Either way, right after my joke is about when David excused himself from the room. 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 the children became increasingly loud, Doris Young began begging the teachers to settle the group down. David Young had initially planned to involve longtime friends Gerald Deppe and Doyle Mendenhall, who had invested money with him in a get-rich-quick scheme that he had called "The Biggie. Do you ever think about them? 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. You should also know that TC basically just wove a storyline into and between the facts and witness testimonies. The miraculous events that followed have changed many people foreverespecially survivor Amy Bagaso Williams. The Youngs both died that day. He had been aware of above-average achievement scores from Cokeville's education system. My husband and I are looking forward to seeing the movie, as we weren't around when it happened and have just recently learned about it. As time progressed, however, a different story emerged in this highly religious and largely Mormon community. Why? For more information about our sponsors and the people behind WyoHistory.org, visit our About Us page: Hostage crisis at the elementary school in Cokeville, Wyo. You can't think, well, maybe something could happen, because yes it could. "[6] The two men eventually refused to participate in the event. I wondered what that was, but then immediately noticed my friends over by the door talking to Doris. Jessica Clark, Ph.D., is an assistant professor of history and political science at Western Wyoming Community College in Rock Springs, Wyo. Lota, Louinn. TC (the director) also worked incredibly hard to make this a story that can be widely appreciated by members of all faiths. The kids could just go to the bathroom right from their classroom. I just stayed right there and we processed the scene and did the scene. Mark Junge: Do you think you've taken more joy out of life because of it? 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. All the hostages escaped, though 79 were hospitalized with burns and injuries. Unexplained Mysteries: Angel Files. Season 1, Episode 20. As I got closer to it I could tell it was a body, and of course, you just start thinking about what took place. It'sI'm still doing that kind of thing because whenever they hold General Conference in Salt Lake City I go to Salt Lake City to be part of the bomb team for the church while they have General Conference. Mark Junge: Which means you had to be doing over a hundred miles an hour! 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. David Young was the only police officer in Cokeville for six months in 1979. You have to think about what you're doing right at that particular time so you can stay focused on what you have to deal with. Well, he had went into the bathroom and she was out with the bomb, and they said she was complaining of a migraine headache. When the thing went off, when the bomb exploded, they just started chuckin' people out the windows. 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. 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. Of course, I can imagine the noise that it made. It's just something that you just have to stay on top of. Rich Haskell: Yep. You know something about bombs. This all happened about 8 months after the bombing. Rich Haskell: There was also ayou look through the ceiling and there was a bigger hole up there. Rich Haskell: I was cookin' right along, yes I was! Box 37, Cokeville, Wyoming 83114. The basket, the shelves. 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. This is not a Mormon film it is more of an inspirational film. But everything was black, like you had gone in there with a flamethrower and just torched everything inside there. 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: And you're sheriff in Sweetwater? . You know, the kids have forgot about it, let's let 'em move on. 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. And then what? Is there a news article that I could read to get a better idea of what happened? "The sadness that comes with the death of an 8-year-old, you can . NOTE: Witness to Miracles was published in 2006 by Pronghorn Press, www.pronghornpress.org . On May 16, 1986, an elementary school in Cokeville, Wyoming, was held hostage by a couple with a bomb. 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. I went from within two feet of the bomb to right near the door within ten minutes before the bomb went off. Rich Haskell: Well, I did learn later that the kids saw the angels. Yeah, we didn't get a lot of sleep. Did you see anything? 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.". He did deliver our salvation that day. 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. May 12, 2011, 2:30am PDT. 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. There was nobody killed but the perpetrators. She is a trained rural historian who specializes in oral history, childhood history and memory studies. Also, what do you want us to know about it that isn't covered in the film? When they asked pointed questions like "what did the angels look like?" 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. Mark Junge: And when you went into the classroom you saw holes in the walls? And they had trouble keeping people away from the building. ", About 2 1/2 hours into the standoff, David transferred the triggering mechanism of the bomb to Doris' wrist, and went to a small bathroom that connected the first and second grade rooms. He was asking large amounts of money. Davids writings reveal that he hoped life would be better for him and Cokevilles children in this imaginary place. Whenever they would come to Wyoming I would be part of their security team. I actually have a pretty clear memory of the events that day, being 12 years old. 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. Rich Haskell: Yes. "If you can see the bomb, the bomb can see you," an officer shouted. Rich Haskell: I did not. There are some survivors that couldn't believe how accurate much of it was. I'm proud of all my children. Cokeville seems like a pretty small town. Weredo you think it had something to do with angels? Rich Haskell: Yeah, I think I did. The circuit was powered by a 9-volt lantern battery. It has shaped me to know that God is real. The wire was cut. Rich Haskell: Well, run fordo another term as sheriff and then retire, and my wife and I are going to doshe loves genealogy. Sept. 21, 2010. Rich Haskell: I think it could be a spiritual experience that I have with church, or being around the kids, I don't know. 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. Rich Haskell: Yes. it is VERY LDS, and yet there are at least 3 other churches in town: Episcopal, Catholic, Baptist (and sometimes a non-denominational church). In 1986 , 154 children and teachers survived the bombing of Cokeville Elementary School. Is that morbid thinking on my part? 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. That your life could change just at a blink of an eye. Had a small pin-hole leak in it and it dripped into both containers and they both became paste. Returning, David Young shot his wife, then himself. In 2006, the Cokeville Miracle Foundation compiled a book of recollections about the day from parents, emergency workers and former hostages. They believed in reincarnation, which probably led, in part, to the creation of Davids Brave New World idea. Two of the three blasting caps on the bomb failed to detonate; the wires to each tuna can had been reportedly cut. I believe a presence was entering the room at about that time. She is a beautiful example of turning tragedy into triumph. Shortly after their wedding, David and Doris left Cokeville and headed to Tucson, Ariz. During their time in Tucson, according to Doris daughter Bernie Petersen, David became increasingly reclusive, focusing on his philosophical readings and writings. Everything was blackened. 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. Rich Haskell: Well, I got a lot of it while I was in the Marine Corps and in the Army National Guard. Do you ever think about that? There are a select number of people that would do this, so thank you. By the people that was the bad folks, they're the only ones that got really hurt. Where's he running? 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. Rich Haskell: Well, you know, that's a really good question. I gathered up some of the equipment that I would need and a change of clothes and proceeded to Cokeville. And my children. I remember seeing the wide eyes on my band teacher as he collapsed with the EMTs afterward. But I walked up to the window and looked inside the window and didn't hardly see anything out of the ordinary except it was all black inside. Mark Junge: Do you still think about this? Okay? Several other survivors were there. I got a chance to talk to Jennie Sorensen Johnson, who was seven when David Young rolled a bomb into her first grade classroom. And you could see that she had been burning by just looking at her out on the front lawn.