Jerry Schemmel: Plane Crash survivor, NBA broadcaster, cyclist across America & author. This guy is living the 9 lives of a cat. Incredible.

191: Jerry Schemmel: Plane crash survivor, broadcaster, cyclist, and author talks about how he survived the crash of United Airlines Flight 232, established a long career as a play-by-play broadcaster for professional basketball, as well as became an author. 

 

Jerry Schemmel

 

Guest Jerry Schemmel describes what it was like before the United Airlines 232 crash occurred. “We had such a crazy circumstance because we had a lot of time before we hit. Most of these major airline disasters something happens, immediately there is chaos and then there is a crash. But ours strung out for 45 minutes and the reason for that was they were trying an emergency landing in Sioux City. Everytime they were heading for the airport the plane sort of veered off to the right. They would have to come back and line up again. We did that five times and that is why it took us so long.”

On this episode of Finding Your Summit Podcast, we talk with Jerry Schemmel who discusses what was going through his mind when the plane was in the process of crashing. “In those 45 minutes I thought about everything Mark. I thought about a myriad of things. I thought about my life to that point. I was 29-years old. I thought, well, if I am not going to survive, I led a pretty good life. I had a great marriage. My wife and I had been married for four years and didn’t have kids yet. I had a great marriage. I had a great little career. So, if I am going to go, it may not be a bad time to go. Then I thought, I can’t think that way. My thought was, if you are dead, you are not going to do anything. But if you are not, and this crash happens, don’t panic.” 

 

What You Will Learn:

Jerry Schemmel talks about surviving a plane crash that killed 112 people. “United Airlines Flight 232 happened in 1989 and I was working back then, Mark, for the Continental Basketball Association, which is the NBA’s minor league system. The office was based in Denver back then. It was a flight that was originating in Denver. We were bound for Chicago. We got about halfway there over Northwest Iowa when we had an explosion aboard this plane. The plane was a jumbo jet, a DC-10, 296 people were aboard, completely full. The first thing that I thought was a bomb had gone off. Honestly,  I thought that a terrorist had planted a bomb.”

What were factors that contributed to United Airlines 232 crashing? “I found out the plane had blown an engine, the number two engine in the DC-10. It severed the entire hydraulics system, which left the engine completely gone. Basically, it blew out the back of the engine compartment. The cockpit crew tried to get us to Sioux City. The cockpit crew had so little control of the plane. A normal DC-10 landing is about 120 miles-per-hour when you touch the ground. They could slow the plane down. So, we hit at 252 miles-per-hour, which by itself is a disaster.”

Jerry Schemmel describes the point of impact as the airplane collided with the ground. “We hit the ground. We flipped over. The plane broke into all kinds of pieces, big and small. After we flipped over we slid another 4000 feet. So, over a mile from start to finish We ended up in a cornfield next to the airport in Sioux City and the result was that 112 people died as you said, 184 of us survived. But 112 died. I was one of the lucky ones. Everyone around me in the crash died.”

Why does Jerry Schemmel believe that his life was spared when on the plane weren’t? “I think the best explanation is that my chair didn’t give. I stayed in my seat. My seat belt stayed intact. My chair stayed intact. Most of the people around me either got thrown out of their seat or were actually thrown in their seat. Their seat had dislodged and they were thrown in it. That was in my area. United Airlines came out years later and said that most of the people died because of smoke inhalation, which I think could have certainly happened in other parts of the plane. But the piece that I was in, that wasn’t the case.”

Did Jerry ever struggle with survivor’s guilt? “Survivor’s guilt is real. I was worried it was going to happen to me and I didn't believe that. I thought, what are people talking about? I’m the luckiest guy in the world. I survived in the middle of a group of people who died in this plane crash, 112 people lost their lives. I should be the luckiest guy in the world. But after a couple of weeks or a month, I looked in the mirror and I couldn’t see that guy.” 

 

Saving a Baby

How did Jerry Schemmel go about saving a baby after the plane had crashed? “I heard a baby crying inside the wreckage and the next thing I remember, I’m back inside the plane. I didn’t think about it. I didn’t turn around and look, weigh the odds or anything. It just sort of happened. The next thing I remember I’m on all fours on top of the crying and I pulled a little baby, an 11-month-old girl out of the overhead compartment of the plane, because we were upside down, so she was below me. As soon as I grabbed her, she stopped crying.”

 

Crash Reunions 

During this episode of Finding Your Summit Podcast, Jerry Schemmel also talks about reunions that occurred with United Airlines 232 crash victims. “We had reunions. We had one about six months after the crash. We had another after a year. I think Sioux City, Iowa had a two-year. United Airlines kind of helped us get together a little bit, and then the one-year anniversary after the crash, the city of Sioux City brought everybody together back that wanted to come. So, we had those reunions. Then we were meeting after that a little bit more, Mark, and then the numbers kind of dissipated a little bit. We kind of stopped meeting altogether, which was great. We didn’t need to do that anymore.”

 

Links to Additional Resources:

• Mark Pattison: markpattisonnfl.com
• Emilia’s Everest - The Lhotse Challenge: https://www.markpattisonnfl.com/philanthropy/
• Jerry Schemmel’s website: jerryschemmel.com
• Jerry Schemmel’s email address: jschemmel6@gmail.com