Members of the Amish community believe it was the presence of a higher power inside the Bart Township schoolroom — the same power Americans relied upon for courage on Sept. 11 — that gave these girls strength in that horrible hour.

Today, as the West Nickel Mines school was demolished, police and family members revealed new details of what happened on the morning of Oct. 2.

Charles Carl Roberts IV, after barricading the doors and dismissing all but the 10 Amish girls, pointed his gun at the children.

“I’m going to make you pay for my daughter,’’ state police said Roberts told them.

Police believe Roberts intended to sexually assault the girls, based on lubricating jelly they found in his belongings that morning, but never got the chance.

After dismissing the boys and adults and nailing boards across the doors, Roberts ordered the girls to lay down and bound them together.

At one point, an Amish man said he learned, Roberts ordered the girls to do something and the older girls told the younger ones in Pennsylvania Dutch: “Duh ’s net! Duh ’s net!” (“Don’t do it! Don’t do it!”)

There was fear in the schoolhouse, but also a protectiveness, with the older girls looking out for the little ones, said the Amish man, who asked not to be named.

But there was something else going on in the schoolhouse that day, too, he said.

“The same fate, the same higher power, was at that site that was at Flight 93,” the Amish man said, referring to the plane that went down in Shanksville on Sept. 11. “That same power was at Columbine, too.”

Roberts shot all 10 girls before killing himself. Five of the girls died almost immediately, five others were seriously wounded.

Three of the injured are still fighting for their lives, while two others are expected to be well enough to come home soon.

Donations, amounting to more than $1 million, have poured in from around the world to help the victims cope with medical and other expenses.

Hershey Medical Center joined the four other hospital facilities today in announcing that it will absorb the enormous cost of treatment.

The deep sorrow felt by the Amish community after last week’s horrific tragedy has connected them to the events of a larger nation.

“This experience, to us, was like 9/11 was to the world,” the Amish man said.

State police, who arrived on the scene within minutes and surrounded the schoolhouse, believe they interrupted Roberts’ plan to assault the girls, but could not stop him from shooting.

Troopers smashed windows and went inside, carrying the injured children outside to waiting medical personnel.

Roberts lay dead inside the school.

State police Capt. John Laufer, head of the Lancaster barracks, said his investigators have been able to talk to only one of the surviving girls, who are hospitalized at Hershey, because of their medical conditions.

“We confirmed that (13-year-old Marian Fisher) did say ‘Shoot me first,’” Laufer said, “and then Roberts made a statement to the girls, ‘I’m going to make you pay for my daughter.’’’

Laufer said police confirmed from talking to the child that Roberts ordered the girls to lay down, “their heads toward the blackboard, and bound them.’’

“We try to be as gentle as we could,’’ he said.

State police said Roberts left several suicide notes, telling his wife, Marie, that he was angry at God for the death of their infant daughter.

Roberts also said he was angry at himself for molesting young relatives 20 years ago (although police and family members have found nothing to substantiate his claim) and was having dreams about doing it again.

“It’s not an unsolved case, the suspect is deceased, we may have as much information as we can ever have, considering the nature of the incident,’’ Laufer said.

“We’re trying to be as detailed as we can of the facts and circumstances,’’ Laufer said, noting that troopers still have much to do on the investigation, “but we’ll never really understand why.’’

All of the troopers, especially the ones who carried the injured girls from the schoolhouse, must attend a critical stress debriefing, Laufer said.

“Obviously, if someone wants or needs additional counseling or professional help ... or any additional issues, we provide that.’’

In the sessions, Laufer said, troopers “open up, talk about what they did, where they were,’’ and get a complete picture of the day’s events “with a perspective different from their own.’’

The troopers “have feelings for the victims,’’ Laufer said, but for the most part have expressed a desire “to get back to work, back to their routine and do what they do best, which is police work.’’

Hershey Medical Center still is treating the 6-year-old girl, who was removed from life support, taken home, and then returned to the hospital when she showed signs of improvement.

Another child treated at Hershey, a 13-year-old girl, is expected to be well enough to go home soon.

Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia has three more of the wounded girls, ages 8 and 12, whom officials believe to still be in critical condition. A third, 11-year-old Barbie Fisher, is also expected to be released soon.

Lancaster General Hospital, Christiana Care Health Systems and Reading Hospital all received children from the shooting, but all died within hours.

Meanwhile donations are coming in from around the world to several funds established to help the victims with all the other expenses they will face, including ongoing medical care, counseling, physical therapy, transportation and rebuilding the school.

The Amish asked that a portion of the donations be shared with Roberts’ widow and three small children. Her husband was their sole source of income.

By early this morning, the donations totaled more than $1 million, with cards, letters, e-mails and corporate contributions adding to the base donation of $500,000 by Capital BlueCross.

On Wednesday, the James Hale Steinman and John F. Steinman foundations made a $10,000 contribution. Lancaster Regional Medical Center donated $4,000, half raised in an employee bake sale.

More than a thousand Harley-Davidson motorcycle riders are expected to ride from Chester County to Dutch Wonderland in Lancaster County on Sunday as part of an annual memorial ride to raise money.

This year, the money will be donated to the Amish shooting victims.

Donations to the Amish families are being managed by the Nickel Mines Accountability Committee, a nine-person group consisting of seven Amish leaders and two non-Amish members.

As of this morning, Mennonite Disaster Service reportedly collected $226,500.

Larry Guengerich of Mennonite Central Committee said MCC raised just over $124,000 through Wednesday.

The Anabaptist Foundation had raised about $260,000 through Wednesday, according to Rich Lauer.

Local branches of several banks — including Fulton Bank, Bank of Lancaster County, Ephrata National Bank, Susquehanna Bank, Hometowne Heritage Bank and Coatesville Savings Bank — are accepting tax-deductible donations for the victims.

Several local businesses, including Turkey Hill Minit Markets and Lancaster County Wal-Marts, have set up collection jars for the victims. Wal-Mart also donated food and paper supplies for the Amish funerals.

“The nation seeks a way to grieve,” Kevin King, executive director of Mennonite Disaster Service, said. “We are serving as a collection plate.”