Give A Damn? Documentary Team Survives Crash

Back in May, we teamed up with Rock For Justice to co-sponsor a benefit show to help send a couple of filmmakers to Africa to shoot a documentary entitled Give A Damn?, about African poverty, America’s role, and Americans’ attitudes towards responsibility.

Well, they made it. Our buddy Dan Parris took off for Africa on Tuesday with Rob Lehr and David & Tim Peterka.

Early this morning (our time; 3PM Nairobi time), a single engine plane carrying Dan and Rob struck an electrical transmission pole. The plane spun out of control and crashed into a block of buildings. While the pilot was killed on impact, Rob managed to free Dan and a flight engineer named Ryan with the help of a brave bystander, before the plane exploded.

The three were rushed to the hospital, where they are currently recovering from their injuries. They all suffered cuts and burns, and Ryan’s sound rather critical. Dan is undergoing tests with a presumed broken collar bone and possibly broken hip.

Frank, the pilot who was killed, was a missionary with African Inland Mission. He’s survived by a wife and 4 children, one of which was adopted in Africa.

The filmmakers had chartered the plane to shoot some aerial footage of Kibera, the largest slum in Africa. Almost all of the crew’s film equipment was destroyed in the crash. However, the crew is planning to press on with their mission, determined to do everything they can to expose Africa’s extreme poverty, its causes, and why we should all “give a damn.”

Call it luck or a miracle, we’re relieved that our friends survived. Here’s hoping the guys can find a way to recover from such a shocking, near-fatal setback to achieve their goal. Follow @GIVEADAMNDOC on Twitter for updates and any information on how you can help.