Erin worked at Brigham and Women and was running as part of Team Stork
Jeff was with Erin's best friend and both her roommates. we were very excited for her
They made signs for Erin and then headed to Newton. mile 17 where the fire house is
That was my first time experiencing the marathon. it was an awesome time
We saw her run past us and we screamed. she gave us a hug. Then they hopped in a cab to Storrow drive and walked to the Finish Line.
Bauman was just before the Finish Line watching for Erin for 25-30 minutes. It was a beautiful day. she was supposed to finish around the 4 hour mark.
We were in the crowd, this guy about my age. He came up and was trying to make his way through the crowd. I looked at him and he looks very suspicious. he was alone. he wasn't watching the race. he didn't look like he was having any fun. i just thought it was odd
Bauman looked back. i saw a bag unattended. i thought it was very weird.
It looked like a regular school backpack. it was black
Bauman, I just thought it was weird. You're at the marathon. probably just someone forgot it.
He thought about leaving. maybe erin finished. friend said 5 more minutes. 2 seconds later, i saw a flash
Jeff thought wow that was a big firework. it smelled like the 4th of July
Bauman: people screaming. my ears were ringing. everything was muffled. he saw his friend Michelle and saw bone in her leg
I looked down and saw my legs. it was just pure carnage. i could see my bones in my legs sticking out.
so many thoughts went through my head. this is really messed up. that's all i was saying in my head
i think someone put a jacket over me at that point. i thought this is how it's going to end. i thought I had a great life
I kind of made peace with myself at that point. I heard the second explosion
My injuries are bad. they're never going to get to me. He wanted to call his mom
couldn't find cell phone. figures that was better. she never would have forgiven me if i called her then
"Two seconds later, I saw a flash," Bauman recalls. "Heard three pops and I was on the ground."
I gotta try something. threw jacket off me. sat up
bauman says he got a second wind. heard people talking about tourniquets. thought that sounded like a good idea.
a guy in a cowboy hat came up. he was keeping me calm. keeping me there. i had hope at that point
"You know, I had a great life," Bauman remembers telling himself as he lay there, looking at his critical injuries. "I kind of made peace with myself at that point."
bauman: my right leg was pretty devastated. i wasn't losing much blood at that point. left leg that's where i noticed most of my blood coming out
bauman: my fibula was exposed.
"We're under attack," Bauman said he thought when he heard the second explosion.
bauman. i grabbed my left leg and squeezed it. i didn't let go until i was in the ambulance
bauman. it looked pretty charred up (his right leg)
bauman: i thought it was 20 minutes until help arrived. i guess it was more like 5 minutes
"It just looked really devastated," Bauman says about his injuries to his right leg. "I didn't have my knee, I don't think."
bauman. the guy in the cowboy hat said this kid's got to go right now. carlos grabbed me with one hand and put me in the chair. i remember everything. looking at everybody
bauman saw someone taking pictures of him and thought that's kind of messed up
"It seemed like a lifetime to me, laying there," Bauman says.
bauman was talking to ambulance crew. told them his name
Carlos Arredondo listens to the testimony with a solemn look on his face
Bauman now describing being at the hospital
Bauman told them to put him under. This is too much for me
once he was at the hospital, he had faith he would survive
Bauman: i still wonder to this day how I stayed conscious through that whole thing.
Bauman: I didn't feel any pain. just pressure. someone squeezing my legs
Bauman says he believes he had 3 surgeries. When he woke up his best friend was there. I was just very happy to see him. I said I knew I wasn't in heaven b/c Sully was standing there. courtroom laughs
I knew my legs weren't there. I knew they were gone.
He wrote down Lt. Dan joking with his friend. referring to Forest Gump character.
