On March 1, 1993, the ATF began briefing the press daily. "The ATF holds a press conference a day after the Branch Davidian raid, Media briefings became routine during the 51-day siege of the compound. Staff photo — Roy Aydelotte, file." (Source: Waco Tribune-Herald, February 27, 2018, cached)

The Waco Holocaust was doubtlessly one of the biggest media events in American law enforcement history. Reporters camped in RVs and a tent city at the perimeter of the Mt. Carmel property (ref. Christian Science Monitor, March 15, 1993, "Media Plays Controversial Role In FBI-Cult Standoff in Waco", cached). The FBI held daily briefings for reporters, such as the one held on March 1, 1993 (Source: Waco Tribune-Herald, February 27, 2018, cached).

Recall that, according to the FBI, the purpose of the April 19 tank and gas attack was to force the Davidians to leave their home. April 19 was the culmination of the 51-day siege — a historic event in the annuls of law enforcement.

Now here's an anomaly: Although we are told that nine Davidians escaped the April 19 fire, there was no contemporaneous photographic evidence of even one such escape.

Eyewitness Accounts of No Survivors

We have dozens of photos of the fire from the ground and the air, but not one includes a Davidian escaping. Most telling of all, none of the photos show rescuers at ready — no emergency crews, no fire trucks, and no ambulances. Even when the fire had advanced to where "the entire roof [was] gone" and the chance of survivors was close to zero, the CNN reporters narrating the live coverage (Source: cached) told the viewing audience that no one had seen survivors or fire fighting equipment.

Those reporters were in communication with those on site and camera operators at the Mt. Carmel Center, and the cameras were covering the site from several angles. The photographic and eyewitness statements are clear: No survivors, no rescuers, indicating no expectation of survivors.

Shortly aftwards in the same video, four SWAT team members were caught on camera near the Center. They apparently had no fear of snipers inside the Center (despite the claim by the Dept. of Justice, pg. 122) and they made no visible effort to rescue the children.

The CNN interview from above continues:

Since the FBI withheld firefighting equipment and rescue crews, we must presume that the FBI had no expectation of Davidian survivors—that is, they knew the Davidians inside the building were already dead and beyond help. The accusation that the Davidians started the fire was a pretense to cover the FBI's own crimes.

Indeed, the media was warned off covering the Waco story that day.

Helicopters and fixed-wing aircraft are customarily used to douse forest fires with water. Many fire brigades have tanker trucks, particularly in rural areas where fire hydrants are not always available. But, despite the FBI commander's prediction that fire would break out during a gas attack, no appropriate equipment was standing by to fight the fire.

The Waco Tribune-Herald carried a specious story about firetrucks trying to "fight the fire" and being hit with bullets, or perhaps "shell casings" (Source: Waco Tribune-Herald, April 20, 1993, "Cult arsenal explodes as crews fight fire", cached).

The experts admitted that none of the trucks were damaged—that is, there was no objective evidence of anyone shooting at the trucks. As shown below, none of the contemporaneous photographs contain evidence of fire fighting—no trucks or firemen or hoses or arcs of water pumped into the blaze. A retrospective article stated that in early April, an official had anticipated a fire and warned the FBI. (Source: The Dallas Morning News, October 9, 1993, "Siege chronology reveals frustrations, disagreements")

Another retrospective article stated that the FBI fully expected that the Center might catch fire; and if it did, the FBI fully intended to let it burn to the ground.

April 5: The Branch Davidians began observing Passover. In a phone message to FBI headquarters, Waco tactical commanders say they won't try to fight fires that break out if there is a gas assault. (Source: The Dallas Morning News, Feb 27, 2018, "Waco standoff: Remembering the Branch Davidian siege 25 years later", cached)

The Dallas Morning News archive does not indicate those statements were published contemporaneously.

The flaming Mt. Carmel Center was as lifeless as a funeral pyre. And the objective evidence indicates that it was exactly that: An empty ruin with nothing but corpses of Branch Davidian men, women, and children.

Photographic Evidence of No Survivors, No Medical Stations, No Fire Trucks

Click on an image to enlarge. (As of 2023, some source pages may have been removed.)

. "A ball of fire erupts from the Branch Davidian compound in Waco, Texas, on April 19, 1993. Photo credit Jerry W. Hoefer/Fort Worth Star-Telegram/TNS/Sipa USA." (Source: KRLD Newsradio 1080, April 19, 2023, cached) . "Debates Still Rage 25 Years Later Over Who's to Blame for the Waco Siege." (Source: In Touch Weekly, Jan 6, 2018, archived, cached) . (FBI via Wikimedia, archived) . "Black Monday: More than 80 feared dead in compound blaze." (Source: Waco Tribune-Herald, Apr 20, 1993, reprinted March 26, 2018, archived, cached) . "Waco siege | History, Leader, and Facts." (Source: Britannica, October 27, 2025, cached ) . "10 Things You May Not Know About Waco." (Source: PBS, Feb 28, 2018, archived, cached) . "The Real Story Behind the Waco Siege: Who Were David Koresh and the Branch Davidians? Time Life Pictures/FBI/Time Life Pictures/Getty Images." (Source: Time, January 24, 2018, archived, cached) . "Waco siege 20 years on: the survivor's tale." (Source: The Telegraph, 19 April, 2013, archived, cached) . "I've kept my story secret for the last 25 years — I didn't want to take this to my grave." (Source: CBS News, December 29, 2017, archived, cached) . "Waco siege survivor describes escape from fiery compound." (Source: CBS News, April 13, 2018, archived, cached) . "The Standoff in Waco." (Source: The Texas Observer, April 18, 2013, archived, cached) . "25 years later: Photos from the tragedy at Waco," (Source: Waco Tribune-Herald, April 19, 2018, cached) . "25 years later: Photos from the tragedy at Waco," (Source: Waco Tribune-Herald, April 19, 2018, cached) . "25 years later: Photos from the tragedy at Waco," (Source: Waco Tribune-Herald, April 19, 2018, cached)

. Showing the backside of the Center—"Two Decades Later, Some Branch Davidians Still Believe. Susan Weems/AP" (Source: NPR, April 20, 2013, archived, cached) . "25 years later: Photos from the tragedy at Waco," (Source: Waco Tribune-Herald, April 19, 2018, cached) . "25 years later: Photos from the tragedy at Waco," (Source: Waco Tribune-Herald, April 19, 2018, cached) . "Survivors of 1993 Waco siege describe what happened in fire that ended the 51-day standoff." (Source: ABC News, January 3, 2018, archived, cached) . "5 Davidians' Jail Terms Reduced," (Source: CBS News, June 5, 2000, archived, cached) . "British survivor of Waco cult STILL believes in coming apocalypse and recalls 1993 siege that left 86 dead." (Source: Daily Mirror, 28 Feb 2018, archived, cached) . "Flashback: Waco Cult Showdown Ends in Disaster. Greg Smith/CORBIS/Corbis via Getty Images" (Source: Rolling Stone, Jan 4, 2018, archive, cached) "Flames engulf the Branch Davidian compound near Waco, Texas, on April 19, 1993. Photo by Rod Aydelotte /Cox News Service" (Source: Toronto Sun, April 15, 2023, cached) ."30th anniversary of Waco siege: Survivor shares story, talks about life after Branch Davidian compound" (Source: Houston Public Media, April 19, 2023, cached) . "Photos from the archives: The siege at the Branch Davidian compound outside Waco," (Source: Austin American-Statesman, September 27, 2018, archived, cached) . "The Story Of The Branch Davidians And Their Fiery Demise Outside Waco In 1993" (Source: KERA News, April 19, 1018, Archive, Cache) . "A quarter-century later, 'dark theories' still hover over Waco siege." (Source: Austin American-Statesman, April 16, 2018, archived, cached) . "Photos from the archives: The siege at the Branch Davidian compound outside Waco," (Source: Austin American-Statesman, April 20, 2018, archived) . "Photos: The Waco siege of 1993 " (Source: Daily News, February 27, 2023, cached)

See also Figures F2-2 and F2-3.

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Rewriting History

The photos above were published contemporaneously with the event. But history is sometimes rewritten with time, particularly when the victors are justifying the (or hiding) the savagery of the conquest.

A full 25 years after the events, The Dallas Morning News printed a picture never before published. (Source: February 27, 2018, "51 days under siege: A timeline of the Branch Davidian standoff", archived, cached).

The Dallas Morning News, February 27, 2018, original caption: "Survivors flee the burning building and approach a FBI Hostage Rescue Team position at the end of the standoff and siege of the Branch Davidian compound near Waco, Texas on April 19, 1993. (FBI)" (Source: archived, cached)

TWENTY-FIVE (25) years too late! Twenty-five years after the fact, the Deep State and its media assets finally published this obviously synthetic photo of "Branch Davidians" escaping the April 19, 1993 blaze at the Mt. Carmel Center.

Recall the media circus around the Waco siege (Source: Christian Science Monitor, March 15, 1993, "Media Plays Controversial Role In FBI-Cult Standoff in Waco", cached). Does anyone imagine a news organization (or the "FBI" as claimed in the caption) snapped this photo but held it back from publication for 25 years? Where were all the dozens of commercial photographers to capture this most-anticipated event?

As shown above, while Mt. Carmel burned, the news cameras were continuously at work. Does anyone believe that only the FBI had the only camera that recorded the moment—or the many minutes—when the Davidians fled the ruins, were arrested, detained, etc.?

There are some serious conceptual problems with this synthetic photograph. It portrays four people and a dog running from the blazing Mt. Carmel Center, about a quarter mile away. Clearly, three have their hands up in the air, in a "come out with your hands up" fashion. If so, who told them to do so? The picture does not tell the story.

• The figures in the image are not identified, though the identification of people in pictures is an important tradition in news reporting. After 25 years, their identities should have been long established.
• None of the four are handcuffed, so we know they have not been processed by the agents and soldiers. From that, we know there are no rescue or processing stations between those figures and the burning Center.
• The Davidians had been heavily tear-gassed for hours with CS, a major irritant to the mucous membranes, including the lungs. The brisk hiking style of these figures is suspicious.
• Since the most prevalent injury from fires is lung damage from smoke inhalation, survivors cannot be expected to walk any distance to reach rescuers. Survivors may collapse and need immediate attention upon exiting the building. The distance these "survivors" were expected to travel without help is ludicrous.
• One of the big stories throughout the siege was the fate of the young children inside the Center. If the Davidians were alive until the last day, the FBI would expect young children and mothers with babies to emerge from the burning building. Even without the CS and smoke inhalation, they might be unable to hike the distance seen in this "photograph."
• Given that armored personnel carriers were already at the site, a bullet-proof first-aid station could have been established close to the burning buildings where the alleged Davidian snipers would pose no danger to the rescuers.
• The Dallas Morning News credited that image to "FBI." (Source: February 27, 2018, "51 days under siege: A timeline of the Branch Davidian standoff", archived, cached) But The Dallas Morning News boasted its breadth and depth of comprehensive coverage of the Waco Holocaust: "From the early moments of the Branch Davidian siege until its fiery conclusion, The Dallas Morning News offered readers comprehensive and often exclusive coverage." (Archived: The Dallas Morning News, June 26, 1997, "The Siege in Waco", cached) In the opinion of the editors, those stories were so important, they were collected by the staff and archived for public research and information, and later donated to The Wittliff Collections at Texas State University. Given the extent and dedication of its coverage, and the historical importance of the incident, isn't it strange that the News did not have its own photographs of Branch Davidian survivors surrendering? Why would The Dallas Morning News, of all papers, need to obtain this image from the FBI?

Newspapers do not discard their archives, as shown by the Austin American-Statesman, which was able to produce a dozen photographs of the fire from its archives in 2018. Note: The Austin American-Statesman has since removed much of that material from its public server and from the Internet Archive.

We therefore conclude this picture is synthetic—not genuine. The image is a fitting summary for the news coverage of the whole Waco Holocaust.