"I Was The Last Person Taken Out Alive" | Beirut Survivor: Danny Wheeler

The Jack Carr Channel

Jack Carr

Society & Culture

4.9 • 2.8K Ratings

🗓️ 11 September 2024

⏱️ 93 minutes

🔗️ Recording | iTunes | RSS

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Summary

Danny Wheeler’s life was irrevocably altered on October 23, 1983, when he survived the Beirut barracks bombing, a bombing that took the lives of 241 U.S. servicemembers in one of the largest non-nuclear explosions in history. As the Lutheran chaplain for the 1st Battalion, 8th Marines, Danny was responsible for the spiritual care of the Marines in Beirut. On the day of the bombing, he was in his bunk on the 4th floor of the BLT building. When the bomb detonated, Danny rode the collapsing structure down, becoming trapped for five harrowing hours. During this time, he thought of his family, recited the plots of Louis L’Amour novels, and argued with God. He was the last survivor pulled alive from the rubble. Today, Danny shares his incredible story of survival and faith as part of our limited series: Beirut Survivors. Born in Menomonie, WI, and raised in Dallas, WI, Danny Wheeler earned a Master of Divinity from Luther Theological Seminary before being called to Naval Chaplaincy. He served with the 1st Battalion, 8th Marines, and later at Naval Air Station Corpus Christi, TX, before transitioning to the Navy Reserves. Over 26 years in the Navy Chaplain Corps, Danny provided spiritual guidance and comfort in some of the most challenging environments, including the lead-up to and aftermath of the Beirut bombing, where he helped preside over memorial services and offered solace to Marines during intense shelling. Danny’s story is one of unwavering faith, service, and resilience. SPONSORS TARGETED: BEIRUT – The first in Jack’s new non-fiction series https://www.officialjackcarr.com/books/targeted-beirut/ Bravo Company Manufacturing: Visit us on the web at http://jackcarr.co/bcm and on Instagram @BravoCompanyUSA.com SIG: Celebrating the 40th Anniversary of the legendary SIG SAUER P226. Learn more here - https://jackcarr.co/SIG40thP226 Jack Carr Gear: Explore the gear here - https://jackcarr.co/gear

Transcript

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0:00.0	Welcome to the Danger Close Podcast.
0:03.0	Thank you for tuning. Welcome to the Danger Close Podcast.
0:13.0	Thank you for tuning in to this special series on the 1983 Beirut Marine Barracks
0:18.6	bombing to compliment my first work of non-fiction, titled Targeted Beroot, the 1983 Marine Barracks bombing,
0:26.1	and the untold origin story of the War on Terror, written with Military Historian and Pulitzer
0:31.1	Prize finalist James Scott.
0:33.0	It hits shells on September 24th and is available for pre-order now in hardcover, e-book and audiobook,
0:40.0	narrated by Ray Porter.
0:42.0	James Scott joins me to co-host this podcast series.
0:45.0	Our guest today is Danny Wheeler.
0:47.0	Danny was the Lutheran chaplain in Beirut, a Vietnam veteran.
0:50.0	Danny made what was called the Peacekeeping chapel on the top floor of the Marine Headquarters and
0:53.9	barracks building. He helped preside over the memorial services for each of the
0:57.2	Marines killed in the lead up to the bombing. He visited the rifle companies dug in
1:00.7	around the airport. The morning of the bombing, Danny was in his bunk on the fourth floor.
1:04.1	When the bomb detonated, he rode the building down. He found himself trapped in a tight pocket,
1:08.7	protected by a wall he called the blessing wall, on which each of the chaplains who preceded him in Beirut had written
1:13.7	blessings.
1:14.7	He spent five hours buried in the rubble, pinned in the debris, surrounded by darkness, arguing
1:19.3	with God and thinking of characters from the Louis Lamour novels he loved to read.
1:23.4	In those books, characters faced trials in the Old West only to emerge victorious.
1:28.4	He would be the last person pulled alive from the rubble on October 23, 1983.
	...

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