Scouts Returning from Philmont on Amtrak train that derailed in Missouri

[RememberSchiff]

NBC Nightly News reported two scout troops aboard Amtrak train that struck dump truck in rural Missouri.

Passengers on the train included 16 youths and eight adults from two Boy Scout troops who were traveling home to Appleton, Wisconsin, after a backcountry excursion at the Philmont Scout Ranch in New Mexico, but no one in the group was seriously injured, said Scott Armstrong, director of national media relations for the Boy Scouts of America. The Scouts administered first aid to several injured passengers, including the driver of the dump truck, Armstrong said.

https://www.postcrescent.com/story/news/local/2022/06/27/appleton-boy-scouts-adults-amtrak-train-derailed-missouri/7751666001/

https://www.twincities.com/2022/06/27/3-killed-when-amtrak-train-hits-truck-derails-in-missouri/

From Amtrak:

On June 27 at 12:42 p.m. CT, Southwest Chief Train 4, traveling eastbound on BNSF track from Los Angeles to Chicago, derailed 8 cars and 2 locomotives after striking a truck that was obstructing a public crossing near Mendon, Missouri. There were approximately 243 passengers and 12 crew members onboard with early reports of injuries. Local authorities are currently assisting customers. Our Incident Response Team has been activated, and we are deploying emergency personnel to the scene to help support our passengers, our employees and their families with their needs. Individuals with questions about their friends and family who were traveling aboard this train should call 800-523-9101. Additional details will be provided as available.  

https://media.amtrak.com/2022/06/amtrak-statement-on-train-4-derailment-near-mendon-mo/

Edited June 28, 2022 by RememberSchiff

[Navybone]

3 hours ago, RememberSchiff said:

The Scouts administered first aid to several injured passengers, including the driver of the dump truck, Armstrong said.

This is why the media still calls out when someone makes the news and they are a Boy Scout.  Good on the leaders and the scouts for setting the example.  

[Oldscout448]

Fox news6 reports 3 dead, one being the truck driver.

[RememberSchiff]

5 hours ago, Navybone said:

This is why the media still calls out when someone makes the news and they are a Boy Scout.  Good on the leaders and the scouts for setting the example.  

Appleton Boy Scouts played major rescue role after Amtrak train derailed

We’re also learning the Boy Scouts played a major role in the rescue -- breaking windows, helping people off the train, and attempting to save the life of the dump truck driver who died.

“It was a phone call that no parent should ever have to receive. It was probably way up there on the scariest moments of my life,” Nicole Tierney, whose son, Owen, was on the train, said.

“Until I heard from my son an hour later, that he was okay, I couldn’t stop shaking or crying,” said Sarah Berken, whose son, Isaac, was also onboard.

...

Scout leaders said the scouts who weren’t injured were among the first people on the train to help render aid. Armstrong told us the scouts on the train assisted people and provided aid to people who needed it. One scout from Appleton provided comfort to the driver of the dump truck, who was ejected in the crash, until the driver passed away.

“I’m proud of them. One scout wrapped his hand, took his shirt off, wrapped his hand to break some windows to get people out. Another scout went and comforted the driver of the truck that was hit and tried to stabilize him,” Dan Skrypczak, scout master of Troop 73, said.

“They were tandem working on that gentleman when he expired, so that scout is pretty shook up,” he added.

The response of the scouts has now put the troop in the national spotlight, especially with the organization.

“These scouts are highly trained. They would have received advanced first aid training prior to going, including their adult leaders would have had people with wilderness first aid certification, which is a pretty advanced course,” Armstrong said. “Luckily they had that training because I’m sure they put it to use today.”

Tierney said she is “very proud. Very proud of how some of our boys helped with some of the injured passengers and how they were willing to put themselves aside. That’s just what Boy Scouts do.”

“We just can’t wait to get them home,” she added.

 

More at source,

https://www.nbc15.com/2022/06/27/appleton-boy-scout-troops-amtrak-train-that-derailed-2-adults-hurt/

[RememberSchiff]

Boy Scouts played major rescue role after Amtrak train derailed

Scott Armstrong, director of national media relations with the Boy Scouts of America, said there were 16 youth, who are 13 to 17 years old, and 8 adults on the train. They were members of troops 73 and 12, which are chartered with First English Lutheran Church in Appleton, according to a Boy Scouts source.

Armstrong said everyone else was put on a school bus and taken to a hospital to be checked out as a precaution. They all had cuts and bruises but nothing serious, he said. Parents said one scout could be kept in the hospital overnight, but his injuries aren’t life-threatening.

Scout leaders said the Scouts who weren’t injured were among the first people on the train to help render aid.

Armstrong told us the Scouts on the train assisted people and provided aid to people who needed it. One Scout from Appleton provided comfort to the driver of the dump truck, who was ejected in the crash, until the driver passed away.

“I’m proud of them. One Scout wrapped his hand, took his shirt off, wrapped his hand to break some windows to get people out. Another Scout went and comforted the driver of the truck that was hit and tried to stabilize him,” said Dan Skrypczak, scout master of Troop 73. “They were tandem working on that gentleman when he expired, so that Scout is pretty shook up.”

The response of the Scouts has now put the troop in the national spotlight, especially with the organization.

“These Scouts are highly trained. They would have received advanced first aid training prior to going, including their adult leaders would have had people with wilderness first aid certification, which is a pretty advanced course,” Armstrong said. “Luckily they had that training because I’m sure they put it to use today.”

Tierney said she is “very proud. Very proud of how some of our boys helped with some of the injured passengers and how they were willing to put themselves aside. That’s just what Boy Scouts do. We just can’t wait to get them home.”

https://www.mysuncoast.com/2022/06/28/boy-scouts-played-major-rescue-role-after-amtrak-train-derailed/

[RememberSchiff]

Boy Scout comforted dying truck driver after Amtrak derailment, father says

https://nypost.com/2022/06/28/boy-scout-eli-skrypczak-comforted-dying-truck-driver-after-missouri-train-derailment/

[RememberSchiff]

Reminds me of Eagle Scout Daniel Konzelman. I hope he reaches out to scouts and scouters in these Wisconsin troops. As I understand, after the 2017 Amtrak crash in Washington state , Eagle Daniel Konzelman left accounting and became a fireman in the Seattle area.

 

 

Edited June 28, 2022 by RememberSchiff

[Eagledad]

This is such and inspiring story. Thank you God.

I love this scouting stuff.

Barry

[fred8033]

Inspiring.  THANK YOU !!

[skeptic]

But, how much of this will see the broader media, if any?  A story that encompasses what Scouting really teaches and is will likely not bring their attention beyond noting some scouts were on the train.  But, we all should still be proud of the example.

[yknot]

1 hour ago, skeptic said:

But, how much of this will see the broader media, if any?  A story that encompasses what Scouting really teaches and is will likely not bring their attention beyond noting some scouts were on the train.  But, we all should still be proud of the example.

It's a great story and has been picked up by multiple major and minor media outlets and is getting good visibility. It is also all over facebook, twitter, and other online sites and news sources. None of the stories or posts I have seen have mentioned anything about the bankruptcy case. It's all been positive. 

[scoutldr]

Scouting. Prepared...for Life.  It's what we do.

[RememberSchiff]

Videos of note: The first is an interview of a scout leader dad who was in Appleton waiting for his son to arrive. The second is an interview with a scout leader who was aboard during the derailment.

 

 

 

[RememberSchiff]

22 hours ago, skeptic said:

But, how much of this will see the broader media, if any?  A story that encompasses what Scouting really teaches and is will likely not bring their attention beyond noting some scouts were on the train.  But, we all should still be proud of the example.

More details are coming out. I look forward to interviews with other scouts and adults (particularly the farmer) in the coming weeks.

IMHO, Washington Post's Jonathan Edwards wrote the most researched piece yet, with touches of a scout perspective.

Each of the Scouts was whiling away the train ride in his own way, Skrypczak told The Washington Post late Tuesday. A few had used an app on their phone to determine the train was going about 90 mph, which impressed them. Some ate in the dining car. Others took in the scenery from an observation car retrofitted with floor-to-ceiling windows. One happened to be in the bathroom.

...

Each of the Scouts was whiling away the train ride in his own way, Skrypczak told The Washington Post late Tuesday. A few had used an app on their phone to determine the train was going about 90 mph, which impressed them. Some ate in the dining car. Others took in the scenery from an observation car retrofitted with floor-to-ceiling windows. One happened to be in the bathroom.

But Eli was just one of the Scouts helping, he added. Some performed first aid on their own scoutmasters who had been seriously injured. Others hauled passengers on backboards from the crash site to ambulances. When paramedics stopped them from doing that for the more seriously injured patients, the Scouts stripped out parts of the train car that might block rescue workers from getting people out of the wreckage.

“I teach emergency preparedness and first aid, and I don't know that I would have thought of that,” Skrypczak said. “They had the demeanor to think of that. [I’m] so very proud of them.

“They certainly lived the Scout oath.”

More, including photos at source:

https://www.washingtonpost.com/nation/2022/06/29/boy-scout-amtrak-train-derailment/

Edited June 29, 2022 by RememberSchiff

[RememberSchiff]

On 6/28/2022 at 5:36 AM, RememberSchiff said:

Reminds me of Eagle Scout Daniel Konzelman. I hope he reaches out to scouts and scouters in these Wisconsin troops. As I understand, after the 2017 Amtrak crash in Washington state , Eagle Daniel Konzelman left accounting and became a fireman in the Seattle area.

Helping the scouts after the trauma...

"All of those boys that were there, to the extent that they were allowed to, really impressed a lot of folks. As their scout master, I'm incredibly proud. They all stayed calm, and were part of the solution rather than adding to the chaos," Skyrpczak said. "Our prayers and thoughts are, of course, with the families of the now four confirmed victims."

Counselors from the Appleton Area School District will be available for all of the Scouts after their return home, Skrypczak said.

Passenger Larry Brown commended the scouts for helping others get out of the train.

“Very mature for their age,” Brown told Kansas City TV station KCTV Monday. “Whatever they are teaching them in the Scouts, it paid off today.”

All 15 kids and seven adults were evaluated Monday at four different hospitals. Three adults and one Scout were admitted to hospitals overnight, Skrypczak said. The Boy Scout and one of the troop leaders were discharged Tuesday.

The Boy Scouts spent Monday night at a hotel in Columbia. Local families involved with the Great Rivers Council of Boy Scouts located in Columbia, Missouri, stepped up to help the Appleton troops after Sarah Berken, whose son Isaac was on the trip, connected with parents over Facebook. 

The local Scout families provided food and water Monday night, breakfast and lunch Tuesday, and supplies like clothing and toiletries, since many bags and supplies remained on the derailed train.

"More and more stories are coming out about how well these kids did under duress — (we're) just really proud of everything they were able to accomplish on the scene," Armstrong said. "I've always thought, if the going gets tough, having a Scout troop or two around makes things a lot easier, and they certainly proved it yesterday."

and more at source:

https://www.postcrescent.com/story/news/local/2022/06/28/appleton-boy-scouts-return-planned-two-adults-remain-hospital/7757797001/