral Building when the bomb went off and his desk was a few feet from the explosion.
“He was at the window when this happened.” Said Lynn Pruitt. “He had gone to the front window of the window to look out to see if it was raining because he and a colleague were getting ready to go interview someone for a project and he was standing at that window when the explosion went off.”
Once the Pruitt’s got home, they turned on the news and upon seeing the destruction, things looked bleak.
“Lynn watched CNN and told me he didn’t see how our son could have survived because it showed where the cave in was and our son ended up being about three feet from the edge of that.”
From there they were waiting for a phone call to find out if Steve survived or not. Minutes seemed like hours. The Pruitt’s say it felt like an eternity, but once the call came, there was a big sigh of relief.
“We were under a lot of stress up to that point and that was good.” Lynn Pruitt said. “They said he was in a hospital for eye injuries.”
Steve suffered non life threatening injuries. He says he doesn’t remember the explosion, but he remembers what happened afterwards.
“I woke up and suddenly I realized I couldn’t move.” Said Steve Pruitt. “I went to sit up and I couldn’t sit up and I thought something’s not right here and so then I started to yell and some guys came and helped me out of the building.”
Steve ended up losing sight in one of his eyes and suffered a broken jaw among other injuries. A memorial has been built in honor of everyone who was affected and involved that day.
“We went down to see the memorial that they built afterwards.” Lynn Pruitt said. “It’s pretty impressive. His name is on the survivor wall so we’re thankful for that.”