Phipps, the dishwasher, and his friend, Foronda, were discussing the basketball game from the previous night between the University of North Carolina and Duke University while preparing lettuce for lunch. The number of customers in the morning decreased by 9:45, which allowed Foronda to begin chopping lettuce for lunch. Foronda was employed in the kitchen of JoJo’s Restaurant located at U.S. Highway 41 and Lynch Road, two miles away. Bob Working, the manager of Evansville Regional Airport, considered it to be a favorable day for flying. The morning of Thursday, February 6, 1992, started clear, warm, and peaceful, unlike most winter days in the Tri-State.
The turn began as the slow-moving aircraft started. However, when Standiford Field radioed the crew to end the exercise and return to Louisville, the lumbering aircraft was still moving slowly. During this time, one of the two co-pilots, who was being guided by an experienced instructor pilot, executed a low-level turning maneuver to the south of the airport. This maneuver was a regular part of their training in the massive C-130B Hercules, a military transport plane equipped with four turboprop engines. Meanwhile, a team of five individuals from the Kentucky Air National Guard’s 123rd Tactical Airlift Wing, stationed at Standiford Field in Louisville, were practicing touch-and-go landings at Evansville Regional Airport.
The bodies of employees, including those of two instructors from Indiana Southern University, who were conducting a seminar on the fourth floor of the Drury, were found still in their seats at the conference table. The aircraft, created a fireball from the fuel inside, roared through the windows of room 416, instantly killing all five individuals inside the plane. Later, chunks of the concrete swimming pool deck, which were powerful enough to be created by the force of impact, were found on the top deck of the four-story Drury hotel. The C-130 stalled and fell straight from the sky, smashing into the ground at the north end of the Drury Inn (now JoJo’s and Denny’s), nearly 1,300 feet.
20 years later, Working remembers, “I was on my phone with the airport’s lawyer, and the lights flickered. Immediately after that, I heard ‘Code 16,’ which is used in case of an airplane crash, but I didn’t pay much attention to it then. It wasn’t that uncommon — but it’s typically not significant. Then I went to the observation deck and witnessed the towering column of black smoke. That’s when I realized it was much more grave.”
A few seconds later, 27-year-old Scott Lynette walked back to the kitchen at the east end of the building, where the 28-year-old waitress Phipps was chopping lettuce. This happened just before the crash at JoJo’s.
Recalls Foronda, “this occurred around the time of Operation Desert Storm. Perhaps we had been attacked; this happened near the time of Operation Desert Storm. I was knocked down, and my initial thought was that maybe we had been bombed; this was close to the time of Operation Desert Storm. My second thought was, ‘My supervisor will be angry because there is so much chaos to clean up.’ And then my third thought was to evacuate the building due to a fire. When I reached the front, my supervisor was the only other person still inside, and he instructed me to leave. I told him, ‘No, I refuse to leave without Matt.’ I called for Matt, and I anticipated him to come out, but he didn’t. I waited, and eventually the fire department dispatched someone wearing protective gear and forced me to vacate. Later on, I realized Lynette had returned to the break room, presumably to smoke a cigarette. Then I heard a loud noise resembling a plane flying very close to the ground, and in a split second, it became the most deafening sound I had ever encountered in my entire life.”
He received medical treatment for smoke inhalation and a laceration on the back of his head. He was the sole individual among the roughly 15 individuals present at JoJo’s during the accident who required hospitalization. The rear section of the eatery was severely damaged by a sizable portion of the aircraft’s tail, resulting in the unfortunate deaths of Phipps and Scott.
Foronda states that Lynette and Matt were both extremely authentic individuals. Lynette exhibited exceptional kindness, while Matt was a one-of-a-kind person who possessed remarkable organizational skills and was a truly wonderful individual. “They were the only two individuals I would have wholeheartedly entrusted with the care of my own child. I understand that people often receive an abundance of compliments when they pass away, but I genuinely believe that Matt and Lynette were the absolute finest employees at that establishment.”
The coroner’s findings disputed the family members’ claim that his death was ruled a suicide from a prescription drug overdose. He was admitted to the hospital a day later after complaining of sickness. According to reports, Drury Gibson was one of the first policemen on the scene to help the victims several times. James Gibson Jr., An officer with the Evansville Police Department, died at his home on Feb. 24 and remained there until Feb. 16, resulting in a death toll of 6.
JoJo’s was reconstructed and reopened at a later date. Subsequently, the area has been exclusively used for storage, excluding room 416. The Drury Inn was restored and reopened on June 19, 1992, with a restoration cost exceeding $1.7 million. The Air Force had to settle claims related to wrongful death, personal injury, and property damage, amounting to a staggering $36.3 million due to the unfortunate accident.
The November 2005 tornado, which caused the death of 20 individuals in Vanderburgh County and five in Warrick County, has been handled by response teams organized by the main coordinator for disasters like the C-130 crash in 1992. This coordinator, who served as the EMA director, was present at the scene with the Gibson County ambulance service on the night of December 13, 1977, when the University of Evansville basketball team’s plane crashed near the Evansville airport. According to Evansville-Vanderburgh County Emergency Management Agency Director Sherman Greer, tragedies such as this can be utilized to assist future responders. However, the restorations and settlements for wrongful death may provide little solace for the families and close friends of the 17 individuals who lost their lives.
The Red Cross was there to help families when disasters like these occurred in 1992, just like the tragedies in 1977. You quickly learned that you need to organize yourself and get something done when you are behind the eightball. People from JoJo’s Inn and Drury Inn came together right away to help, along with the medical emergency team, the fire chief, and the police chief. They knew their responsibilities much better on that day in ’92, and they made sure to improve coordination and make plans to handle such incidents. The police and fire departments worked together and people knew what to do. It was much more organized in ’92. When asked to compare the emergency response actions between the airplane crashes in 1992 and 1977, Greer said there was no comparison whatsoever.
“However, the most valuable knowledge is acquired through actual occurrences.” “We extract those acquired insights, implement adjustments in our current strategies, distribute them to all the emergency personnel, and subsequently rehearse it,” Greer states while he grabs a hefty manual. “We produce evaluations such as the ones presented here,” We received highly positive feedback regarding our handling of the 2005 tornado, and a significant portion of that success was due to the lessons we gleaned from our response to the airplane accident in 1992.”
As per Greer, their altruism endangered them and others, however, there were plenty of kind-hearted individuals present amidst the disorder right after the accident at the Drury Inn and JoJo’s. One alteration that resulted from the 1992 incident was the implementation of heightened security measures.
“We were fortunate that we were not the ones who had to quickly determine who had access and who did not in JoJo’s and Drury in 1992. As a result, we were not affected by the secondary explosions that could have occurred. We should have kept people who could help us in the bay. There was a significant amount of hazardous material on that plane. Greer recalls, “If you didn’t know, there were a lot of glowing shoes and people were walking around wading through stuff.”
Temporarily, another alteration occurred with the cessation of military training exercises at Evansville Regional Airport. The training flights were vehemently contested by Whirlpool Corporation officials in the weeks following the crash, which was not surprising considering that their Highway 41 plant, located just south of the airport, employed hundreds of people at that time. Despite Working stating that there has been a gradual and consistent increase in the number of military training flights in recent years, the military agreed to halt them. Working retired in 2010 after managing the airport for 24 years. According to him and the current airport manager Doug Joest, military operations such as touch-and-go’s are prohibited. Even if Evansville Regional officials desired to do so, they would not be able to prevent military training exercises from occurring, as the airport receives federal grants to support construction projects. Joest explains, “There are various grant assurances. If the federal government is funding a runway, they have the right to utilize it.”
I recall being told that some people were upset because exercises, training, and conducting were not allowed here in Peoria, Ill., And that a C-130 from Evansville was recalled down here. I have never directly heard any complaints from anyone, but some people in Evansville were upset. However, I still remember that a crash took place a long time ago, and some people still remember it.
He still lives in Evansville. In 2004, Foronda moved up to become the general manager at JoJo’s before leaving the business. After a car crash the following year, he received help from a psychiatrist and psychologist to deal with post-traumatic stress disorder. When JoJo’s re-opened in the fall of 1992, he mustered the courage to return as an employee, even though he was still a student at Central High School in 1988 when he began working at JoJo’s. The only physical reminder of that day is the scar from the head laceration, which is hidden by his thick black hair. Foronda is someone who will never be forgotten.
Foronda states, “It occurs approximately every three or four months, but in the past, it used to happen once a week 19 years ago and perhaps every night 20 years ago. I used to experience these nightmares.” Foronda further explains, “I continuously try to evade it, and during one incident, a plane unexpectedly crashes. In another scenario, I find myself in a field, which becomes the subject of my recurring nightmares.”
When I think about the last couple of moments of their lives, things go through my mind. If Matt didn’t walk back to the kitchen, if Lynette didn’t smoke a cigarette — I still get bothered by what could have happened. It is positive that I don’t take things for granted as much as I used to, but it emotionally sets me back. It used to be a struggle.
I saved what is a beam that. I realized that I had been chopping lettuce right where I looked at it. But there was still a beam coming up from the ground in the place toward the back of the place. After they took out the rubble at JoJo’s, the building was half gone. It was days later.
Casualties:.
Darrel D. Arnold, 38, from Evansville, Charles R. Berqwitz, 22, also from Evansville, Robert A. Hayes, 45, a resident of Evansville, David W. Horton, 29, from Evansville, Ronnie E. Keown, 45, from Chandler, Ind., Matthew J. Prasek, 27, hailing from Evansville, Thomas R. Ruby, 28, an Evansville native, John R. Stallings, 41, from Evansville, and Harry M. Tenbarge, 51, from Evansville, were all staying at the Drury Inn.
Matthew Phipps, 28, from JOJO’S, and Lynette Scott, 27, from Evansville.
Kentucky’s National Air Guard in Louisville includes Lieutenant D. Vincent from the 2nd Kentucky Knobs, Corporal A. Richard from Strang, and Major M. John Medley from Louisville. Additionally, Captain J. Warren Klingaman from Crestwood and Master Sergeant G. William Hawkins from Louisville are part of the guard.
James Gibson, Jr., A 40-year-old resident of Evansville, was the EPD officer who passed away at his residence.