BREMERTON, Wash. - Admiral Douglas Biesel spoke at the groundbreaking for the Kitsap 9/11 memorial in Bremerton.
He was working in the Pentagon when terrorists flew Flight 77 into the building.
About 12 people I worked with very closely died that day, he said.
He was watching on a monitor the attacks on the World Trade Center, when he uttered these words to his admiral.
I said and Sir I think estimate we're going to be next. There will be an attack on the Pentagon, he said.
Before the Admiral could make it out of the building, those words became reality.
I think the most vivid scene that I had was as we exited the building and see the black smoke up against the crystal blue sky, he said.
Amid the devastation were coworkers in an office he had transferred from six months before.
That was probably the hardest part, and especially with Lt. Scott Lamana, he said.
The Admiral saw so much promise in Lt. Lamana. They had gone very quickly from co-workers to friends.
The hardest thing for me was having to bury him at Arlington National Cemetery having known someone and worked with someone every single day, he said. I think what it did for me was brought me closer to my family.
This immeasurable loss puts Admiral Biesel's life in perspective.
First you have to be right with God, right with your family and then right with work, he said.
Admiral Biesel says he's most inspired by the young men and women who have chosen to serve this country following 9/11.
