Both hostage takers died, while 79 hostages were wounded. COKEVILLE, Wyo. He knew it was a predominantly Mormon [The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints] community. Cokeville Children Held Hostage by Bomber., Cokeville Elementary School Bombing: 25-Years Later. Accessed May 17, 2013, at, Fagg, Ellen. The basket, the shelves. You start messing with the kids, now you're going to have yourself a war. 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. She acknowledges these students for assisting her in researching her contributions to the WyoHistory.org web site. Well, after interviewing some of the people, what had happened, the bombDavid Young had set the bomb to have what they call a dead-man switch. Mark Junge: Did you find the bullet that killed him, too? Although many were burned, some severely, only the perpetrators of this horrible incident died. It killed her instantly. There was no give in the school bus. And knew what they could do? Casper Chapter, Wyoming Archaeological Society, June Frison chapter, Wyoming Archeological Society. He was asking large amounts of money. 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. Go to their hands and knees and crawl out. What is cokeville miracle about? Explained by Sharing Culture 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. A compilation project by the Cokeville Miracle Foundation, a 501(c) (3) charity. One hostage observed a birthday on that day and songs were sung in his honor. Hi MadreDeUnMono! All the kids were saved. When you say what cut the wire? I absolutely have. Mark Junge: Do you think you've taken more joy out of life because of it? 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. I'd like to think so. He used to work in Cokeville. I do think the key is talking about it often and early. They had a circle of tape around the device itself and they said, "Do not come inside of this circle. Debbie Sparks and Steven Moore, both EMTs, discuss on May 9 the elementary school bombing. She is one of the survivors whose story has become a part of The Cokeville Miracle. There were plenty who opposed this from Cokeville, not a majority, maybe, but they were vocal and raw with feelings. Rich Haskell: I sometimes do, but you can't let yourself think about it. Now you've got problems. When the children became increasingly loud, Doris Young began begging the teachers to settle the group down. Mark Junge: No? He instructed Doris and Princess, by now a young adult, to handcuff them inside his van. They learned to trust in their God, the kids were healed for the most part, and they value life more now. Bullet Hit Woman Who Died in School Siege - Los Angeles Times But I know that, well, I'll just be quite frank. Others miracles were reported and some of those are recorded in this compilation.." Mark Junge: Well, and it burned some of the kids. Also, how long was it before the kids started talking about seeing angels? ", Mark Junge: So it took you three days, three and a half days. TC, I think, saw it the same way. I've got a couple of questions. I did open that briefcase remotely like I was taught in school to do. Rich Haskell: Yes, I did. On that Friday afternoon in their quiet, rural town, a deranged couple entered the community's elementary school, took those inside hostage and detonated a bomb in a first grade classroom. I think he went in the Marine Corps because of me and served 25 years and retired. The kids could just go to the bathroom right from their classroom. They just didn't let it die out. The Cokeville Miracle. When faith bears a miracle. - Medium 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. Mark Junge: They don't want it brought up again. Everyone else survived, including the injured John Miller. Mark Junge: Well, what do you think would cause two people like this to do this? Survivors shared their stories with each other, investigators, family members, and hospital personnel. #TodayInHistory: Today in 1986, The Cokeville Elementary School crises happened. The explosion engulfed her in flames and burned many nearby children. Only the man and his wife, who accidentally detonated the bomb, died that day in 1986. cokeville bombing | WyoHistory.org I don't know what. who wins student body president riverdale. Cokeville Bombing. Undated scrapbook. But shortly after entering the school, Princess decided to rebel. In 2006, the Cokeville Miracle Foundation compiled a book of recollections about the day from parents, emergency workers and former hostages. Rich Haskell: That's my oldest boy, Steven. [5] The wooden piece was tied to Doris' wrist by a string. Encircled it. In the West? Have there been any lingering psychological effects from going through something so traumatic while so young? Meanwhile, police and parents gathered out of sight of the school room where hostages were gathered. He shot and killed her. Mark Junge: This bomb was designed to do what? 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. Cokeville Elementary School is located at 205 N. Sage St. in Cokeville. Immediately following the detonation, the teachers started to shove children into the hallway, and through two open windows onto the grass outside the school, causing chaos as panicked parents tried to break through police lines. She has published several articles in peer-reviewed journals on the history and heritage of Germans from Russia on the Northern Plains. They do now - ever since the Youngs barged in on the Cokeville Elementary School with guns and a bomb to demand . The Power of Faith: 25 Years After School Bombing, Town Remembers Story of Survival., Mitchell, Ruth Ann. (before I see Hollywood's version). I contacted the dispatch up in Kemmerer to get firsthand information as to having second- and third-hand information and they informed me that the school indeed had been taken hostage. And that's where the bomb sat and that's where they sat. Of course, I can imagine the noise that it made. 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. Oral histories, memoirs and drawings began to reveal a narrative of fortune rather than misfortune. So there's doubt in your mind that there was divine intervention? Mark Junge: Well, yes. Rich Haskell: I don't know the birthdates but I know the names. "If you can see the bomb, the bomb can see you," an officer shouted. WyoHistory.org welcomes the support of the following sponsors. 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. Do you ever think about that? They were sitting out across the fence with scopes on their rifles just ready to shoot until the sheriff went out and said, "No. Certified Bomb Technician. 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. 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. I'm proud of all my children. You could walk across the street and get run over as far as that's concerned, but I don't know if my wife has any more gray hairs because I've chosen this profession. He did deliver our salvation that day. Rich Haskell: Uh, I can understand that. TC is one of my heroes. If I deleted an entire phrase, I have inserted ellipses . Hey, I am not the survivor, but I spent my summers in Cokeville, my family is from there, and I have been helping on publicity for the film. Everybody that was inside that room, they just started throwin' them out the windows, out the doors, just anyand she happened to be one they threw out the window. I believe there was a hundred-and-sixty-plus people involved that was being held. Journal entries also indicate that he saw opportunity in the close-knit community; he wrote, "Threaten one and all are at your mercy." As time progressed, however, a different story emerged in this highly religious and largely Mormon community. The Youngs both died that day. Contact us at editor@wyohistory.org for information on levels and types of available sponsorships. He just said just go do it. Boston columnist: 'This was an attack on family' - Today They had written the manuscript, ready for publication, when the Walkers contacted them as family friends and said you may want to come ask our daughters some questions. Parentheses ( ) are used for incidental non-verbal sounds, like laughter. And then he shot himself. On May 16, 1986, . Mark Junge: Oh, really! This allowed gasoline to drip into the tuna fish cans, turning the aluminum-flour mixture into paste, unable to aerosolize. Rich Haskell: No. Dr. Clark is the faculty advisor of the Sweet Memories: Research Group at Western. May 16, 1986, will never be forgotten by the residents of Cokeville, Wyo. I didn't look at the speedometer, I was just kind of watchin' for animals and everything else. You can ask me anything about this today between 1-2pm. By Jamie Armstrong May 22, 2015 09:35 AM MDT. He still needed to tell it to his parents though, and that's basically what you see in the movie. Mark Junge: You also mention in your written article in Witness to Miracles [See Note] , the book, that you found a briefcase and you had to open it remotely? Mark Junge: What were they designed to do? Cokeville Elementary School is located at 205 N. Sage St. in Cokeville. It was suggested we say a group prayer and I thought it was a great idea, so I helped gather a group of us together. She acknowledges these students for assisting her in researching her contributions to the WyoHistory.org web site. Mark Junge: You think when we talk to you to bring this up againI know you're emotional about itbut does it hurt you to talk about this? I went from within two feet of the bomb to right near the door within ten minutes before the bomb went off. Witnesses later testified that just before the explosion David Young had connected the explosive to his wife. Rich Haskell: There was also ayou look through the ceiling and there was a bigger hole up there. Young met his second wife, Doris Waters, while in Cokeville. I think it's because of the ages of the kids, to start with. Rich Haskell: Yeah, there was some people ready to just shoot him right where he was sitting. Mark Junge: Do you think you were cut out to do this job? Box 37, Cokeville, Wyoming 83114. The Cokeville Elementary School was the site of a horrific hostage situation on May 16, 1986 when David and Dorris Young took a homemade bomb inside the school. Throughout the standoff, David grew increasingly agitated and irritable. It was perfect! There are a select number of people that would do this, so thank you. Lota, Louinn. Is there a news article that I could read to get a better idea of what happened? But we knew what our story was, and that it could help offer hope. On that Friday afternoon in their quiet, rural town, a deranged couple entered the communitys elementary school, took those inside hostage and detonated a bomb in a first grade classroom. By Deseret News. Rich Haskell: Yep. 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. When I walked inside of the classroomit was a kindergarten classroom which meant that the desks were smaller, everything was smaller because of the smaller children. David, Doris and Princess proceeded to the elementary school and entered the building shortly after 1 p.m. that Friday. Is that morbid thinking on my part? It's a continuous training thing and years and years and years of continuous training with the Alcohol, Tobacco and Firearms, with the fire marshals and now that it has come into it with the hazardous materials and everything else. On May 16, 1986, David Young, Cokeville's former town marshal, and his wife, Doris, carried five rifles, five handguns and a "dead man's bomb" into the elementary school. Mark Junge: Curious, Rich. And the bathroom was off to the side of it because it was the kindergarten class. Cokeville survivors relive school bombing for film I just stayed right there and we processed the scene and did the scene. The wire was cut. Rich Haskell: Yes. Totally destroyed it! That much I know. And I think that these people actually thought that they could start another world. On May 16, 1986, David and Doris Young took 154 people hostage at the Cokeville Elementary School in tiny Cokeville, Wyo. Unexplained Mysteries: Angel Files. Season 1, Episode 20. You can also read about it on [Wikipedia] (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cokeville_Elementary_School_hostage_crisis). Create an account to follow your favorite communities and start taking part in conversations. So many of 'em thatI don't know. Rich Haskell: You know, with 33 years of law enforcement, I've seen a lot of things. results in the deaths of perpetrators David and Doris Young; 154 hostages survive. A look back at the bombing of Cokeville Elementary School The kids couldn't have cut it. ITT: people who want to pick a fight with someone who survived an incredible experience. Doris had a migraine headache that day, in talking with the other folks, and she was complaining about that, and asked David if she could open the windows because the gas fumesevidently the gas was leaking from the incendiary and he finally consented to let 'em open the window. Mark Junge: And your great-grandkids? First grade teacher Janel Dayton on the 1986 bombing of Cokeville 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. The first chapter is titled A Town of Trust.. By the people that was the bad folks, they're the only ones that got really hurt. Rich Haskell: Yes. This narrative was perpetuated in many publications and productions. Now, 28 years later, Conger and more than a dozen other survivors are reliving . Rich Haskell: Well, I got a lot of it while I was in the Marine Corps and in the Army National Guard. Mark Junge: And what happened? cokeville miracle hoax The jug of gasoline had a pinhole-sized leak on its bottom. 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. I cannot tell you what happened. [5] The leaking gasoline's fumes prompted teachers to open the classroom windows, unknowingly creating vents for the impending explosion. What is the LDS population of the town and how big was your school? it is VERY LDS, and yet there are at least 3 other churches in town: Episcopal, Catholic, Baptist (and sometimes a non-denominational church). Rich Haskell: I was cookin' right along, yes I was! He had tried this deviceand they were designed tothat it would be a delayed explosion. Gallery: Cokeville School Bombing, 25 Years Later - Casper Star-Tribune During the Cokeville Elementary School hostage crisis. Mark Junge: Why do you think that God chose Cokeville to save? Did this shake the faith of some people, or would you say it strengthened it in most? Returning, David Young shot his wife, then himself. Mark Junge: to go through all this? The windows had been knocked outhad been blown out. 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. The Astonishing True Stories Behind the Cokeville Miracle Movie So timelines and characters may be switched up, but the overall spirit of it and the facts are laid out true to witness testimonies. 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. Mark Junge: Yeah, my brother-in-law worked in the Navy as a chief petty officer and he worked with what they called EOD. Rich Haskell: I'm Rich Haskell. Cokeville Elementary School hostage crisis - Wikipedia They feel that it was a positive experience for them. Mark Junge: Do you think David or Doris would have cut it? Rich Haskell: Approximately an hour and ten, hour and fifteen minutes. And it was a perfect trajectory up into the ceiling where that bullet was. Windows were opened to rid the room of gasoline fumes, and prayers were offered in small groups among the children. I later learned he'd been shot in the back. Lenita's father Rocky was a fifth grade teacher at Cokeville Elementary School at the time of the bombing, Lenita was a seventh grader. It became a story of a miracle rather than a tragedy. She was totally burned. First grade teacher Janel Dayton on the 1986 bombing of Cokeville Elementary School Published: November 8, 2014 Janel Dayton, Wyoming State Archives photo. I contacted my sheriff, and that was Jim Stark at the time, and he said, "Definitely! I did see the lighting had changed in the room, and it was right in the same timeline as everyone else's witness. Who died in the Cokeville bombing? I'm portrayed as the little red haired kid with glasses that asks about the AK-47. Rich Haskell: Well, I like to think I'm a better person because of it. Where's he running? Because in the bus, everything was solid in the school bus. Mark Junge: And the explosion went straight up? Family is the most important thing in a Mormon family. I mean, not everybody would do this. Chaos ensued. As I sat there and watched him, I could feel he was becoming agitated. And screaming, I can't imagine the screams that she was making. I mean, Columbine, it wasn't that way. 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. 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! That's why I have a computer. When Deppe and Mendenhall finally got wind of his plans moments before the hostage crisis unfolded, they refused to participate. . He knew what the community was all about. I don't think that they were planningor David was planning on the ceiling tiles in the school. Rich Haskell: I am. David had the makeshift bomb attached to his body and housed inside a grocery cart, while Doris and Princess carried an arsenal of rifles, handguns and ammunition, as well as the Zero Equals Infinity handouts. Mark Junge: Okay. Recording and transcription by Wyoming State Archives. And I think it's made me a stronger person. Doris accidently triggered the bomb by motioning to her hostages with her arms. While he was writing his philosophy, Zero Equals Infinity, Doris took part-time jobs including housekeeping and waitressing to support their meager lifestyle. Dr. Clark is the faculty advisor of the Sweet Memories: Research Group at Western. David and Doris Young took 167 hostages (150 children, 17 adults and one unlucky UPS driver) at the elementary school. And we allthere was three of us there. Do you think this is a historical event? Rich Haskell: There was a reason I was there for some reason. Edit: Also, were you at that early screening? [4], Prior to the hostage crisis, David had tested a similar bomb in a sealed school bus in Arizona, destroying it.[5]. Even though the majority of the townspeople are LDS, there are lots of people of a variety of faiths in the room that day. Mark Junge: This was a life-changing event. Mark Junge: That's a record of all the people we've talked to! David Young was the only police officer in Cokeville for six months in 1979. One of 'em was in Cokeville and one was in the bus that he did the experiment with. I never did get to see that untilI think it was two days lateractually what they had taken as far as the paperwork was concerned. Healing will come Slowly From Within a Wounded Cokeville. The children and adults escaped after the bomb exploded. Of what you would picture an angel, with the wings and, Mark Junge: Well, if I'm a skeptic, I could say, "Well, that's just the way the flames shot up.". 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. Nobody come inside this circle." Man Decapitated by Exploding Pipe Bomb - NBC Chicago One teacher was shot when he tried to flee,. You can see what's happening in the world today. The device was set up on afor lack of a better word, I call it a shopping cart. Cokeville Elementary School teachers and staff tried to keep kindergarteners through sixth graders calm and entertained. (Laughs) Yeah, I understand what you're saying, but it was. Mark Junge: Okay. His fever broke within minutes of getting it off his chest. 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. 1 of 7. Sue Castaneda: Carla said that some people were mad that we were there. I called back to my dispatcher and they did inform me that the school in Cokeville was being held hostage by two individuals and there was bombs involved. Mark Junge: You'd been tested, though. I didn't touch the body at all. Today In History: The Cokeville Elementary School Bombing Kind of a synopsis of what they were going to do and what their plans were and the whole thing. My name is Mark Junge and I'm here at the Hiltonis it the Hilton Hotel? As well as I can. Mark Junge: Do you still think about this? Sept. 21, 2010. P. O. 10 Years Later, Cokeville Just Says: Let Us Be., Pierce, Scott D. Save the Children is Shallow, Exploitative: Focus is on Wacko Bomber Instead of 167 Cokeville Students and Teachers., Troone, Trent. So we decided to take some masking tape, and we tapedI think it was an eight-foot square in the middle of the room, right here, and he pushed the cart, the homemade bomb into this, and we told the children this was the magic square. These are designed to just spread out the particles all over the air. In most cases I have deleted redundant ands, ers, uhs, buts, false starts, etc. 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. I believe a presence was entering the room at about that time. 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.