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Bus attack far away hits home Somali who fled his country because of violence first sees airliner terrorism, and now this By GREG STILES Jamal Mahod fled Somalia for America, hoping to escape violence as a way of life. But weeks after his arrival in Southern California, he witnessed the unthinkable when terrorists destroyed the World Trade Center and badly damaged the Pentagon. Wednesday morning, Mahod and two members of his extended family found themselves stuck in Medford because of another violent tragedy. Passengers on four buses at the Medford Greyhound terminal were among the thousands idled nationwide as Greyhound Lines Inc. parked its entire fleet of buses for four hours after a passenger apparently attacked a Greyhound bus driver in Tennessee, leading to a deadly crash. The bus crashed 50 miles southeast of Nashville, Tenn., killing six of the 40 people aboard. Authorities believe the man acted alone and not as part of a terrorist plot. The four buses stranded in Medford - two headed north and two south - pulled out of town shortly after Greyhound lifted its embargo at about 10 a.m. At the same time, a bus headed for Portland left Medford on schedule. The unplanned layover was unsettling for many passengers. Mahod is an 18-year-old member of the Asraf tribe; he sought political asylum this summer and understands violence as a way of life. But he didn't expect it to dog him in the United States. In the early 1990s, he watched United Somalian Congress militia men kill his father, who ran a clothing store. He lived several years in a refugee camp in Kenya before finding his way to Mexico and then Southern California. "I've been thinking a lot about what will happen," Mahod said as he slouched against an alley wall next to Medford's Greyhound terminal. "I came to America looking for opportunity, jobs, education. Right now, I'm in the middle of nowhere. "Everything is terrible these days. I never expected these things to happen on Greyhound." Nor did he expect to see anything like what happened Sept. 11. "I was very, very shocked," Mahod said. "That was my first time to witness something like that to see it with my own eyes on TV. I came here because I thought this would be a peaceful area away from Somalia." Mahod learned his impeccable English from being around his father's business connections. Wednesday, he was accompanying his nephew's wife, Safia Artan, and one of her six children. It had already been a long trip for Mahod and his companions, who began their journey Tuesday morning. Passengers had to wait 45 minutes before leaving Los Angeles while bus employees accommodated a wheelchair-bound traveler. When they arrived early Wednesday in Medford, they weren't sure how long their trip would be delayed. "We don't have money to rent a house or hotel," Mahod said. "We only had enough money for the trip; it was not in our schedule to have this delay." Mahod and his family were among thousands inconvenienced nationwide. John Townsend, a businessman on his way to Seattle, said he was at the Fargo, N.D., terminal when the driver told passengers the bus would be delayed because of the crash. "We thought he was joking," Townsend said. "Usually, I fly. But with what's been going on around the country, I thought it was probably safer to take a bus." While most of the passengers stranded in Medford understood that there wasn't much drivers or the station crew could do, there was grumbling. "Our ride was cool," said Kaiveon Bailey, who was headed from Seattle to Sacramento. "It bugs me to wait this long; they should just keep going, let people off and not let anybody on if they're worried." Mimi Crawford, riding from Tacoma, Wash., to Santa Rosa, Calif., with her 14-year-old daughter, said she normally takes the train when going on long trips. "The only thing that was worrying me before this was chemical trucks," Crawford said. "This is the last time I'm taking the bus. I'm going to drive my car so I won't have to worry about anybody." The layover put just another twist on a long, winding road home to Beaumont, Texas, for Jacob Burkett, who had been visiting friends and family in Graham, Wash. "I flew up and it was a nice ride, but they wanted too much for a plane ticket home, so I took the bus," Burkett said. "I was trying to get there in two days, 14 hours. Now, it's going to be three or four hours longer." But Burkett understood the reason the buses were brought to a halt and said he expects to see more security measures in the future. "It kind of bothers me that all those innocent people were hurt. It was uncalled for and real cowardly, but I'm not one of those people who gets real upset or freaks out. My whole family's in the Air Force, so I'm used to it." Reach reporter Greg Stiles at 776-4463 or [email protected] Mail Tribune Home | Ottaway Newspapers, Inc. | Dow Jones & Co., Inc. | Privacy | Contact Us Copyright � 2001 Mail Tribune, Inc.