Just a little over 24 hours ago David Betts, Tyler Williams, Scott Harmon, and Cody Holp - baseball players for Ohio's Bluffton University - boarded a charter bus driven by husband and wife driving team Jerome and Jean Niemeyer. They left their campus heading for Ft. Myers, Florida and the first game of the season with Virginia's Eastern Mennonite University. They departed about 7 pm, planning to drive through the night.
Around 4 am, Jerome took over from his wife. An hour and a half later as the bus made its way toward downtown Atlanta in the pre-dawn darkness, Jerome apparently got confused and veered the bus onto the HOV lane's off ramp at Northside Drive. Thinking he was still on the Interstate, Niemeyer didn't apply the brakes. But they weren't on I-75. The bus was barrelling down the off ramp at highway speed. When he reached the end of the off ramp he realized his mistake. But by then it was too late.
Neimeyer attempted to maintain control of the bus but at that high rate of speed there was no way he could successfully negotiate the right turn onto the overpass at Northside Drive. The bus crossed the lanes of and struck the bridge violently, sending luggage and sports equipment tumbling onto the bridge. There is a fence there to keep people from jumping off the overpass onto the interstate, but it was no match for the multi-ton motor coach. The bus flipped end over end and off the bridge slamming down across three southbound lanes of I-75.
Most of the students and coaches were asleep at 5:40 when the driver made his fatal error. Most didn't wake up until the bus hit the bridge and they saw the road coming toward them out of the left hand side windows of the bus.
Betts, Williams, Harmon, Holp and the Niemeyers were all killed. The other 29 passengers were injured, 3 seriously. One of the injured students told reporters this morning the experience "sure makes you think about life." Indeed. None of the passengers on that bus who tragically lost their lives this morning could have ever imagined this was their final day on earth.
It is something of a miracle that more people weren't killed. The out of control bus didn't collide with anything or anybody until it hit the bridge. If you are familiar with traffic in Atlanta you know that there is a steady flow of traffic on the downtown connector 24 hours a day. The fact that no one was killed on the ground when the huge motor coach fell off the bridge onto three lanes of I-75 just as the morning rush hour was beginning is unbelievable.
These facts, however, are little consolation to the families who have lost loved ones today or the students who have lost teammates and friends.
Tonight, the Bluffton campus and the surronding community held a candlelight vigil to remember those killed, to pray for the injured and to comfort the families. And to try to make some sense out of a senseless tragedy.
There are times when - as a friend of mine told me a few years ago - the best, most compassionate answer we can give to the question "Why?" is to simply say, "I don't know." But while we don't know the why, we do know the Who. And we know that all things... ALL things work together for good to those who love Him.
Time is now fleeting, the moments are passing, passing from you and from me
Shadows are gathering, death's night is coming, coming for you and for me
O for the wonderful love He has promised, promised for you and for me
Though we have sinned He has mercy and pardon, pardon for you and for me
Come home come home, ye who are weary come home...
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