The Welty House: 04.2007

Saturday, April 23rd, I took a trip down to the 'burg with some of my fellow Tech friends. I'm not sure why I felt the need to see the campus or be a part of the memorial events, but all of my Tech friends had the same urge...so I didn't fight it. It was a shame that Anne couldn't have come too, but the combination of 8 hours in a tight car plus the rolling Blacksburg mountains would have ruined the day for her.

Anyhow I thought I'd post some pictures and thoughts...

Norris Hall, the classroom building where 30 people were killed. The police have put crime tape around the entire building, which created about a 50 yard buffer zone. This buffer zone, designed to keep people from interfering with the crime zone also helped protect the public from the "carnage" of the event. Forensic cleanup crews were constantly entering and leaving the building, usually they were carrying out cardboard boxes filled with student's personal effects. Some of the boxes clearly contained clothing items...a few people next to me speculated that they must have been cut off the injured by EMTs. The second floor windows of the building were all open...I was told that on Thursday there was a strong odor emitting from them. Fortunately it was gone by Saturday as was the blood on the sidewalks. A friend told me that previously there had been paths of blood created when the police hurriedly dragged bodies out on Monday.

Constant streams of people were walking by the building while I was there. Flowers, lit candles, poems, letters, pictures were all left in remembrance.

Tents like these have been setup on the drillfield, which separates the academic buildings from the dorms. All of them followed this general theme...this one was unique because President Bush signed the giant "VT". There were people around who seemed to have taken it upon themselves to make sure that the candles were constantly lit.

Another collection of items people had left, these items were not meant for any particular person so that is why they are clumped together. Behind me were 32 separate piles of flowers, poems (a surprising number of original poems were placed throughout the campus), etc. for each of the victims. There was also another pile for the shooter…which included flowers and some letters, none of them expressed “ill will”. There were also a few letters for Cho’s family. In the background of this picture is Burruss Hall the college's administrative building...Norris Hall is immediately on the left of Burruss Hall.

Here is the picture of the pile left for Emily Hilscher:

I was pleasantly surprised to see that most of the mainstream media has left. On the other hand there were many freelance photographers and writers running around trying to drum up a new story or take on the situation. Most of them were a terrible nuisance. Crying students usually would have at least one photographer following their every step. I was interviewed by one group who asked me something about which celebrity I felt should come to campus and speak out regarding the events. It was pointless, clearly demonstrating that the media has run out of real questions. I also saw what appeared to be a South Korean news organization asking people if their opinions of South Korean people as a whole were damaged.

One picture that I failed to take was of the media circus around a funeral at Blacksburg Baptist. While the press was not allowed on the church property, they effectively surrounded the church with the constant flash of cameras. Sometimes a free press can be a nightmare.

In the evening the campus catering service and about 15-20 local restaurants hosted a free dinner. It is no small thing to feed at least 10,000 people but there was plenty of food for everyone.

I was unable to visit the dorm where two people were killed. Even though I lived there for one year… only students can enter the building.

Not only am I not very good at taking pictures, but the zoom was also acting up on our camera, so this is the best "crowd shot" of the drillfield that I have. Note that the groups of people are at locations where people have put memorials: