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Quinter UMC helps during bus crisis
Passengers on a chartered bus that caught fire and burned enjoy hospitality at Quinter UMC Nov. 27. (photo by Pappy Lies) |
Written: 1/7/2010
By Kathy Koehn
Special contributor
QUINTER—When a call came through the county emergency channels on Nov. 27 about a charter bus that had burned on I-70, a Quinter United Methodist Church member serving as a volunteer EMT began making calls. There was no hesitation on the part of the congregation to help the stranded passengers.
The local church disaster-response coordinator, along with the director of Emergency Management for Logan and Gove counties and other church members, opened the church for the busload of passengers during the cold early-morning hours.
Only a few passengers were taken to the hospital with smoke inhalation and breathing problems due to asthma, and only two were unable to continue on their trip from Denver to Kansas City.
The remaining 53 passengers and driver were stranded until another bus could be sent from Denver to complete their journey. During their stay, they were shuttled by area school busses to Quinter UMC, where they were given coffee, hot chocolate, fruit and rolls along with a place to stay after their ordeal.
As they escaped from the bus, they couldn’t take but a very few possessions with them. Since their transportation was chartered, the American Red Cross was unable to offer any assistance. However, county personnel and the Quinter UMC members could not in good faith turn their back on this group. Plans were soon in the making to provide a light lunch for the group. During the time of their stay, many church members and others from the community interacted with the group and assisted them.
Kathy Koehn is a member of Quinter UMC.