No, not at all. WyoHistory.org welcomes the support of the following sponsors. AP file. 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. Mark Junge: Okay. Rich Haskell: No, it's not. He just said just go do it. So if it can happen there it can happen anywhere in the United States. Virginia Tech, it wasn't that way. How did you determine how everything looked when this went up in smoke itself. Do you ever think about that? 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. Nobody come inside this circle." Because in the bus, everything was solid in the school bus. There are several great resources out there. David's youngest daughter from his first marriage, Princess, entered the elementary school with David and Doris, but refused to carry out the plan, leaving to report the incident at the town hall. Mark Junge: Well, what do you think would cause two people like this to do this? Certified Bomb Technician. Rich Haskell: Well, run fordo another term as sheriff and then retire, and my wife and I are going to doshe loves genealogy. I really did not even want to walk inside that building because I was just afraid that I'd see kids all over the place. If you are interested in seeing the film, theaters are listed here. Mark Junge: Well, and it burned some of the kids. But it didn't. In 1986 , 154 children and teachers survived the bombing of Cokeville Elementary School. Rich Haskell: I don't know the birthdates but I know the names. I remember seeing the wide eyes on my band teacher as he collapsed with the EMTs afterward. Rich Haskell: Well, I got a lot of it while I was in the Marine Corps and in the Army National Guard. I did not have to imagine how God would move that day when I said my little prayer just hours before, I simply knew he would. School Bombing Survivor Converted after Priesthood Blessing When the thing went off, when the bomb exploded, they just started chuckin' people out the windows. He was so open to their input, and feelings. Accessed May 28, 2013 at. What should people know going into the film? And that's what we in this country have that these other fanatics or whatever is the family is the import factor. Mark Junge: Do you know the names and birthdates of all your grandchildren? All the hostages escaped, though 79 were hospitalized with burns and injuries. Two Powell residents, Lenita Moore (a science teacher at Powell High School) and John Miller (a longtime choir director at Powell High School who retired in 2020), remember being in Cokeville during the bombing. The two died after the bomb. Lenita's father Rocky was a fifth grade teacher at Cokeville Elementary School at the time of the bombing, Lenita was a seventh grader. I went from within two feet of the bomb to right near the door within ten minutes before the bomb went off. They believed in reincarnation, which probably led, in part, to the creation of Davids Brave New World idea. The circuit was powered by a 9-volt lantern battery. Well, he had put wooden shelves for layers. At that time all of the different agencies was pretty much on the same radio frequency and I was stayin' in touch with them, lettin' them know what my location was and they were in turn telling me what was taking place. No, we can't do this. Mark Junge: So it would have gone upward, but would it have killed the kids? She is a trained rural historian who specializes in oral history, childhood history and memory studies. He instructed Doris and Princess, by now a young adult, to handcuff them inside his van. It packed the brute force of twenty-five sticks of dynamite. Create an account to follow your favorite communities and start taking part in conversations. Mark Junge: Curious, Rich. On May 16, 1986, an elementary school in Cokeville, Wyoming, was held hostage by a couple with a bomb. You'd had experience? You know this is going to sound morbid, but I always thought if the Muslims, the radical Muslims were smart, they would take their jihad to local communities because that would scare the hell out of 'em like it did in Cokeville. With fear that David might become unhinged, the teachers decided to make an ~8-foot square of masking tape for his own personal space. Young was a former Cokeville town marshal who had been living in Arizona for several years. Mark Junge: You'd been tested, though. I've spent many, many hours and many days with the leaders of the Mormon church, with the Prophet of the Mormon church. The woman who died with her husband as they held an elementary school hostage with a gasoline bomb last week was not killed by the . She lifted her hand up to rub her forehead and when she did that pulled the pin out and detonated the bomb. I mean, not everybody would do this. And I think it's made me a stronger person. There's a piece of wood in there that separates the jaws of a clothespin and in that clothespin there are two metal connections that the wires were hooked to which made the electrical connection with the bomb. The explosion engulfed her in flames and burned many nearby children. Dr. Clark is the faculty advisor of the Sweet Memories: Research Group at Western. 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. Kameron Wixom, son of Hartt and Judene Wixom, writes a childlike faith saved us. In his contribution to the Witness to Miracles book, Kameron writes: I didnt have to see angels, hear them, or even think that their presence might be required that day. He hadn't had anything to eat and she finally convinced him to get something to eat, and he let her be in charge of that bomb. May 16, 1986, will never be forgotten by the residents of Cokeville, Wyo. The tuna fish cans with the two floury would be spread out in the air likehave you ever seen a grain elevator explosion? Boston columnist: 'This was an attack on family' - Today I've got a couple of questions. I was a little bit nervous, of course. But it still sent flames all over in the room and you can see where all the flames were in that room. In most cases I have deleted redundant ands, ers, uhs, buts, false starts, etc. Mark Junge: How many actual bombs have you had experience with? Rich Haskell: Well, I didn't know a lot about 'em and I still don't know a lot about 'em. Recording and transcription by Wyoming State Archives. Jessica Clark, Ph.D., is an assistant professor of history and political science at Western Wyoming Community College in Rock Springs, Wyo. Several other survivors were there. Rich Haskell: Oh my goodness! She was a divorce who earned money working as a waitress and singer in a local bar. They lived in a mobile home with Princess, Davids youngest daughter from his first marriage. He did it right. And, then, shortly after 4 p.m., the bomb exploded. In 1986, 154 children and teachers survived the bombing of Cokeville Elementary School. [6] With permission, the teachers brought in books, art supplies and a television to help keep the children occupied. During the chaos, Doris' burnt body was expelled through a window, and left lying on the front lawn. David set himself near the center of the room with the grocery cart bomb nearby, as Doris went from room to room rounding up people. And he had to defuse bombs. After being fired for misconduct, he moved to Tucson, Arizona, where he married Doris Young. Located in Lincoln County and nestled between the towns of Star Valley and Kemmerer on the Wyoming-Idaho border, Cokeville, many residents believed, was a safe place to rear children. 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. Trent Toone, Mormon Times. The bomb did detonate and fire, thick black smoke and toxi fumes filled the room. When Deppe and Mendenhall finally got wind of his plans moments before the hostage crisis unfolded, they refused to participate. 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. . The kids couldn't have done it. Mark Junge: But all of these holes were above the level of the children. 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. Kind of a synopsis of what they were going to do and what their plans were and the whole thing. On May 16, 1986, . Journal entries also indicate that he saw opportunity in the close-knit community; he wrote, "Threaten one and all are at your mercy." TC (the director) also worked incredibly hard to make this a story that can be widely appreciated by members of all faiths. Rich Haskell: You walk into the door, and I don't know if you got to go into the classroom, but you walk into that door and it opens up into the whole thing. 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. Rich Haskell: Yes, absolutely. So I went to Huntsville, Ala., to Redstone Arsenal. The Cokeville Miracle. When faith bears a miracle. - Medium Well, when I arrived and saw that body layin' on the front lawn, I was told that was Doris. Cokeville survivors relive school bombing for film Mark Junge: Did you help bring the body out? "[6] The two men eventually refused to participate in the event. With the explosionwhat occurred? In what many have since labeled a miracle, all of the 154 children and educators held hostage for three hours at their Cokeville, Wyoming, school lived, though many were injured. He listened so well, so patiently. The incident was detailed in the book The Cokeville Miracle: When Angels Intervene[12] by Hartt Wixom and his wife Judene, published by Cedar Fort, Inc., which formed the basis for a CBS made-for-TV movie titled To Save the Children. Carbon County School District No. David emerged from the bathroom to find his wife in excruciating pain. When they asked pointed questions like "what did the angels look like?" Both men were handcuffed in a van outside the school.[1]. [7] Geography [ edit] At 1:00 pm, they pulled up to the Cokeville Elementary School and unloaded a gasoline bomb, along with four rifles and nine handguns. On May 16, 1986, when former town marshal David Gary Young and his wife Doris Young took 154 children and thirteen teachers hostage at Cokeville Elementary school in Wyoming and kept them at bay with a shopping-cart sized bomb attached to five hairpin-trigger blast caps, it should have ended in great tragedy - one of the worst in American history. COKEVILLE, Wyo. I certainly enjoy my grandkids a lot more. Now you've got problems. He had just big rings of perspiration. And you could see that she had been burning by just looking at her out on the front lawn. Gallery: Cokeville School Bombing, 25 Years Later - Casper Star-Tribune Rich Haskell: There was also ayou look through the ceiling and there was a bigger hole up there. [7] The mechanism was triggered by a dead man's switch, consisting of a wooden piece separating two metal connectors within the jaws of a clothespin, forming an incomplete circuit. I saw an early screening of the film and absolutely loved it. Rich Haskell: There was a reason I was there for some reason. By rejecting non-essential cookies, Reddit may still use certain cookies to ensure the proper functionality of our platform. I know it is real. Davids writings reveal that he hoped life would be better for him and Cokevilles children in this imaginary place. On May 16, 1986, when former town marshal David Gary Young and his wife Doris Young took 154 children and 13 teachers hostage at Cokeville Elementary school in Wyoming, and kept them at bay with a shopping-cart sized bomb attached to five hairpin-trigger blast caps, it should have ended in great tragedy - one of the worst in American history. Mark Junge: And you're sheriff in Sweetwater? Twenty-five years ago on Monday, a man and his wife pushed a homemade gasoline bomb into Cokeville's sole elementary school and demanded $300 million in ransom. Amy Bagaso Williams with her husband and four children. The Cokeville hostage crisis began the afternoon of May 16, 1986, when David and Doris Young took 154 children and adults hostage at the Cokeville Elementary School in tiny Cokeville, Wyo. He did deliver our salvation that day. Which is hard to believe, but a positive experience in that they learned something. Rich Haskell: Well, after I arrived it took probably three to four hours to make sure everything was neutral and everything was not going to be a threat any longer. Cokeville miracle marking 25 years - Deseret News Sue Castaneda: Where did you get your training for that? I don't know ifI just felt an emptyactually I could just see a hundred-sixty people dead! I had just cracked a little joke with a toy tank of legos as I drove it "across the death line" or the masking tape square on the floor. I remember watching that when I was a younger kid, and when they were interviewing the witnesses, I remember several of them referencing "Heavenly Father " instead of "God," and I knew immediately they were LDS. [5], "You could see that the roof tiles had been lifted out of their brackets. May 12, 2011, 2:30am PDT. I was still trying to make sense of it all! Im living proof.. Many of the children who stated they saw angels were of various faiths. When were you satisfied that there were no more bombs? As time progressed, however, a different story emerged in this highly religious and largely Mormon community. And that was their whole intent of coming to Cokeville. The tuna fish cans, if you can imagine, here's two tuna fish cans sittin' here like this, and a gallon jug of gasoline sittin' above it. Mark Junge: to go through all this? They forget about what happened in Cokeville with a lot more people and the potential of what was there. Rich Haskell: Absolutely. Rich Haskell: You know, with 33 years of law enforcement, I've seen a lot of things. Thank you for doing this! At that time, about 500 people lived in Cokeville, and there were slightly more than 100 students attending the elementary school. Rich Haskell: I'm Rich Haskell. ITT: people who want to pick a fight with someone who survived an incredible experience. Press J to jump to the feed. Just before implementing the Biggie, David Young had also sent a copy of the document to President Ronald Reagan, the president of Chadron State College and numerous media outlets. Because of the experience and the different classes that I've attended, I know what bombs do to people, to buildings and to all kinds of structures. I cannot explain it! They did a good job telling this story. I cannot tell you what happened. Only the man and his wife, who accidentally detonated the bomb, died that day in 1986. Returning to the scene, David shot his wife, a teacher, then himself. Cokeville Miracle Marking 25 Years.. The Hartley story didn't come out publicly until my parents (who wrote the book in the year after the bombing) began asking questions about this kind of thing. Cokeville had so little crime that many folks didn't bother to lock their doors. Educated at Chadron State College in Nebraska, he had earned a degree in criminal justice, and was hired as Cokevilles town marshal in the 1970s. He was asking large amounts of money. WyoHistory.org welcomes the support of the following sponsors. The bomb was an improvised explosive device constructed in a small two-wheeled shopping cart with two baskets, one on top of the other. P. O. And it burned some children. Rich Haskell: Yep. Maybe writing that up 2 years ago when this came along was more healing for me than for him, but I gave it all to him! Transcriber's notes: I have added some reference footnotes to this transcript where I thought appropriate. I don't know what. Cokeville Bombing - Wyoming This did, in fact, happen in Wyoming! Man Decapitated by Exploding Pipe Bomb - NBC Chicago Mark Junge: Had you seen anything like what took place in this classroom before? Meanwhile, Doris went from classroom to classroom, luring 136 children, six faculty, nine teachers, and three other adults, including a job applicant and a UPS driver, into a first-grade classroom for a total of 154 hostages. Carbon County School District No. He shot and killed her. I'm portrayed as the little red haired kid with glasses that asks about the AK-47. Returning, David Young shot his wife, then himself. This wasn't a simple bomb. Sue Castaneda: Carla said that some people were mad that we were there. Rich Haskell: Yes. By accepting all cookies, you agree to our use of cookies to deliver and maintain our services and site, improve the quality of Reddit, personalize Reddit content and advertising, and measure the effectiveness of advertising. [4], Prior to the hostage crisis, David had tested a similar bomb in a sealed school bus in Arizona, destroying it.[5]. Just like with a pair of pliers, pair of snips. 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. Audio/Video Recording. Details: At 1:20pm on Friday, May 16, 1986, forty-three-year-old David Young and his forty-seven-year-old wife, Doris, wheeled a shopping cart containing a homemade gasoline-filled bomb into Cokeville Elementary School in Cokeville, Wyoming, just after the lunch hour recess. Mark Junge: Do you think you've taken more joy out of life because of it? This wasn't a pipe bomb. Family is the most important thing in a Mormon family. 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. He was the father of two, but was estranged from his elder daughter. I'm currently the Sheriff of Sweetwater County. He was in high fevers until the therapist allowed him to speak openly. They attempted to crowd 154 people into one of the two first grade classrooms, a room with a total capacity of 30 students and a teacher. David had also sent a copy of the manifesto to Reagan. It has shaped me to know that God is real. Rich Haskell: Sure. You know something about bombs. Trauma is trauma and everyone deals with it differently. David attached the bomb trigger to his wrist and threatened the group that he might, at any time, move his arm and ignite the bomb. Rich Haskell: Yeah, I think I did. And I'm sure that that made him very nervous. They just didn't let it die out. That's a true line in the movie. Current students at Cokeville Elementary School aren't taught about the '86 bombing, but most know the general story. 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. It was cut. Mark Junge: Okay. Weredo you think it had something to do with angels? 25 years after school bombing, Wyoming town remembers story of survival Rich Haskell: Well, I like to think I'm a better person because of it. 2 Recreation Board, Indigenous People in Wyoming and the West, http://news.google.com/newspapers/p/deseret_news?id=nz1TAAAAIBAJ&sjid=BYQDAAAAIBAJ&pg=4165,3587249&dq=cokeville+bombing&hl=en, http://archive.org/details/SurvivorIsMyName-VoicesOfTheCokevilleElementarySchoolBombing, http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=udNB_xdPiYE, http://news.google.com/newspapers?id=mz1TAAAAIBAJ&sjid=BYQDAAAAIBAJ&pg=6656,2193766&dq=cokeville+trying+to+rebuild&hl=en, http://news.google.com/newspapers?id=oD1TAAAAIBAJ&sjid=BYQDAAAAIBAJ&dq=cokeville&pg=7027%2C3851642, http://wyospcr.state.wy.us/MultiMedia/Display.aspx?ID=86&icon=1, http://news.google.com/newspapers?nid=1928&dat=19870529&id=-AogAAAAIBAJ&sjid=c2UFAAAAIBAJ&pg=1067,6238243, http://news.google.com/newspapers?nid=1499&dat=19870521&id=w4sfAAAAIBAJ&sjid=zH4EAAAAIBAJ&pg=4596,6209063, https://www.deseret.com/2006/5/15/19953524/cokeville-recollects-miracle-of-1986, http://www.denverpost.com/news/ci_18072820, http://trib.com/news/state-and-regional/article%E2%80%943077bf4a-a45e-5dad-ae3a-a99aa8fcf3aa.html, http://news.google.com/newspapers?nid=336&dat=19960515&id=Ke5LAAAAIBAJ&sjid=fuwDAAAAIBAJ&pg=5227,9406392, http://news.google.com/newspapers?nid=336&dat=19940404&id=GoQwAAAAIBAJ&sjid=iuwDAAAAIBAJ&pg=2778,1992787, http://www.deseretnews.com/article/705372484/Cokeville-miracle-marking-25-years.html, http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Qe_ZX4Qbsi4, 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, Public Works Director and Fireman Kevin Walker, Father 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, Certified Bomb Technician Rich Haskell 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, Law and Order in Cokeville: A Woman Mayor and Prohibition, 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, A Projectile Killed Doris Young, Not Bomb Blast, Police in Cokeville Say., Castaneda, Sue and Mark Junge. Meanwhile, police and parents gathered out of sight of the school room where hostages were gathered. Throughout both baskets were chain links, gunpowder, and boxes of ammunition acting as shrapnel. The couple corralled a large group of students and teachers into a single classroom. One of the miracles that day was that not a single person was lost. Rich Haskell: It's a combustible. Rich Haskell: That's my oldest boy, Steven. Yeah, we didn't get a lot of sleep. (Laughs) Yeah, I understand what you're saying, but it was. They learned to trust in their God, the kids were healed for the most part, and they value life more now. Rich Haskell: Well, I did learn later that the kids saw the angels. David went to the school office, handing out a manifesto titled "ZERO EQUALS INFINITY" and announcing "This is a revolution!" I don't know. Retro Report took a look back at this episode, with a focus on how Johnson & Johnson and . Bullet Hit Woman Who Died in School Siege - Los Angeles Times Rich Haskell: Yes, I did. So we took the tiles off and went up into the ceiling and crawled up into the upper space up there and found a .45 slug up embedded into the iron girders up in the wall, and thought, okay, where did that come from? I didn't look at the speedometer, I was just kind of watchin' for animals and everything else. Go to school and learn how to do it." It just embedded into the walls from the ammunition from the heat. On May 16, 1986, David and Doris Young took 154 people hostage at the Cokeville Elementary School in tiny Cokeville, Wyo. The Cokeville Town Hall is located at 110 Pine St. For more information, visit the website of the Cokeville Chamber of Commerce at http://www.cokevillewy.com or call (307) 459-4195. In a May 16, 1986 photo, the body of Doris Young is removed by officials after the Cokeville Elementary hostage situation in Cokeville, Wyo. Why? Talking To Cokeville Survivor - LDS Blogs Dr. Clark is the faculty advisor of the Sweet Memories: Research Group at Western. Cokeville Elementary School teachers and staff tried to keep kindergarteners through sixth graders calm and entertained.