Jim McDaniel, Class of 1960, probably had narrow escapes during his long Air Force career.

But they followed him into his retirement.

Last October Hurricane Joaquin, which caused a billion dollars worth of flood damage, breached 11 dams and was responsible for dozens of deaths in South Carolina, drove Jim McDaniel and wife Mary Bolin McDaniel, who grew up in Monongah, from their home in Rehoboth Beach, Delaware for two days. Their mobile home suffered only minor damage.

This week, a neighbor’s propane tank exploded into a giant fireball across the street from the McDaniel home, burned 100 acres and caused $75,000 in damage to three mobile homes in Rehoboth Bay Mobile Home Park on Old Landing Road.

But the wind was blowing away from the McDaniel home so it was not damaged.

Explains Jim:

“Had a fire in our mobile home park on Wed. Our home was on the next street over. When the propane tanks blew, it was like a bomb had exploded.  Burned over 100 acres of our woods and marshland. 

“We were lucky the wind was not blowing in our direction or the houses on this street would have been at risk.  Family got out okay, but their cat did not.  The lady had surgery on her arm the day before, so they had really bad luck.

“Jim McDaniel"
“Rehoboth Beach, DE”

Later, Jim posted:

“Took a donation this morning up to the park office to help the people out. Talked to a guy who lives a good ways from the fire and he found some parts of the tanks in his yard,  Must have had some power to go that far.”  

 Jim and Mary celebrated their 37^th wedding anniversary on March 15. Jim met Mary, by then from Upper Marlboro, Maryland, at Anne Arundel Community College in Arnold, Maryland.

The Cape Gazette article in the Lewes, Delaware newspaper on the horrific fire:

House fire sets marsh, woods on fire

Blaze nearly surrounds Rehoboth Bay Mobile Home Park

By Ron MacArthur

A fire in the Rehoboth Bay Mobile Home Park at the end of Old Landing Road near Rehoboth Beach caused $75,000 damage to three homes and spread to burn about 100 acres of nearby marsh and woods, according to the Delaware State Fire Marshal’s Office.

One of three homes received significant damage while two homes on each side received minor damage.

When firefighters arrived at the G Street residence around 10:30 a.m., heavy fire was showing. The fire caused two propane tanks to vent and fuel the fire, officials said. It also helped spread the fire to the nearby marsh that nearly surrounds the mobile home park.

The mobile home was occupied at the time of the fire and the occupants and neighbors were able to escape the blaze. No injuries were reported. The fire was placed under control at approximately 11:22 a.m., but units remained on the scene to extinguish fire hot spots in the marsh. Four adults are being assisted by the American Red Cross with housing and other items, officials said.

The State Fire Marshal’s Office has determined the cause of the fire to be accidental caused by an electrical malfunction.

Jim’s siblings are Jo Ann McDaniel Huff, Class of 1949, who lives at the bottom of Kings Alley in Worthington; Mary Jane McDaniel Pritchard; and Donald McDaniel.

His mom was Mary Curry McDaniel, who with 5 siblings were raised in the hotel owned by their father, Carroll Curry, who owned the hotel, theater and bank on the same street in downtown Monongah. 

They are the grandchildren of long-ago Monongah stationmaster Ted McDaniel.

Mary Curry McDaniel's sister was Ava Curry Cogar, married to Fred Cogar and living on Cottage Avenue. Ava and my mother, Lena Futten Olesky, who lived across Camden Avenue (U.S. 19) on Church Street with John W. Olesky, Sr., were best friends and often sat on our back porch and talked of many things.

Ava was the lay assistant in 1924 when St. Stanislaus Church priest Father Lawrence Michalski asked Mother Mary Ursula, Mother Mary Arsenia and Sister Mary Clara to begin St. Stanislaus School. It later was renamed Sts. Peter and Paul School.