FORT HOOD, Texas (KXXV) — On the anniversary of the November 5, 2009 shooting at Fort Hood, survivors are revisiting the trauma from that day and describing its lasting impact.
Julia Wilson was nine months pregnant and had just finished lunch with her mom. She parked her car in between the buildings to go back to work when the attack began.
"The shooting just kind of started erupting. I had previously looked over at our medical building and saw a wounded soldier down on the ground. But before I could get out to go inside and tell my supervisor we need to call medics, that's when the gunfire started blazing," Wilson said.
"I was so ecstatic for that day because it was my due date and I knew he had dropped and I was like, he's gonna be here anytime," Wilson said.
She activated her car alarm to draw attention, crouching until her supervisor saw her and took her into the building, thinking it was safe.
"That's when a wounded soldier came in the door opposite of me and said he's in the building, he's shooting, get out of here. I saw the people on the floor, the blood on the walls, the blood on the floor, people working on people, the room is tossed," Wilson said.
She got to a tech closet and stayed put until the scene was clear. She has been carrying the weight of those events every day since.
Keely Vanacker was at work when one of her coworkers told her about the shooting. Her dad was a civilian physician assistant at the SRP.
"We were trying to check websites, check news to see what was going on. I hadn't heard anything," Vanacker said.
"We haven't heard anything from my dad. You start to worry and then at this point we're making phone calls, can't get through to him," Vanacker said.
Later that night, a knock on the door came. It was a chaplain telling Vanacker and her mom that her dad was among the 13 people who died in the shooting.
"He never got to meet his granddaughter. There's so many of the other 12 who didn't get to live full lives. I mean, there was a 19-year-old soldier who was killed," Vanacker said.
Vanacker says she remembers the light her dad was to so many and wants others to follow his example.
"He valued people. He didn't always like people. He did not always like people, but he valued life and he valued everybody," Vanacker said.
Former Army Maj. Nidal Hasan's execution is still set for December 3 on post at Fort Hood.
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