Community Corner

'Memorable for All the Wrong Reasons'

Meghan O'Donnell relives the moments that stopped a marathon.

Meghan O'Donnell of North Andover awoke Monday to a mild, calm air -- perfect weather for a marathon.

O'Donnell, 27, was running her second Boston Marathon. The dance instructor and assistant director at Center for the Performing Arts who had also run in Chicago in 2010 was used to hours of legwork.

What she saw as she approached the end of the 26-mile run was something she never prepared for. At least three people were killed and more than 100 people were injured by multiple explosions near the finish line.

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"We had about one mile to go and right at that point my boyfriend and my parents somehow found me at Kenmore Square and they started screaming at me on the side of road, saying that a bomb went off."

Not sure how accurate the news was or where the explosion may have been, O'Donnell kept running. She had less than a mile to go and was determined to finish.

But shortly after, near the last half-mile, police rushed the crowd of runners and told them to stop. The marathon was over.

"Everyone started to cry, a lot of people were so emotional that the finish line was less than a mile away," O'Donnell said. They still didn't understand the severity of what had happened. But then, she said, runners began checking their phones and found countless text messages.

"We found out people had died, my running partner was with me and she couldn't locate her family, it was very chaotic," she said. "We were just walking around aimlessly. It was terrifying. All I could think of like is that, if this is what's happening now, i can't imagine what 9/11 was like."

O'Donnell and her family eventually made it back to their hotel near Massachusetts General Hospital. She was running for the MGH cystic fibrosis team as well as her friends and students, Cate and Lara Cheevers. But when news reports said hospitals were on high alert and being evacuated, they decided to leave Boston.

"You can't imagine on a day like this, it was supposed to be a very memorable day and it was memorable for wrong reasons," O'Donnell said.

Cate and Lara Cheevers were at the marathon as well to cheer her on, but fortunately they were not near the blasts and made it home safely.

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Once O'Donnell was settled and able to process what had happened at the Marathon, her reaction was total shock.

"I can't fathom how there are people in this world that can do this," she said. "people are there with this families and loved ones watching this race, it's a historic race. A little boy died, all he was doing was watching the race. It seems surreal."


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