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Neosho, Mo. —
The tragic fire at the Anderson Guest House that killed 11 people led top stories in 2006.
The Nov. 27, 2006, fire claimed the lives of 10 residents and a caretaker at the long-term care facility. Glen Taff, Mark O’Ber, Amy Brown, Nathan Fisher, Patricia Henson, Brian Rudnick, Don Schorzman, Alta Lemons, Isiah Joyce, John “John John” Walterstedt and Charles Rodney Smith died as a result of the blaze.
Almost 50 years before the Guest House fire, in 1957, a blaze swept through a nursing home in Warrenton, Mo., killing 72 residents. Lawmakers then vowed to pass laws requiring sprinkler systems in all nursing homes and other institutions. But somehow, as other matters came before the Missouri Legislature, those promises got pushed back.
And in 1979, another deadly fire at a residential care center in Farmington, Mo., killed 25.
Hours after the Anderson blaze, Rep. Kevin Wilson vowed that fixing the problem would be his “No. 1 priority” in the next legislative session, which was then just over a month away.
“The whole thought process was we had this fire in 1957 which took the lives of 72 people in Warrenton, and people said ‘We have to do something about this,’ ” Wilson said in an interview a year after the blaze. “Here we were, years later, with a fire that killed 11 people. I couldn’t let that pass without doing something to make these homes as safe as they could be. We just couldn’t allow more time to go by without fixing the problems.”
Wilson’s measure, signed into law in May 2007 by Gov. Matt Blunt, called for the addition of staff to assist the state fire marshal’s office in checking nursing homes to see if they meet compliance standards. Other parts of the bill would mandate the addition of smoke detectors and heat rise indicators which indicate spikes in temperatures. These heat rise indicators may have given Anderson Guest House residents an earlier warning as to the fire.
Bill Zieres, the state’s deputy fire marshal, told the Neosho Daily News in November 2006 the attic had about six inches of blown cellulose insulation. Investigators believe the fire smoldered for some time before breaking through the ceiling into the living areas.
The building which housed Anderson Guest House was built in 1982 and housed a grocery store for about a year. Afterward, the 150- by 55-foot building became a nursing home complex. In the mid-1990s, the Anderson Guest House was formed.
The tragic fire at the Anderson Guest House that killed 11 people led top stories in 2006.
The Nov. 27, 2006, fire claimed the lives of 10 residents and a caretaker at the long-term care facility. Glen Taff, Mark O’Ber, Amy Brown, Nathan Fisher, Patricia Henson, Brian Rudnick, Don Schorzman, Alta Lemons, Isiah Joyce, John “John John” Walterstedt and Charles Rodney Smith died as a result of the blaze.
Almost 50 years before the Guest House fire, in 1957, a blaze swept through a nursing home in Warrenton, Mo., killing 72 residents. Lawmakers then vowed to pass laws requiring sprinkler systems in all nursing homes and other institutions. But somehow, as other matters came before the Missouri Legislature, those promises got pushed back.
And in 1979, another deadly fire at a residential care center in Farmington, Mo., killed 25.
Hours after the Anderson blaze, Rep. Kevin Wilson vowed that fixing the problem would be his “No. 1 priority” in the next legislative session, which was then just over a month away.
“The whole thought process was we had this fire in 1957 which took the lives of 72 people in Warrenton, and people said ‘We have to do something about this,’ ” Wilson said in an interview a year after the blaze. “Here we were, years later, with a fire that killed 11 people. I couldn’t let that pass without doing something to make these homes as safe as they could be. We just couldn’t allow more time to go by without fixing the problems.”
Wilson’s measure, signed into law in May 2007 by Gov. Matt Blunt, called for the addition of staff to assist the state fire marshal’s office in checking nursing homes to see if they meet compliance standards. Other parts of the bill would mandate the addition of smoke detectors and heat rise indicators which indicate spikes in temperatures. These heat rise indicators may have given Anderson Guest House residents an earlier warning as to the fire.
Bill Zieres, the state’s deputy fire marshal, told the Neosho Daily News in November 2006 the attic had about six inches of blown cellulose insulation. Investigators believe the fire smoldered for some time before breaking through the ceiling into the living areas.
The building which housed Anderson Guest House was built in 1982 and housed a grocery store for about a year. Afterward, the 150- by 55-foot building became a nursing home complex. In the mid-1990s, the Anderson Guest House was formed.
Wilson’s measure sailed through the House by a 158-0 vote in 2007, and an amended version passed the Senate 32-1.
“This new law won’t bring back the 11 people who died in the Anderson Guest House fire, but maybe it will prevent the next tragedy from happening,” said state Sen. Rob Mayer, R-Dexter, after the Senate vote. “It was the least we lawmakers could do to protect our citizens.”
Other stories led the news in 2006.
DREAM
Neosho was chosen as one of 10 pilot communities for the Downtown Revitalization Economic Assistance for Missouri (DREAM) initiative. Other communities chosen included Cape Girardeau, Excelsior Springs, Hannibal, Hermann, Kennett, Sedalia, St. Joseph, Washington and West Plains.
DREAM is a streamlined approach to downtown revitalization that provides one-stop shopping of technical and financial assistance for select communities to more efficiently and effectively engage in the downtown revitalization process.
R-5 bond issue passes
After trying unsuccessfully for several years, the Neosho R-5 School District finally got a bond approved a $12.5 million bond issue to build a new elementary school and to make renovations to Neosho High School.
Construction of Carver Elementary School got under way in 2006, with renovations to the high school commencing in 2007.
Jan Blase hired as city manager
Jan Blase was hired in 2006 by the Neosho City Council, replacing long-time City Manager Jim Cole, who stepped down earlier that year.
Blase set his first priorities as fixing the major water loss problem throughout the city and city streets. He also was instrumental in the DREAM initiative application and the groundbreaking for the new terminal at the Hugh Robinson Memorial Airport.
House approves Newtonia battlefield study
At the request of Seventh District Congressman Roy Blunt, the U.S. House of Representatives approved funding for a National Park Service study to determine the feasibility of either creating a new Civil War park at Newtonia or bringing the battlefield under the management of the Wilson Creek National Battlefield near Springfield.
“I believe a study by the National Park Service will confirm my belief that the two Civil War battles at Newtonia hold a unique place in American history and are worthy of protection in the National Park Service,” Blunt said.
Choppers4Children moves
After two successful events raised thousands of dollars for the Children’s Miracle Network, Choppers4Children decided to move the event to northern Newton County.
Scott Watson, organizer, said the board decided to move the event after controversy erupted over a beer garden at the event. Opponents said the consumption of alcoholic beverages should not be connected with the event. The event had garnered the approval of the Neosho City Council and the majority of downtown merchants.
Father and son bank robberies
The Hometown Bank in Jane was robbed twice by a masked man in the fall of 2006.
In December of that year, authorities arrested a man and his son in Arkansas in connection with the Oct. 23 and Nov. 20.
Don Schlessman, McDonald County sheriff, said the elder man robbed the banks while the younger man drove a getaway vehicle.
Soldier killed in Iraq
Pfc. Christopher Lee Marion of Anderson was honored in March following his death in Iraq.
Ozark Funeral Home in Anderson overflowed with family, friends and loved ones who honored the fallen soldier. Outside, more than 150 lined the street to pay tribute to Marion, including members of the Patriot Guard, a group of motorcyclists dedicated to supporting family members of service man and women killed in the line of duty.
Noticeably absent were members of the Westboro Baptist Church of Topeka, Kan., who vowed to protest the funeral because of America’s involvement in the war and alleged support of homosexuality.
A law approved by the Missouri legislature banned protestors from being within a certain distance of where funeral services for fallen soldiers were being held.
Stella hospital razed
After being condemned for several years, the former Cardwell Memorial Hospital in Stella was torn down in 2006.
The building had fallen into disrepair and had been an eyesore in the community for many years, as well as a safety hazard.
Pastor sex scandals
Sex scandals involving area pastors and church leaders made national news in 2006.
The scandals began with the filing of child sexual abuse charges against Raymond and Patty Lambert and Mrs. Lambert’s brothers, Tom and Paul Epling. The incidents allegedly took place between 1977 and 2004. The Lamberts pastored Grand Valley Baptist Church near Powell. Tom Epling’s wife, Laura, was later charged in connection with the case.
Also in 2006, two women testified that George Otis Johnston, pastor of the Grandview Valley Independent Baptist Church in Granby, sexually assaulted them when they were children.
The church scandals brought the attention of the national media, including National Public Radio, which sent a crew to Southwest Missouri in the fall of 2006 to interview people associated with the case.
But in 2008, charges against the Epling brothers and the Lamberts were dropped by McDonald County Prosecutor Janice Durbin, who said because of “incessant publicity” in the case, the victims were forced to decide “that they can no longer subject themselves or their families to the ongoing scrutiny and pressures of a very public proceeding.”
Victim testimony is crucial and necessary to prosecute cases such as these,” the statement read. “Therefore, after consultation and discussion with the victims, the state has agreed to dismiss the charges.”
Earlier that year, Durbin decided to drop the charges against Laura Epling, citing reluctance of victims to testify as the reason.
And in late 2009, Newton County Assistant Prosecutor Bill Dobbs elected to drop all 17 felony charges against Johnston, saying that witnesses either recanted their testimony or did not confirm what the prosecutors had been told.
Dobbs said he has spoken with the two women who initially testified against Johnston, and while they stick by their testimony, they concur with the decision to drop the charges.
“This was a very complex case, and it continues to be a very complex case,” Dobbs said. “But you get to a point when it reaches a point of diminishing returns.”
