On September 11, 2001, Owsley was sitting at his desk in his rural Jeffersonton, Virginia farmhouse, when he received a call from colleagues at the Smithsonian, telling him to turn on his television.
The news report revealed that the Pentagon in Arlington, Virginia was engulfed in flames, explaining that terrorists had flown a jetliner into the building, killing untold numbers of government workers and military officials.

Owsley's initial concerns following the attack were for his daughter, Hilary, who had recently started working as a budget analyst with the US Navy.
Her office was located in the C Ring at the Pentagon, at the site of the impact.
While her office was destroyed in the fire, Hilary and her colleagues had fortunately escaped serious harm, exiting the building just prior to the collapse of the ceiling.
It was later learned that Hilary's supervisor pulled to a corner and kept her from danger by standing between her and the oncoming fire and debris.
They both walked away unharmed.

On September 14, 2001, Owsley and Ubelaker were called in by DiZinno to assist in the identification and analysis of the bodies that were recovered from the Pentagon.
The human remains were transferred to the oversight of the Armed Forces Medical Examiner's Office, who established a mortuary at Dover Air Force Base.
Owsley arrived at the base on the following day to join a team of radiologists, dentists, and medical examiners gathered to identify victims, primarily through the use of DNA typing.
After arriving onsite, he was held to a confidentiality agreement, known as the "Dover Code", which essentially translated to "What you see here stays here."

Overall, much of his work at Dover was comparable to his work at Waco.
Owsley spent time sifting through and sorting remains, bone fragments, and mixed up and jumbled flesh particles for DNA studies to establish the identity and cause of death of each victim.
Starting September 15, he continued to work 12-hour days to identify 60 victims of the attack.
The forensic analysis was able to successfully identify and establish the cause of death for 60 of the overall 184 victims that were identified.
When he was finished, he wrote down his thoughts about the experience, sharing his emotion and heartache, along with an overwhelming sense of gratitude that his daughter was not among the victims of the attack on the Pentagon.
He then gave the document to his daughter, Hilary.
On May 30, 2002, the US Department of Defense and Armed Forces Institute of Pathology honored both Owsley and Ubelaker with the Commander's Award for Civilian Service in recognition of his work identifying 60 victims of the attack on the Pentagon.
On September 11, 2001, Owsley was sitting at his desk in his rural Jeffersonton, Virginia farmhouse, when he received a call from colleagues at the Smithsonian, telling him to turn on his television. The news report revealed that the Pentagon in Arlington, Virginia was engulfed in flames, explaining that terrorists had flown a jetliner into the building, killing untold numbers of government workers and military officials.
Owsley's initial concerns following the attack were for his daughter, Hilary, who had recently started working as a budget analyst with the US Navy. Her office was located in the C Ring at the Pentagon, at the site of the impact. While her office was destroyed in the fire, Hilary and her colleagues had fortunately escaped serious harm, exiting the building just prior to the collapse of the ceiling. It was later learned that Hilary's supervisor pulled to a corner and kept her from danger by standing between her and the oncoming fire and debris. They both walked away unharmed.
On September 14, 2001, Owsley and Ubelaker were called in by DiZinno to assist in the identification and analysis of the bodies that were recovered from the Pentagon. The human remains were transferred to the oversight of the Armed Forces Medical Examiner's Office, who established a mortuary at Dover Air Force Base. Owsley arrived at the base on the following day to join a team of radiologists, dentists, and medical examiners gathered to identify victims, primarily through the use of DNA typing. After arriving onsite, he was held to a confidentiality agreement, known as the "Dover Code", which essentially translated to "What you see here stays here."
Overall, much of his work at Dover was comparable to his work at Waco. Owsley spent time sifting through and sorting remains, bone fragments, and mixed up and jumbled flesh particles for DNA studies to establish the identity and cause of death of each victim. Starting September 15, he continued to work 12-hour days to identify 60 victims of the attack. The forensic analysis was able to successfully identify and establish the cause of death for 60 of the overall 184 victims that were identified. When he was finished, he wrote down his thoughts about the experience, sharing his emotion and heartache, along with an overwhelming sense of gratitude that his daughter was not among the victims of the attack on the Pentagon. He then gave the document to his daughter, Hilary. On May 30, 2002, the US Department of Defense and Armed Forces Institute of Pathology honored both Owsley and Ubelaker with the Commander's Award for Civilian Service in recognition of his work identifying 60 victims of the attack on the Pentagon.
Douglas W. Owsley