Alfred P. Murrah Federal Building

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Alfred P. Murrah building during demolition

Aerial view of Alfred P. Murrah building after bombing

The Alfred P. Murrah Federal Building was a United States Federal Government complex located in downtown Oklahoma City, Oklahoma on 200 N.W. 5th Street that was the target of the Oklahoma City bombing in 1995.

The federal building was designed by architect, Wendell Locke of Locke, Wright and Associates , and constructed using reinforced concrete in 1977 at a cost of $14.5 million. The building was named for federal judge Alfred P. Murrah, an Oklahoma native.

By the 1990s, the building contained regional offices for the Social Security Administration, Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI), the Drug Enforcement Agency (DEA), and the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives (ATF), and housed approximately 550 employees.

After the attack, the building was imploded and the Oklahoma City National Memorial was built on the site.

Oklahoma City bombing

On the morning of April 19, 1995, Timothy McVeigh parked a rented Ryder truck with explosives in front of the complex and, at 9:02 am Central Daylight Time (14:02 UTC), a massive explosion occurred which sheared the entire north side of the building, killing 168 people.

Following investigation and recovery of victim's bodies, the surviving structure was demolished by a demolitions crew at 9:01 a.m. CDT on May 23, 1995. The site later became home to the Oklahoma City National Memorial.

The bombing was the most destructive incident of terrorism on American soil until the September 11 attacks.

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