logo
Dad's heartbreaking last words before family killed in blast

Dad's heartbreaking last words before family killed in blast

Perth Now12 hours ago
Heartbreaking details have emerged about a final phone call a man made to his wife before he and his two young daughters were tragically killed in a factory explosion.
Dylan Danielson, 32, had been working at a biofuels plant in Nebraska on July 30 when a dust fire triggered a blast.
His daughters, Hayven, 12, and Fayeah, eight, were waiting nearby, planning to leave with their father for a doctor's appointment once his shift ended, according to ABC.
Parts of the building collapsed, which meant the family was unable to escape.
Emergency services rushed to the site and coordinated a rescue operation. Approximately 24 hours after the search began, Mr Danielson's body was recovered from the scene, followed by the remains of his two daughters hours later.
It has since been revealed that Mr Danielson made a heart-wrenching phone call to his wife moments right after the building collapsed, detailing where his daughters were located.
'He made a phone call to his wife and said where the girls were at, get someone in there to get them out, and he was pinned in, and there was fire all around him,' Hayven's stepfather, Robby Baker, told KMTV News.
'Our lives are in there. We need to get them out,' Mr Baker said as he waited outside the factory while crews were trying to locate his stepdaughters. It took over 24 hours for rescue teams to recover the remains of Fayeah (left) and Hayven (right). Credit: GoFundMe
Mr Danielson was looking after his daughters for the week, according to Mr Baker.
'It's his time to get them for one week, one week off. This week was his,' he said.
'His boss lets them bring them to work.'
Fundraisers have now been launched to support the families of both Hayven and Fayeah, with a total of S20,995 ($AU32,293) raised.
'Hayven will always be a beautiful, goofy, caring and bright ray of sunshine who gained her angel wings too soon,' a message on GoFundMe reads.
While a message on a GoFundMe for Fayeah reads: 'She had such a bubbly personality and lit up every room that she entered. She was a proud Swiftie, a devoted sister, a great friend, and a creative soul who loves fashion, crafts and art.'
The investigation into the explosion is ongoing.
Orange background

Try Our AI Features

Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:

Comments

No comments yet...

Related Articles

‘They're so fired up': The flagship ABC show taking on a deadly cult
‘They're so fired up': The flagship ABC show taking on a deadly cult

Sydney Morning Herald

time11 hours ago

  • Sydney Morning Herald

‘They're so fired up': The flagship ABC show taking on a deadly cult

Six-time Walkley award-winning ABC journalist Suzanne Smith – author of The Altar Boys, about child sexual abuse within the Catholic Church in Newcastle – is no stranger to crimes against children. Her investigations helped instigate the Royal Commission into Institutional Responses to Child Sexual Abuse. Yet, she approached with trepidation a brief from Compass to follow up on the Toowoomba sect known as the Saints, of which 14 members were sentenced in February for the 2022 death of eight-year-old diabetic Elizabeth Struhs, whose insulin was substituted for prayer. This time, Smith wanted to achieve the seemingly impossible: offer a glimmer of hope amid the inconceivable cruelty. 'If I was just doing another, 'Isn't this shocking?' story, I think it might have broken me,' Smith says. 'But because there's such a groundswell of action going on [within the wider church community in the south-east Queensland city], and they're determined to expose coercive control in all their churches, it gave me a bit of hope … I think having that positive angle is really important.' Interviewed about this push for change in the Compass report are three local pastors of varying denominations: Wesleyan counsellor Cecilia Anderson, psychologist and survivor of the US Children of God cult Maria Esguerra, and Paul Reid, a former friend of the Saints' leader, Brendan Stevens. None of the jailed cult members agreed to speak. Most confronting are the responses of Cameron Schoenfisch, whose son Lachlan is serving time in jail for manslaughter. 'I had quite a few tears after Cameron thanked me,' says Smith. 'I actually did a drive around Toowoomba with Cameron. It's not in the Compass piece. But the number of churches popping up everywhere there … Cameron's very concerned about that because some of them are in backstreet lanes; some of them are in people's garages. They often turn up in abandoned warehouses. 'So what is actually stopping another Elizabeth Struhs if we're not going to talk about it? But the key thing that kept me going is, everyone wants to expose what's going on. And they're so fired up.' Executive producer Amanda Collinge, who is also the executive producer of Compass, says Cult of the Saints is an example of the 'journalistic rigour' she has favoured for the ABC's 37-year-old flagship religion and ethics program since stepping into the role 3½ years ago.

‘They're so fired up': The flagship ABC show taking on a deadly cult
‘They're so fired up': The flagship ABC show taking on a deadly cult

The Age

time11 hours ago

  • The Age

‘They're so fired up': The flagship ABC show taking on a deadly cult

Six-time Walkley award-winning ABC journalist Suzanne Smith – author of The Altar Boys, about child sexual abuse within the Catholic Church in Newcastle – is no stranger to crimes against children. Her investigations helped instigate the Royal Commission into Institutional Responses to Child Sexual Abuse. Yet, she approached with trepidation a brief from Compass to follow up on the Toowoomba sect known as the Saints, of which 14 members were sentenced in February for the 2022 death of eight-year-old diabetic Elizabeth Struhs, whose insulin was substituted for prayer. This time, Smith wanted to achieve the seemingly impossible: offer a glimmer of hope amid the inconceivable cruelty. 'If I was just doing another, 'Isn't this shocking?' story, I think it might have broken me,' Smith says. 'But because there's such a groundswell of action going on [within the wider church community in the south-east Queensland city], and they're determined to expose coercive control in all their churches, it gave me a bit of hope … I think having that positive angle is really important.' Interviewed about this push for change in the Compass report are three local pastors of varying denominations: Wesleyan counsellor Cecilia Anderson, psychologist and survivor of the US Children of God cult Maria Esguerra, and Paul Reid, a former friend of the Saints' leader, Brendan Stevens. None of the jailed cult members agreed to speak. Most confronting are the responses of Cameron Schoenfisch, whose son Lachlan is serving time in jail for manslaughter. 'I had quite a few tears after Cameron thanked me,' says Smith. 'I actually did a drive around Toowoomba with Cameron. It's not in the Compass piece. But the number of churches popping up everywhere there … Cameron's very concerned about that because some of them are in backstreet lanes; some of them are in people's garages. They often turn up in abandoned warehouses. 'So what is actually stopping another Elizabeth Struhs if we're not going to talk about it? But the key thing that kept me going is, everyone wants to expose what's going on. And they're so fired up.' Executive producer Amanda Collinge, who is also the executive producer of Compass, says Cult of the Saints is an example of the 'journalistic rigour' she has favoured for the ABC's 37-year-old flagship religion and ethics program since stepping into the role 3½ years ago.

Dylan Danielson: Dad's heartbreaking last words right before factory explosion killed him and his daughters
Dylan Danielson: Dad's heartbreaking last words right before factory explosion killed him and his daughters

West Australian

time12 hours ago

  • West Australian

Dylan Danielson: Dad's heartbreaking last words right before factory explosion killed him and his daughters

Heartbreaking details have emerged about a final phone call a man made to his wife before he and his two young daughters were tragically killed in a factory explosion. Dylan Danielson, 32, had been working at a biofuels plant in Nebraska on July 30 when a dust fire triggered a blast. His daughters, Hayven, 12, and Fayeah, eight, were waiting nearby, planning to leave with their father for a doctor's appointment once his shift ended, according to ABC . Parts of the building collapsed, which meant the family was unable to escape. Emergency services rushed to the site and coordinated a rescue operation. Approximately 24 hours after the search began, Mr Danielson's body was recovered from the scene, followed by the remains of his two daughters hours later. It has since been revealed that Mr Danielson made a heart-wrenching phone call to his wife moments right after the building collapsed, detailing where his daughters were located. 'He made a phone call to his wife and said where the girls were at, get someone in there to get them out, and he was pinned in, and there was fire all around him,' Hayven's stepfather, Robby Baker, told KMTV News . 'Our lives are in there. We need to get them out,' Mr Baker said as he waited outside the factory while crews were trying to locate his stepdaughters. Mr Danielson was looking after his daughters for the week, according to Mr Baker. 'It's his time to get them for one week, one week off. This week was his,' he said. 'His boss lets them bring them to work.' Fundraisers have now been launched to support the families of both Hayven and Fayeah, with a total of S20,995 ($AU32,293) raised. 'Hayven will always be a beautiful, goofy, caring and bright ray of sunshine who gained her angel wings too soon,' a message on GoFundMe reads. While a message on a GoFundMe for Fayeah reads: 'She had such a bubbly personality and lit up every room that she entered. She was a proud Swiftie, a devoted sister, a great friend, and a creative soul who loves fashion, crafts and art.' The investigation into the explosion is ongoing.

DOWNLOAD THE APP

Get Started Now: Download the App

Ready to dive into a world of global content with local flavor? Download Daily8 app today from your preferred app store and start exploring.
app-storeplay-store