As the Blue Devils begin their summer tour, traveling from Laramie, Wyoming to Denver, Colorado, one of the tour buses caught fire.
Blue Devils reported to KUSA-TV9 Denver that the bus cabin began to fill with smoke. The bus quickly pulled over for everybody to get off. As soon as everybody exited, the bus burst into flames. Thankfully, all members, staff, and their instruments escaped unharmed.
However, many of our members lost personal belongings in the incident, including clothing, electronics, and other essential items.
They visited the local Walmart and bought air mattresses, pillows and blankets, and some clothes. But some items lost were irreplaceable. Performer Eddie Morales told Channel 9 news he lost his journal which had logged his entire six years with the Blue Devils.
Despite this, Blue Devils made it to Fort Collins, Colorado, and competed. In addition to overcoming the adversity, they also took time to thank all those who stepped up to help them including Cracker Barrel and Serve 68, a Northern Colorado Christian non-profit organization offers relief to families in need of food, clothing, and housing.
Firefighters believe the fire started from an axle malfunction.
Locally, a number of people have asked how they can help support those who were affected. “Anyone who would like to help can make a gift through our donation page and simply include “Bus Fire” in the comments so we can direct those funds to the impacted members,” said Claire Simpson, Blue Devils Performing Arts Director of engagement. https://bluedevils.org/donate/
You can watch the news story here. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vjpqEG8tJrA