12 gone - 11/18/1999

[Texan_Bill]

11 years ago 12 Aggies left this world. RIP!

[gwallaia]

I've been to the Memorial. It was one of the most profound and meaningful memorials I have ever visited.

The walkway leading to the Memorial and the circular walkway is a finely crushed gravel that has a certain feel and a definite sound as you walk across it, but as you walk to the center, the surface is grass and the sound of your footsteps completely disappears as you approach the most solemn area of the Memorial.

I'm not sure if this was the design intent, but it resonates very powerfully.

[Showtime100]

Good thread, Bill.

I hope their families, friends, and fellow students are coping well today.

Prayers.

[Dutchrudder]

RIP to the fallen Aggies and I hope the 20 others hurt are doing well. Each year they do a vigil on Nov 18th to remember those who died and to pay their respects. Here are a few pics regarding this:

Coins, flowers and other items adorn the marker for the center pole at the Texas A&M Bonfire Memorial Tuesday, Nov. 17, 2009 in College Station.

Hundreds attend a candlelight vigil at 2:42 am on Wednesday Nov. 18, 2009, the exact time of the 10th anniversary of the 1999 Aggie Bonfire collapse, at the Aggie Bonfire Memorial on the Texas A&M campus in College Station.

[pbat488]

Here.

I've been there the past three years for this, and each time it is as emotional as the last. Not quite as many people there as there were last year, which was 10th anniversary, but still a huge turnout. It's eerily haunting how quiet it is out there around the memorial with so many people around, the only thing you hear are the trees rustling with the wind.

Remember the twelve.

[Dread-Head]

Not an Aggie, but I've been there. Gone...but never forgotten.