In a news story that we literally could not have made up ourselves, concerned neighbors contacted the authorities when they thought a plane had crashed on a local Missouri farm only for the authorities to find the famed Shockwave Jet Truck being washed by its owner. The neighbors are new to the area and had no idea that Shockwave owner Neal Darnell lived there or that he had a triple jet engine powered semi truck on his property. Darnell had returned from a performance with the truck on a dirt track and had to fire the engines up, presumably to blow a bunch of junk out of them and what not. People saw the flash of fire and then a large cloud of white smoke, called the police and they arrived en masse.
Expecting the worst, the Springfield News Leader reports that four ambulances, three Greene County Sheriff’s deputies, a couple of Missouri State Highway Patrol troopers, a firetruck, and other emergency vehicles all descended onto the farm with the anticipation of burning wreckage and mass casualties. Instead they found a concerned Darnell who didn’t want all of those people wasting their time with him when there were real emergencies to be tended to. No one was fined or cited as the people who called the police were not doing it as a stunt but rather because they had genuine concerns. Darnell was quoted in the story as saying, “We do it from time to time and it will usually generate a couple of 911 calls, but today for some reason it brought out a whole army of emergency vehicles.” He was not angry at the neighbors and understood their concerns. Apparently most of the other people in the town know that the most powerful semi truck in the universe is down the road from them. These unnamed people do as well.
The story is pretty awesome and yes, we recognize that law enforcement and EMS people have huge value and when they are directed to the wrong places it can mean poor service for a needy person somewhere else, but let’s just assume that these first responders were covered. Imagine what they said when they pulled up to Darnell’s farm and saw that behemoth of a truck sitting there. Maybe there was still a little smoke wafting from one of the engines. Who knows.
The full story is an awesome read. Hit the link and check it out!
Thanks to Dawn Mazi-Hovsepian for the tip on this one!
CLICK HERE TO SEE THE NEWS STORY ABOUT THE JET TRUCK THAT WASN’T A PLANE CRASH
Didn’t know Les Shockley didn’t own it anymore.
From the article link: “Darnell said he has had Shockwave for about three years and he and his son take the truck to shows all over the country”.
It is not uncommon for someone to build an exhibition piece, tire of it, then sell it.
Cool truck I think I would call dispatch and let them know I am washing the truck next time.
Actually, Les Shockley’s son crashed the truck a few years ago, and since they still have two more jet trucks, decided to sell the semi to Darnell, name and all.