Speaker 1: One.
Speaker 2: What is the address of your emergency?
Speaker 3: Here?
Speaker 4: My entire building just sell down and it's collapsing. I
love at one sixty second Avenue North. Please come, we're collapsing.
Speaker 5: In Okay, yeah, come on, come on, stay with me.
You're doing right, Stay with me. Okay, I think it's
an explosion.
Speaker 4: This is the Miracle Files.
Speaker 2: I'm Emily Jones and I'm Holly Worthington. We're two sisters
who love a captivating true story, but we're also seeking
more light in our lives.
Speaker 4: So we're in a mission to find and share unforgettable,
uplifting stories of God's miracles. We hope you'll join us
on this journey. Welcome back to Miracles in the News.
All right, Holly, what do you got for us today?
Speaker 3: Okay?
Speaker 2: Well, one of the coolest things about Miracle in the
News is that we don't just look at events, but
we also sometimes look back and find news stories from
the past that have not been highlighted that much. And
now looking back, you can get this full picture, the
backstory of what happened that people didn't even know about
at the time. So this is one where it's like wow,
in hindsight, it is so incredible.
Speaker 4: Okay, So how far back are we hiading?
Speaker 2: So our story starts back in twenty nineteen with a
man named Anthony Warner. He was raised in Nashville, Tennessee,
and he worked in various it jobs. He previously owned
a company where he was licensed to install burglar systems
or burglar alarms in the nineteen nineties. Aside from the
felony marijuana conviction in nineteen seventy eight, which he served
as two years of probation for, he has no other
criminal record.
Speaker 4: Okay, so this man lives a.
Speaker 2: Pretty uneventful life for a while, but there are definitely
warning signs.
Speaker 4: Okay.
Speaker 2: One Nashville woman, Pam Perry, knows Anthony Warner quite well
and she goes on a camping trip with him and
that's when things start to fill very off.
Speaker 4: So are they like a romantic couple? Are they just
going out as friends?
Speaker 2: She is a little unclear about that and says they're
basically just friends, but the media calls him her boyfriend.
So I don't know, we're not exactly sure about that.
Speaker 4: It's complicated.
Speaker 2: I'll just believe it at that complicated.
Speaker 4: It's probably a good way to put it.
Speaker 2: Okay, but they're on this camping trip and Anthony starts
throwing various materials into the fire that explode once they
hit the flames. And we're not talking like little sparks,
like these are pretty sizable explosions. And at first Pam
thinks maybe he's just kind of a pyro who loves
playing with Buyer. But then he pulls out a strange
looking device and.
Speaker 6: There was more troubling developments on those camping trips. Perry
took a photo of the device Warner is carrying. You
can see there's a kind of screen on it, and
through that screen, Perry says, Warner would rant about what.
Speaker 4: He could see interesting. Okay, so it's almost like a
tripod that he's got attached to his hip. And at
the other end there's some sort of screen like iPad.
I don't know what it is, Yeah, but what's on
the screen, like what's he watching?
Speaker 2: Honestly, I don't know, and I don't know that there
was anything even on the screen, Like Pam couldn't see
anything on the screen. But through the screen, he says
that he's seeing all these things, like all these conspiracies,
and he goes on these long rants about how people
aren't who they say they are, and there's these reptilian
people that he can see in the woods and.
Speaker 4: Reptilian people Yeah yeah, okay, like lizards like laser clearly.
Speaker 2: Yeah, he is definitely struggling with some mental health issues
at this point.
Speaker 4: Yeah.
Speaker 2: So later on, Pam goes to Warner's house and she
notices cameras are everywhere, and when she tries to go inside,
he stops her. She says she can't come in because
he's making things and doing experiments.
Speaker 4: Making things things.
Speaker 2: Yeah, And so she also begins to notice some strange
activity going on in Warner's r V, and she becomes
so concerned that she eventually calls the police. My conscious
was tearing me up.
Speaker 6: This police report from August twenty first, twenty nineteen, identifying
her as Warner's girlfriend, quotes Perry of saying that Warner
was making bombs in the RV at his house. An
attorney employed by both she and Warner also told police
Warner knows what he's doing and is capable of making
a bomb.
Speaker 4: Yeah.
Speaker 2: So this is also how his attorney described Warner on
this nine one one call.
Speaker 7: Who is I think also got some mental and emotional problems.
Speaker 5: Who is allegedly building bombs in his house?
Speaker 4: What would you do if, like someone you loved or
cared about you knew they were building a bomb or
like preparing to attack somebody.
Speaker 2: Like, well, I don't even know if you would think
they we're preparing to attack somebody, You don't might just
be like, this is a weird hobby, you know, right,
But she definitely did the right thing in contacting the authorities,
and police do go to Warner's house to check it out,
but they can't make contact with him and the property's
fenced off, So when the police aren't let in and
aren't able to see any kind of criminal activity going on,
it just kind of stops there.
Speaker 3: Man.
Speaker 4: You hear about that all the time, Like people hindsight
will be like, I tried to warn them, but I
mean hindsight's twenty twenty obviously, yeah. True.
Speaker 2: And sadly, Warner seems to be totally losing his mind
at this point. He's decided he doesn't want to live anymore,
and he believes in reincarnation and he wants to end
what he calls the reincarnation loop. So he believes it
will take a gigantic amount of energy to happen all
at once in order to end his reincarnation.
Speaker 4: Wait, so he does not want to be reincarnated, correct,
He just wants to be done.
Speaker 3: Yeah.
Speaker 2: Yeah, he doesn't want to be reincar needed. And one
of the aerious details this still gives me chills. Pam says,
there's a song that Warner's obsessed with and he just
keeps playing it over and over and over. It's Patula
Clark's song Downtown.
Speaker 4: Like Downtown Da Da Da Da Da da that one Downtown.
Speaker 2: Everything's waiting before, are you?
Speaker 4: Yes, I don't know the worst, but I know the one, Okay.
Speaker 2: Yeah. So he plays this song all the time and
it's like he's scattering breadcrumbs of hints of what's to come.
Speaker 4: Okay, okay.
Speaker 2: So fast forward to Christmas Day, early in the morning,
twenty twenty. It's five thirty am. Most people are still asleep,
unless they have little kids, you know, maybe they're up
opening presence right. Meanwhile, downtown Nashville is quiet because hardly
anybody's out. Officer James Wells is near the end of
his shift with the Metro Nashville Police Department. Wells and
his partner Amanda Topping. They're working together, you know, trying
to wrap everything up, get things done so that they
can go home when nine one one calls start pouring.
Speaker 8: In nine one one.
Speaker 5: What is the adjective your emergency?
Speaker 3: One seventy eight, Second Avenue, Fourth. There have been three
rounds of billion shots in outside the building, first about
seven or eight minutes ago, and then it got about
five minutes ago before the shots on. I can't tell.
Speaker 5: Okay, it's a four story building. Four story building. Okay,
did you see or hear anything else?
Speaker 3: No, they're in the building.
Speaker 5: Okay.
Speaker 4: Do you want to talk to officers when they come out?
Speaker 3: No, I'm too scared to the colony apartment.
Speaker 4: Oh my gosh. You can hear the terror in this
man's voice. I would be terrified you.
Speaker 2: It gives me goosebumps.
Speaker 4: So scary. Yeah.
Speaker 2: So the shots seem to be happening on Second Avenue
in downtown, so thinking there responding to a shooting, Wells
and Topping head in that direction. But when they arrive
they find something much stranger. There's an RV parked there
on the street and it's broadcasting the creepiest messages over loud. Speakers.
Speaker 5: Oh, this aarda must be evacuated.
Speaker 4: Now this ad mus be evacuated.
Speaker 1: Now this arad the evacuated.
Speaker 8: Now you can hear the.
Speaker 2: Evacuate.
Speaker 5: Now you can hear it evacuate.
Speaker 4: Now what that is so creepy? I'm you must have
like some ai voice that is repeating evacuate now.
Speaker 2: But he must Yeah, and can you imagine hearing that
echoing through the empty streets on Christmas morning?
Speaker 4: I mean I think probably the first thing that would
hit you is just being shocked because what is this voice?
And the more it plays, it just gets creepier and creepier. Yeah,
like terrifying.
Speaker 2: Yeah, and even more creepy than those warnings. You can't
hear it in the clips. But the loud speakers also
start playing music, and you can probably guess what songs.
Speaker 4: Downtown, Yes, Downtown. Wow. It's like one of those scenes
from a movie where there's something really scary happening, but
they're playing like happy sound and you feel like you're
in the twilight zone. Yeah, and it makes it even
more terrifying, Like I can't imagine being on the streets
while this is going on.
Speaker 2: No, I know these poor people that are hearing this,
you gotta be just terrifying.
Speaker 4: I'm sure.
Speaker 6: So.
Speaker 2: Additional nine on one calls start just coming in from
concern residents. Anyone in the area. Nine one one.
Speaker 5: What is the address of your emergency? It's Second Avenue North.
We have a recording out here saying there's a limited
time to evacuate this area on one on Second Avenue
North in downtown Nashville. Is that you, guys? Second Avenue,
second one sixty six, Second Avenue North. There's a recording
out there that's saying there's a limited time to evacuate
this area. There's some large bomb inside this vehicle. Hmm,
let me check and say what we can you please
send the police up here? Meanwhile I'm getting dressed. Can
you please send the police up here? Yeah, we definitely
Second Avenue North. It looks someth We need to have
it on in a panic, Okay. We do have officers
are out out there, like right near one seventy eight,
which is right right. Are they reporting anything about this recording?
Network done? We got like a call about shots being heard. Yeah, shots,
But now there's a there's there's a stand down there
that says there's a limited time to evacuate this area.
There's a large on inside to see people that is
playing over and over and over outside.
Speaker 4: Oh my gosh, my heart, I can feel it beating
in my chest.
Speaker 2: Yeah. That is so scary, so scary. And at this
point officers aren't able to even find a shooter. But
now they're concerned that there's a bomb. So Wells and
the other officers immediately start evacuating people from the nearby buildings.
They go door to door, waking people up, telling them
to get out now. Then another warning comes from the RV,
saying there are only minutes left. Officer Wells says that
he's trying to think about like everything at once. Do
I move closer? Do I need heavier gear? Is there
another device somewhere? Like how do you prepare for that moment?
Speaker 1: I don't know.
Speaker 2: And while he's processing all of that, he's about to
head toward the RV when he hears something very clearly.
It's no longer just the voice on the speaker in
the RV. Officer Wells, here's a voice from God.
Speaker 8: As I'm getting ready to walk toward them, walking back
toward the r V. And it might not be politically correct,
but this is my truth. And I literally hear God
tell me to turn around and go check on Topping,
who was by herself down on Broadway. And as I
turn around for me, it felt like Allie took three
steps and then the music stopped. And as I'm walking
back toward top of now, I just see orange and
then I hear loud boom, and as I'm stumbling because
it rocked me that hard to start stumbling, I just
tell myself to stay on your feet, stay alive, and
I just take out in a full out sprint.
Speaker 4: Oh my gosh, I was not ready for that.
Speaker 2: I knew that was coming. But my heart is still
racing like such an intense moment.
Speaker 4: Well and incredible, like you can actually see him walking
towards where this bomb is about to explode.
Speaker 2: And then you see him just turn and walk back
and wow. Yeah. So Officer Topping has witnessed all of this,
and this is what she said.
Speaker 1: I don't know what told me to do. This is
really weird, but I decided to change my direction, go
on the other side of the road, start walking towards Wells.
So as I start walking towards him, no, he starts
walking towards me. You can see on the camera too,
the footage. I've seen it. And I told him I
didn't think anybody'd ever believe him how close he was.
And I was probably about ten steps away from him,
fifteen and We're just walking towards each other. And I
just saw the biggest flames I've ever seen, the biggest explosion,
I mean is and I just saw orange and then
him and I saw him stumble and I felt it.
I felt that heat, the wave, and like you said,
I've never grabbed somebody so hard in my life. I
grabbed him, he grabbed me, and we just ducked into
a doorway because we didn't know what was common afterwards.
Speaker 4: Wow. Wow, I'm sure that moment had to feel so surreal.
And you can hear the emotion in her voice as
she's recapping that moment.
Speaker 2: Yeah, and you can tell that God was with them
and was guiding them and helping them through this so
so powerful.
Speaker 5: Yeah.
Speaker 2: Yeah. So there's been a massive explosion powerful enough to
practically demolish dozens of buildings, blow out windows, send debris
flying throughout downtown Nashville. Buddy Gainey and his family are
visiting Nashville at the time and are staying in a
condo near where the bomb is located. Officers are screaming
for them to get out and get their car when
the bomb goes off.
Speaker 7: So here's Gainey, the entire building shaking and glass and breed,
you know, crashing in the apartment.
Speaker 2: And I just yelled to my girls down the hall
and my wife, so we got to.
Speaker 3: Get out of here.
Speaker 6: I'm into the streets, Buddy says police officers.
Speaker 5: We're screaming for them to run out.
Speaker 3: You can see Buddy and his wife captured here and
his body cam footage.
Speaker 7: He got to the street level and it was like
a war zone. My wife and you know, she and
my daughter Puncey didn't have shoes on you, and so
she's just kind of you know, we're all in shock
that she's really kind of frozen there. You can definitely
hear my voice that I'm just in shock and terror,
you know.
Speaker 4: Yeah, you can see he's actually carrying his wife out
because she doesn't have shoes, and I'm sure there's broken
glass everywhere.
Speaker 2: So everything is in total chaos as you can see. Yeah,
And unfortunately, Anthony Warner, the bomber has perished in the explosion.
Speaker 4: That's really sad because clearly this is a person who
has mental illness just makes it it's tragic, and.
Speaker 2: It just makes you think about like, how many people
are probably out there who are alone and feeling lonely
and are struggling with their mental health or whatever it is,
and no one even knows about it. So that makes
me want to try to be aware, try to be
aware of those around us. But as tragic as his
story is, this story is also so miraculous because even
though buildings have been damaged all around, windows are broken,
missing walls, missing fronts of buildings. You know, there's shrapnel
all over the place. Unbelievably, everyone has escaped.
Speaker 4: Wow.
Speaker 2: And because those officers acted so quickly and had already
evacuated so many people, there were only three injuries and
no lives lost. One of the civilians on scene, David Molloy,
was walking his dog when the explosion happened and he
was stopped by another police officer just in the nick
of time.
Speaker 4: The man hearing the warning from that RV but thought
it was a message of safety, not danger.
Speaker 7: The recording that I was hearing, I just assumed it
was coming from the police car. The officer was in
the middle of the road of Second Avenue walking towards me,
telling me to evacuate, and I said, why do I
need to evacuate? And right then boom the windows were
blown out everywhere, and the building right adjacent to ours
all of their windows in the front blew out, top
and bottom everything.
Speaker 4: Wow, those police officers saved that man's life. Yeah, and
it's incredible that they all were able to get out. Yes,
I'm like, if somebody had taken an ambient, was a
heavy sleeper or on a wheelchair, or I don't know,
like any sort of reason, like they hadn't gotten out,
this could have been very different.
Speaker 2: So much worse. It could have been so much worse.
Speaker 4: Yeah, And that the thing I keep thinking of is,
I mean, this man, this bomber, he it seems like
he didn't want to hurt anyone. He told everyone to evacuate,
he gave them time to get out, right. And Yet
if he really didn't want to hurt anyone, why didn't
he just go someplace, like, you know, out on an
open field or in the desert or somewhere where there
was nobody else there, Like, why did he go downtown
like if you really didn't want to hurt anyone?
Speaker 2: When I read about that, because I had the same question. Apparently,
when he was a child, he had some really fond
memories of going downtown, and he'd also worked on Second Avenue,
so he had some emotional attachment to that place, and
I think that's part of why he loved the song
Downtown on a Lady.
Speaker 4: Okay, So yeah, I guess that makes sense. Yeah, I
guess it.
Speaker 2: Does to hid to his mind, it made sense clearly.
And I think what really stands out to me about
this story is the miracle isn't that nothing terrible happened,
Like something terrible did happen, right, But the miracle is
how people were protected inside the chaos. The miracle is
that people were warned in time. The miracle is the
voice that spoke to Officer Wells just seconds before disaster, right.
And I think all of us can look back on
times in our lives when something told us to wait,
or call someone, leave early, take another road, turn around,
you know, whatever it might be. I think it's so
important that we listen when we receive those feelings and
voices from God.
Speaker 4: Yeah, I know I've had that voice warning in my life.
But it's so cool to watch this video and literally
see the moment that God spoke to this man. You
can see it, and you know if he had stayed
on that path, he probably wouldn't be here today. Like
God is so good.
Speaker 2: Yes, and sadly, we also know that Anthony Warner was
listening to a wrong voice. I know that's true, and
so we have to have that discernment as well, that
we make sure we're listening to God's voice and not
to voices that are destructive to us.
Speaker 4: Wow, what a remarkable story, Like I have never heard
this story, and I can't believe I've never heard this before.
Speaker 2: Neither had I And I asked my Asim Blake. You know,
he watches the news all the time, be not so much,
but he's always watching the news, and he hadn't heard
of it either.
Speaker 4: So and I would have heard of But yeah, I
mean it's like if there were more people that had died,
maybe they would have made this a bigger deal in
the national headlines, because that's kind of what the news does. Yeah,
I'm just grateful then we have the chance to focus
on these miracle stories where yes, so many miracles happen.
Speaker 2: Yeah, and these are ks the end would be undated
by negative stories. We just hear so many negative, horrible things.
But there's so many good many in the worlds, so
many amazing miracles happening all the time. Absolutely, well, thank
you everyone for joining us today. We hope that this
episode has uplifted you and reminded you that miracles are
still happening today. If you like this episode, please share
it with your friends and family, leave us a review,
keep looking for miracles in your own lives. And there's
one quote I want to leave you all with. Buddy Gainey,
the man who was visiting Nashville with his family, later
posted pictures on Facebook, and here's an excerpt from what
he said about it, And like, can you read that?
Speaker 3: Sure?
Speaker 4: Okay? He said, had we not been in the interior
condo but on the street side, we could have been
severely injured or killed. God had a hand in me
not parking the car in front of the building that
night so we could escape after the explosion, the RV
was parked less than two hundred feet away. When you
see these pictures, it truly is a miracle. We survived,
and only by the hand of God.
Speaker 2: Only by the hand of God.
Speaker 4: Amen.
Speaker 2: So many amazing miracles. Yeah, have a wonderful week everyone.
Thank you for joining us. If you have a miracle
to share, contact us at the Miracle files dot com
or find us on social media. We release new episodes
each Monday.
Speaker 4: Yeah, So don't forget Miracle Mondays. Subscribe on your favorite
podcast platform and YouTube for amazing video content as well.
Speaker 2: Join us next time as we discover more of God's miracles,
and don't forget to look for His light in your
own lives.