A local surgeon running the Boston Marathon ten years ago jumped into action when bombs went off at the finish line. A decade later, he is talking about those unforgettable moments as he prepares to run the race again this year.
Dr. Vivek Shah recently returned to the finish line, where he spoke with 7NEWS’ Dan Hausle.
“We heard the first explosion and I thought it was just fireworks,” he said.
Dr. Shah is an orthopedic surgeon. He was running his fifth Boston Marathon in 2013 when he found himself between the two bombing sites as he approached the finish line.
“We saw all the people running towards us and then we heard the second one,” he said.
Dr. Shah said a nurse who worked at his hospital came running toward him, telling him there had been an explosion.
“That’s when I started running in that direction,” he said.
In that instant, Dr. Shah wasn’t just a runner anymore.
“I sort of put on the orthopedic surgeon hat and started helping,” he said.
Dr. Shah said there were people with traumatic amputations. The window of the Marathon Sports store on Boylston Street had also been blown out, spreading glass in the area and leaving people with cuts.
“So, honestly I just helped to put tourniquets on and honestly just be there for people who were scared,” Dr. Shah said.
“If anyone was prepared for this it should be an orthopedic surgeon and I think part of it kicked in,” Dr. Shah continued. “But the part that you’re not doing it in a controlled setting where you’re expecting it changes everything.”
Dr. Shah’s parents, sister, wife and his 18-month-old daughter were meeting him at the finish line.
He described fear in the moments after the blasts.
“I was afraid that I was going to find a face that was familiar to me,” he said.
While Dr. Shah’s family was at the finish line and saw what happened, they were not injured.
Dr. Shah continued to run the marathon for the next four years after the bombing. Life got in the way and he stopped running until this year.
Returning to the marathon course, Dr. Shah said his goal has changed. Now, he said he wants to show resilience.
“The entire city will show resilience,” he said.
“The number of people that are going to be out this year is going to be more than has been in the last five years which will show a lot, I think,” he continued.
This year, Dr. Shah said he figures everyone who runs the marathon will be a winner.
Dr. Shah will be running to support Brigham and Women’s Hospital’s Stepping Strong Center, a trauma research and recovery center created at the hospital in the wake of the marathon bombing. Learn more about the center here.
(Copyright (c) 2026 Sunbeam Television. All Rights Reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.)