What had happenedI can't explain it. Mark Junge: Yeah, my brother-in-law worked in the Navy as a chief petty officer and he worked with what they called EOD. Mark Junge: Are you one of the most experienced people in the area? What is the LDS population of the town and how big was your school? David, Doris and Princess proceeded to the elementary school and entered the building shortly after 1 p.m. that Friday. On May 16, 1986, David and Doris Young entered Cokeville Elementary School with a gasoline bomb, a variety of rifles and handguns, David's philosophical writings and demands for $300 million in ransom. She has published several articles in peer-reviewed journals on the history and heritage of Germans from Russia on the Northern Plains. So you got that and you got the flour and the gasoline and that's what it was all designed to do in millisecond delays. We know he built two of 'em. There are a select number of people that would do this, so thank you. May 12, 2011, 2:30am PDT. I walked into the bathroom and there was the suspect that had started this whole mess, layin' there on the floor with ahe had a pistol in his hand and you could tell he had shot himself in the head. Sue Castaneda: Did you look at (unintelligible). Dr. Clark is the faculty advisor of the Sweet Memories: Research Group at Western. It was in their Tucson home that David came up with what he considered the Biggie, a plan to get rich quick and create a Brave New World. This plan involved Davids longtime friends, Gerald Deppe and Doyle Mendenhall, who believed by investing in Davids scheme they would get rich. Of course, most children were elated by the prospects of an assembly. You'd had experience? I was a little bit nervous, of course. I knew fairly quickly that he would be the best chance we had at this. When the thing went off, when the bomb exploded, they just started chuckin' people out the windows. The two died after the bomb. Peterson, Carol. Mark Junge: No? In the classroom, David held the gasoline bomb, with the triggering mechanism attached to a string tied around his wrist. The timelines of some events are fuzzy Its hard to nail down what stands out the most, there were a LOT of crazy things I'd never seen before then, or since really. During the chaos, Doris' burnt body was expelled through a window, and left lying on the front lawn. Although many were burned, some severely, only the perpetrators of this horrible incident died. There was no give in the school bus. All the kids were saved. The detonation didn't do it, it was cut. Create an account to follow your favorite communities and start taking part in conversations. Had a gallon milk jug full of gasoline on one level, had aluminum powder, flour and those two components was in tuna fish cans directly under the gasoline bomb. Rich Haskell: Well, as we were talking before we started recording, because of my knowledge with the explosives and with the law enforcement and everything else, I've had many opportunitiesbecause of the explosivesI've been with Vice President Cheney when he was here in Wyoming up in Pinedale. Because they refused to participate, Princess, Deppe, and Mendenhall were never charged in relation to this crime. Both David and Doris had ties to white supremacist groups, including the Posse Comitatus and the Aryan Nations. Mark Junge: Where at? Others miracles were reported and some of those are recorded in this compilation.." results in the deaths of perpetrators David and Doris Young; 154 hostages survive. [5][10][8], When the bomb detonated, the majority of the explosive force was channeled through loose ceiling tiles into the roof, and open windows acting as vents. I guess I should say I am only speaking as a child, the adults were probably tense the entire time! She was on fire! Cokeville Elementary School is located at 205 N. Sage St. in Cokeville. Because in the bus, everything was solid in the school bus. Everything was blackened. The kids couldn't have done it. I think it was still in his body. Rich Haskell: I think it could be a spiritual experience that I have with church, or being around the kids, I don't know. You just do whatever you have to do and get up there." Jeffrey D. Allred, Deseret Morning News. Rich Haskell: If it would have went off like it was supposed to have gone off, it would have lifted the roof off of that school. And that was their whole intent of coming to Cokeville. I saw an early screening of the film and absolutely loved it. David emerged from the bathroom to find his wife in excruciating pain. Rich Haskell: Absolutely. Rich Haskell: Uh, I can understand that. She's an avid genealogist, so maybe get involved with that, and maybe go on a mission for the church. This is actually the first time I have heard of this. On May 16, 1986, David and Doris Young entered Cokeville Elementary School with a gasoline bomb, a variety of rifles and handguns, David's philosophical writings and demands for $300 million We're in a conference room here on the main floor. The Cokeville Elementary School hostage crisis occurred on May 16, 1986, in Cokeville, Wyoming, United States, when former town marshal David Young 44, and his wife Doris Young 47, took 136 children and 18 adults hostage at Cokeville Elementary School . I did see the lighting had changed in the room, and it was right in the same timeline as everyone else's witness. Rich Haskell: Yes, I did. Several other survivors were there. First grade teacher Janel Dayton on the 1986 bombing of Cokeville Elementary School Published: November 8, 2014 Janel Dayton, Wyoming State Archives photo. So he did try that device. This wasn't a pipe bomb. And I'm sure that that made him very nervous. Can you describe this? Mark Junge: Today is the 23rd of September, 2010. As I sat there and watched him, I could feel he was becoming agitated. Vengeance for having been fired did not seem to have been the motive, but rather a philosophy recorded in journal entries referring to a Brave New World where he wanted to reign over intelligent children. Rich Haskell: I was cookin' right along, yes I was! Reporters from all the regional news outlets were on the scene by the time of the explosion or shortly thereafter. That's what it was designed to do was to go out and be particles and that gasoline was gonna ignite it and blow it up. It became a story of a miracle rather than a tragedy. May 16, 1986, will never be forgotten by the residents of Cokeville, Wyo. In the West? Mark Junge: And you're sheriff in Sweetwater? over there. You can see what's happening in the world today. And afteryou look in there and you could see little pockmarks all through on the walls, and after we finished with our investigationit took us three days to totally do the whole entire sceneyou could tell where those pockmarks were bullets from the heat had gone off. A quarter of a century later, Williams can still vividly recall the chaotic scene following the explosion. He used to work in Cokeville. I cannot explain it! Rich Haskell: Approximately an hour and ten, hour and fifteen minutes. Some of them believed the assembly was about weapons; others began realizing something was seriously wrong. Mark Junge: Do you still think about this? By Jamie Armstrong May 22, 2015 09:35 AM MDT. Once the wooden piece was removed, the two metal connectors completed the circuit, detonating the bomb. I think you should know that it can be difficult to watch - but that it has a very rewarding outcome. Contact us at editor@wyohistory.org for information on levels and types of available sponsorships. For me, what has impressed me about the film is not necessarily the story of Angels (which are remarkable), but that the majority of the 154 hostages chose to see God's hand in their lives that day. TC is one of my heroes. Rich Haskell: No, I don't think it exited. Where you find brackets [ ] I have added words for explanation or to complete an awkward sentence. Wyoming has a lot of money as far as the state is concerned. That dead-man switch is a piece of string that goes around your wrist and it's hooked into a clothespin, the other end of it. On May 16, 1986, former town marshal David Young and his wife Doris Young took 167 children and adults hostage at Cokeville Elementary School. On May 16, 1986, a man and his wife with a bomb took . He had just big rings of perspiration. When I looked at everyone looking at me (as if I should call on someone to say it) I realized I should call on Allyson Cornia - literally because she was the smartest kid in the class! You know, the kids have forgot about it, let's let 'em move on. Rich Haskell: Well, run fordo another term as sheriff and then retire, and my wife and I are going to doshe loves genealogy. Over the course of time he did various things to get our input from script readings early on, to being there on set, etc. [6] With permission, the teachers brought in books, art supplies and a television to help keep the children occupied. In the days and weeks immediately after this event, most accounts focused on the horrors of the day. The jug of gasoline had a pinhole-sized leak on its bottom. I got a chance to talk to Jennie Sorensen Johnson, who was seven when David Young rolled a bomb into her first grade classroom. Had a small pin-hole leak in it and it dripped into both containers and they both became paste. That's a true line in the movie. He was dismissed, however, from this position shortly after his six-month probationary period. Angelic Intervention save all 153 in bomb blast - Cokeville Wyoming - Unexplained Mysteries - Angels Brain Boyle 2.05K subscribers Subscribe 928 158K views 11 years ago All 153 Children &. And I didn't know about the angel thing comin' to the kids until many days later. And I think it's made me a stronger person. Everyone else survived, and many who did recalled the tragedy with memories of the presence of angels. I know it is real. But David refused to reveal his plans entirely until moments before they unfolded. Go to school and learn how to do it." Well, with the window being open, with the ceiling tiles being able to lift up and down, I think that absorbed a lot of the explosion of the gasoline bottle. The photo of Rich Haskell is by Wyoming State Archives. [T]rust is big here youngsters grow up knowing they can turn to many other members of the community with confidence, write Hartt and Judene Wixom in Trial by Terror: The Child-hostage Crisis in Cokeville, Wyoming. It has shaped me to know that God is real. Wyoming State Parks and Cultural Resources, Cheyenne. The Cokeville Elementary School hostage crisis occurred on Friday, May 16, 1986 in Cokeville, Wyoming, United States, when former town marshal David Young, 43, and his wife Doris Young, 47,[1] took 136 children and 18 adults hostage at Cokeville Elementary School. Cokeville Elementary School is located at 205 N. Sage St. in Cokeville. Mark Junge: So it would have gone upward, but would it have killed the kids? Cokeville had so little crime that many folks didn't bother to lock their doors. Sue Castaneda: Carla said that some people were mad that we were there. Well, with the window being open, with the ceiling tiles being able to lift up and down, I think that absorbed a lot of the explosion of the gasoline bottle. The couple corralled a large group of students and teachers into a single classroom. I've got a couple of questions. The kids could just go to the bathroom right from their classroom. David Young was the only police officer in Cokeville for six months in 1979. They messed with the kids and that brought a whole communityin fact, it brought the whole western half of the state all together. Rich Haskell: Well, by none of the kids bein' hurt that was supposed to be hurt. You can't think, well, maybe something could happen, because yes it could. Also, what do you want us to know about it that isn't covered in the film? 1 of 7. Too many of 'em to try to remember their birthdays. Rich Haskell: Approximately three and a half days. David saw John Miller, the music teacher, trying to escape and shot him in the back. Rich Haskell: And fourteen and a half great-grandchildren. Davids friends did not know that the Biggie was a plan to take over Cokeville Elementary School, hold each of the children hostage for $2 million dollars apiece and then detonate the bomb, transporting the money and children to his Brave New World, where he would be God. He knew it was a predominantly Mormon [The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints] community. I immediately went into rendering safehe had brought in several devices with him to place in different places in the room, and there was a lot of ammunition, a lot of guns out in the hallway, and I immediately started rendering all those safe, making sure that those were safe and they could move them out of the building. So if the state didn't pay him, he figured the Mormon church would pay him because the Mormon church has money also. Davids writings reveal that he hoped life would be better for him and Cokevilles children in this imaginary place. Jessica Clark, Ph.D., is an assistant professor of history and political science at Western Wyoming Community College in Rock Springs, Wyo. She acknowledges these students for assisting her in researching her contributions to the WyoHistory.org web site. Mark Junge: That's a record of all the people we've talked to! There are several great resources out there. That your life could change just at a blink of an eye. And they had practiced how to get out of that building. In most cases I have deleted redundant ands, ers, uhs, buts, false starts, etc. Words emphasized by the speaker are italicized.~Transcribed by Russ Sherwin, Feb. 27, 2011. We know for a fact that he had tried that device because he did it in Arizona and totally destroyed a school bus. But it still sent flames all over in the room and you can see where all the flames were in that room. Windows were opened to rid the room of gasoline fumes, and prayers were offered in small groups among the children. Have you had anything like this, anything close to this happen? When they asked pointed questions like "what did the angels look like?" Now you've got problems. They were sitting out across the fence with scopes on their rifles just ready to shoot until the sheriff went out and said, "No. Rich Haskell: Yes, absolutely. Why? The hostage takers took part in the singing. Doris accidently triggered the bomb by motioning to her hostages with her arms. The gasoline bottle was leaking. Cokeville Trying to Rebuild A Normal and Secure Life.. I'm currently the Sheriff of Sweetwater County. When the children became increasingly loud, Doris Young began begging the teachers to settle the group down. I actually have a pretty clear memory of the events that day, being 12 years old. There were plenty who opposed this from Cokeville, not a majority, maybe, but they were vocal and raw with feelings. Cokeville Elementary School hostage crisis, "Radical Right Link Suggested in Hostage Case", "Cokeville Elementary School Bombing | WyoHistory.org", "Couple take over school but die after bomb blast", "Couple in School Blast Linked to Extremist Group", "Certified Bomb Technician Rich Haskell on the 1986 Bombing of Cokeville Elementary School | WyoHistory.org", "Lead Investigator Ron Hartley, Father of Four Student Survivors, on the 1986 Bombing of Cokeville Elementary School | WyoHistory.org", "Secretary Tina Cook on the 1986 Bombing of Cokeville Elementary School | WyoHistory.org", "A projectile killed Dorris Young, not bomb blast, police in Cokeville say", "In 1986, 154 children and teachers survived the bombing of Cokeville Elementary School", "Emergency Management Coordinator Kathy Davison on the 1986 Bombing of Cokeville Elementary School | WyoHistory.org", University of North Carolina at Charlotte, Liberty Point International Middle School, Central Visual and Performing Arts High School, "'No Way to Prevent This', Says Only Nation Where This Regularly Happens", List of school shootings in the United States by death toll, https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Cokeville_Elementary_School_hostage_crisis&oldid=1139490391, Improvised explosive device bombings in the United States, Short description is different from Wikidata, Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike License 3.0, This page was last edited on 15 February 2023, at 11:55. At that time, about 500 people lived in Cokeville, and there were slightly more than 100 students attending the elementary school. The Power of Faith: 25 Years After School Bombing, Town Remembers Story of Survival., Mitchell, Ruth Ann. . Eventually Doris lifted her arm sharply and the bomb went off prematurely, injuring Doris while David was out of the room. Witnesses later testified that just before the explosion David Young had connected the explosive to his wife. Sue Castaneda: Which is the son who is also running for sheriff? Rich Haskell: No, it's not. Jessica Clark, Ph.D., is an assistant professor of history and political science at Western Wyoming Community College in Rock Springs, Wyo. 2 Recreation Board, Indigenous People in Wyoming and the West, Emergency Management Coordinator Kathy Davison on the 1986 Bombing of Cokeville Elementary School, EMT Glenna Walker, Mother of Three Young Children, on the 1986 Bombing of Cokeville Elementary School, Lead Investigator Ron Hartley, Father of Four Student Survivors, on the 1986 Bombing of Cokeville Elementary School, Public Works Director and Fireman Kevin Walker, Father of Three Young Children, on the 1986 bombing of Cokeville Elementary School, Secretary Tina Cook on the 1986 Bombing of Cokeville Elementary School, First grade teacher Janel Dayton on the 1986 bombing of Cokeville Elementary School, Second grade teacher Carol Petersen on the 1986 bombing of Cokeville Elementary School, Third grade student Rachel Walker Hollibaugh on the 1986 Bombing of Cokeville Elementary School, Third grade student Jamie Buckley King on the 1986 Bombing of Cokeville Elementary School, Fourth grade teacher Kliss Sparks on the 1986 bombing of Cokeville Elementary School, Fourth grade student LeaKae Roberts on the 1986 Bombing of Cokeville Elementary School, Green River Historic Preservation Commission, Natrona County Board of Cooperative Educational Services, Natrona County Recreation Joint Powers Board, Sublette County Historical Preservation Board, University of Wyoming School of Energy Resources, Casper Chapter, Wyoming Archaeological Society, June Frison chapter, Wyoming Archeological Society. In 1986, 154 children and teachers survived the bombing of Cokeville Elementary School. She is one of the survivors whose story has become a part of The Cokeville Miracle. Mark Junge: to go through all this? [8] This unintentionally activated the triggering mechanism and the bomb exploded, severely injuring Doris, and filling the room with black smoke and pockets of fire. You know something about bombs. Some of the children just sat right all around and just watched him. Well, when I arrived at Cokeville, of course they had the roads all blocked off and there was not a lot of people around the school at the time. No, this is something that people need to know about. To go off to the side? There was nobody killed but the perpetrators. "The sadness that comes with the death of an 8-year-old, you can . May 16, 1986, will never be forgotten by the residents of Cokeville, Wyo. I've been involved with law enforcement since 1977 in Sweetwater County. I was later told that everybody had been taken to different hospitals, ambulance services from all over, from Utah, from Idaho, from Wyoming was transporting people all over the place and there was only two fatalities. They did a good job telling this story. To my right is Sue Castaneda who is the Wyoming Oral History Project Director, and across the table from me is Rich Haskell, who is a certified bomb technician. He was the father of two, but was estranged from his elder daughter. They're the ones that died from the whole thing. New comments cannot be posted and votes cannot be cast. During the Cokeville Elementary School hostage crisis. The children and adults escaped after the bomb exploded. I was still trying to make sense of it all! Rich Haskell: Yes, there was a briefcase in the hallway, and we were toldbefore I had gotten there they had gotten papers from his daughter. David Youngs journals and writings reveal that he was a troubled man who spent many years grappling with deep philosophical questionsabout mans existence, the afterlife and spirituality. Sue Castaneda: Where did you get your training for that? You start messing with the kids, now you're going to have yourself a war. #TodayInHistory: Today in 1986, The Cokeville Elementary School crises happened. This allowed gasoline to drip into the tuna fish cans, turning the aluminum-flour mixture into paste, unable to aerosolize. She fled the building and drove the Youngs vanwith Deppe and Mendenhall still insideto the town hall, where she reported her fathers plan. That's my lucky miracle. It was just shootin' everywhere. Debbie Sparks and Steven Moore, both EMTs, discuss on May 9 the elementary school bombing. Also, how long was it before the kids started talking about seeing angels? When you say what cut the wire? I did open that briefcase remotely like I was taught in school to do. Oral histories, memoirs and drawings began to reveal a narrative of fortune rather than misfortune.
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