Its been a long week folks, and I was in the midst of getting caught up last Thursday morning when my dad called and told me to turn on the tv to channel two news…which is usually not a good sign of things to come, last time that happened, one of our firefighters was shot and killed in one of the cities I dispatch at, and two of our police officers shot and wounded at Maplewood…so I turned on the news and for the next three hours sat glued to it watching a very horrific accident scene unfold on I-44, just twenty miles east of me on a stretch that I drive to work three or four days a week. I knew the firefighters that were there and work with one of them at my dispatch center, so I texted him to see if he was there and confirm it was as bad as it looked on tv….

…Kurt said it was one of the worst ones Boles FPD had worked in a long time…over fifty schoolkids on two buses, one bus catapulted up in the air and the front of it resting on the cab of a semi truck pulling no trailer, a second bus had plowed into the back of the first bus heaviy, and then underneath one could barely make out a vehicle of unknown make and model, that appeared to be rolled up into a ball of twisted metal…you could see that firefighters had their hands full on arrival and had laid down a layer of foam as a precaution I`m sure, for a ruptured fuel tank, there was a ladder up against the side of the first bus and firefighters and medics were attending to several injured kids on the side of the interstate and in a shady area on the service road to the south side of I-44. It was definitely a bad accident scene and one of those that you never forget no matter how much one tries…

….I immediately stopped what I was doing and prayed for strength and comfort for those that were injured and hurt as well as the responders and law enforcement there working the scene…it was already hot that morning and firefighters and medics on scenes like that, wear heavy fire gear and protective clothing to keep them safe, so I knew they were gonna need as much help as they could get to safely do their jobs too. I texted Kurt again and asked him how the firefighters were holding up and he replied….hot but making it…..they had a job to do and they knew it, but thats what firefighters know and do all the time, its what we train for all the time and prepare for, but no amount of training can prepare one for this type of sight when you round the bend and there it is in front of you on arrival, either. Channel Two News was the first on the scene and provided coverage initially from the air with their skyzoom copter….

…and then later placed a reporter on the ground, which by then, there were reporters on scene from Channel Five News as well… my friend Jeff Small had arrived by then and was covering it on the ground from the east end and north side of the interstate…which gave us a view from that side and showed the expansive backup of eastbound traffic to the west….

….I later found out that several kids who were not injured but very frightened, had fled the buses and ran to the west and through the maze of vehicles backed up behind the scene, in fear that the strong odor of gasoline would catch fire and blow up, and thankfully several concerned travelers caught in the backup were able to slow and stop the fleeing children and convince them to get into their vehicles, in out of the heat and into safer environments until help could arrive. Several firefighters and medics made the walk west along the eastbound lanes and retrieved the children after arrival and took them to a waiting charter bus, provided by Mid America Coaches, who responded at the request of Fire Command, and later transported the non injured children safely to one of the St Louis area hospitals for treatment and checkup, which is routine in a situation like this.

I sat there for three hours watching this all unfold on tv and talking to Kurt about it, listening to the reporters as they heard from witnesses, and people driving by, and others who saw this and described the vehicle under the bus as first a car, then an suv, then a trailblazer suv silver in color…..then I suddenly received an email from my mom telling me that a good friend of ours, a fellow firefighter,  had just discovered that his grandson was driving the pickup that was trapped under the first bus, it was a full size Z71 silver pickup that was rolled into a ball practically from the impact of the first bus crashing into the back of it and then finally resting on top of it….my friend`s grandson was trapped within it…there had been initial reports of two fatalities and most like me, presumably, had figured both fatalities were likely the driver and presumed passenger in the vehicle under the bus….it later turned out that Daniel was alone in the pickup truck and the other fatality was on the first bus, a young band student sitting near the back of that bus.  Again I said a quick prayer for those involved and the families of those involved and the responders as well as their families and all of those involved in the incident, cause there are always people in the background that work these types of incidents and it can be just as stressful to them as to those actually on the scene. I relayed that info to Kurt as well and he told me that they had cut the truck open to retrieve Daniel from the pickup…he was joined by another chaplain from their department and they were going to say prayers for the families at that time….

Even though I didnt know Daniel personally,  had never met him or talked to him, I knew his parents well, his grandfather is a close family friend and firefighter family friend as well, and I knew of his exploits in the area, having been a gifted athlete in football, baseball, and basketball for the past four years of high school, and he walked on to the Mizzou Tigers team last year and became a backup quarterback for them. Not many people can do that, walk on to a major college like that with quarterback abilities and fit right into things like he did. I had heard from several people that he had a throwing arm like a rifle, his aim was generally right on target and he had an impressive passing and rushing record. I went to a few of the Eagles football games in the past few years, difficult to do on my schedule of working nights, mainly on request, to provide some coverage for our local paper`s sports section, but always enjoyed watching and shooting the game.  He made it enjoyable from the sidelines throwing passes and carrying the ball and advancing the team down to the goal line. Never met and talked to him, but never ever heard a bad word from anyone about the boy, either.  Very nice, polite and kind and courteous….which didnt surprise me at all, knowing well who his parents are, two of the nicest people one would ever want to know in this area, and both come from good families and backgrounds as well.

The visitation was well attended, over two thousand people visited with the family at the church and their home over the next few days, and he was buried on the family farm from a pretty hillside view of the valley that he frequently hunted and fished through his young years. Everyone was amazed at the effect one nineteen year old could have on the lives of so many, evidenced by the number that showed up for the visitation and funeral.  Family and friends are convinced though, had Daniel not been there at that time and place, to absorb the impact of the bus, many more lives could have been taken as well, had the bus impacted the semi instead. And there is no doubt where Daniel is at now, hunting and fishing and playing football extensively in the Heavens above. One day we will see him again.