ST. GEORGE — More than a week after a fire in Veyo engulfed a city bus converted by a family of six into a traveling home, three of the family members remain hospitalized in Las Vegas. The youngest son remains on a ventilator, while the father and oldest daughter underwent surgeries Wednesday at the University Medical Center in Las Vegas.
The cause of the fire, which took place late Dec. 27, has not been determined. However, a family statement indicates a propane leak was heard before the fire. The Utah State Fire Marshal has taken over the investigation.
According to a statement online by the mother, Whitney Copeland, the father, Kyle Copeland, recently came off a ventilator and during surgery, Wednesday was having cadaver skin removed from his hands in favor of skin grafts. He has bandages all over his face and one eye remains too swollen for him to see.
According to witnesses, Kyle Copeland went back into the bus to rescue two of his kids who remained trapped in the flames. His wife said he was able to talk with her about going back in the bus.
“Kyle kept saying how he knows his role was to get the kids out, that he showed up as a dad, and dads protect,” Whitney Copeland said. “Kyle said that he ran through the flames to run to the back of the bus and he saw (the kids) both standing in the back of the bus in between the bunk beds. Kyle scooped (his son) into his arms. Then turned to (his daughter), who was stunned. Kyle then put her in the tightest head lock he could and turned towards the flames. In that moment he says, ‘it was as if I was looking right into hell.’”
Whitney Copeland said she remembered her husband being on the burning bus for about a minute, then came out and fell to the ground face down after handing his son to his wife. The daughter was on the top step in flames.
“I grabbed her arm and pulled her out of the bus and threw my body onto her patting her down and extinguishing the flames all over her body and hair,” Whitney Copeland said. She added she then pulled the three away from the burning vehicle and a minute later, the vehicle exploded, which correlates with firefighters’ accounts that night, who said that the bus burned before the propane tank exploded.
Copeland said her husband was wearing a jacket he received from his father a few weeks before that was fireproof. The youngest son was wearing footed pajamas that were purchased in California, where a law says all footed pajamas must be fireproof.
The oldest of the four children, an 11-year-old daughter, had her fourth surgery Wednesday morning involving skin scraping and grafts. She had her breathing tube removed Monday but is still having difficulty swallowing, getting water from a sponge.
Whitney Copeland said while her daughter had trouble moving her lips, she was still able to communicate.
“She was asking about the bus. And everything on it,” Copeland said of her daughter. “I asked her if she remembered that the bus was on fire. She said yes, then asked what about everything? I said everything was burnt and lost in the fire. But everyone in our family got out and is safe.”
The youngest, a 3-year-old boy, remains on a ventilator, Whitney Copeland said, and is scheduled for his fourth surgery on Friday. His eyes remain swollen shut, but he is able to respond to commands.
All three have severe burns to their faces that have left them charred and swollen with skin having to be removed. “My Kyle and my children’s faces and bodies will most likely not be the same,” Whitney Copeland said.
According to a statement from Addey Kerr, sister of Whitney Copeland, on the night of Dec. 27 the two parents were outside hitching the bus to a storage trailer. The oldest and a middle-child were in their bunks, while the two other children, including the 3-year-old, were toward the front of the bus playing on the floor. The children in the front heard what they described as “leaking water” and a hissing coming from the front propane tank.
The 11-year-old daughter yelled for one of the children to go out and tell the parents about the leak. When the child got outside, the front of the bus – with the only exit in or out – exploded in flames. The 3-year-old went to the side of the oldest daughter while the middle child went out an emergency escape window next to the top bunk.
Outside, Whitney Copeland was about to run into the bus for the other children when Kyle Copeland pushed her to the side and went in himself.
In the week since, a GoFundMe set up to raise funds for the family has raised $174,603 as of Wednesday evening.
“We feel so supported, so lifted up, so grateful,” Whitney Copeland said.
Ed. note: When making charitable contributions it is advisable to consult with professionals for tax advice and investment risks.
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