Return to Waco
Waco, Texas, will forever be known for the siege that began in February 1993 when agents of the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco and Firearms raided a compound owned by the Branch Davidian religious sect to investigate allegations of weapons hoarding. A 51-day stand-off between sect members and the FBI ensued and ended on April 19 when the complex was tear-gassed and a fire engulfed the building. Eighty Branch Davidians died, either in the fire or from gunfire. The dead included their 33-year-old leader David Koresh and 17 children.
The site of the siege was the 77-acre Mount Carmel ranch, about a 20-minute drive from the I35 - the busy freeway that links Dallas in the north and Austin in the south. Just in case anyone has forgotten what happened 10 years ago, inside Mount Carmel a tiny one-room visitors' centre chronicles the events, and photographs and text pinned to the walls describe the siege and fire.
Of the survivors, some have moved on, some are still in prison (indicted on charges of conspiracy to murder and murder), and some, including Koresh's mother, Bonnie Haldeman, remain in Waco, committed to the Davidian leader's ideology.
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http://www.guardian.co.uk/usa/story/0,12271,1072291,00.html
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