Total Loss for Shane Smith & The Saints After Bus Fire

photo: Shane Smith and the Saints / Brad Coolidge

All members of Texas music band Shane Smith and the Saints are safe and accounted for, but their bus and gear trailer are completely destroyed, along with most all of the contents after it caught fire Thursday (11-21) en route to a show Thursday night in Lubbock. However, the show must go on, and at time of posting, the band is still planning to honor Thursday night’s performance at Cook’s Garage, and is en route to the show.

“They were in Coleman, TX en route for the show tonight, and were waved down by passers by that there was something wrong,” says the band’s booking agent, Jeb Hurt of Red 11. “So they pulled over, and as these things tend to happen, they got out, were able to see that there was some flames coming out from underneath the bus, and within a matter of minutes, the bus was engulfed. Shane said that by the time the fire department got there, it had done what it had done. The bus was burning out. It was just a matter of minutes.”

Shane Smith and the Saints owned the bus and trailer, and had purchased it just under a year ago. Along with the loss of the bus comes the loss of all of their instruments, their merchandise, and personal possessions.

“Everyone’s safe, and nobody was injured, everyone got out. But I don’t even know if we got everyone’s cell phones out. It looks like so far it’s a total loss,” says Jeb Hurt. “The flames extended to the trailer, and the trailer ignited, and the interior contents of the trailer ignited, and then the rest of the damage was from the water and putting the fire out. They did have insurance, but who knows what’s covered here and there. You can’t insure emotions and attachments, but the good news was everything was taken care of in advance of something like this happening, financially at least.”

As soon as the bus was out and everyone had calmed their nerves, the band members immediately began to try and figure out how they could still honor their commitment to the fans in Lubbock, and immediately started trying to line up gear and transportation to make the Thursday night show.

“In typical Saints fashion, they were able to get back to Brownwood, TX, they were able to get into an RV, and are en route to Lubbock for the show at Cook’s Garage,” Jeb Hurt says. “They are trying to keep all three shows on the books this weekend, and right now that is the plan.”

Shane Smith and the Saints have shows booked at the Tower Theatre in Oklahoma City on Friday (11-22), and at The Cotillion Ballroom Saturday (11-23) in Wichita, KS. When they take the stage, they will have one hell of a story to tell, and luckily everyone is okay to tell it.

The five-piece Shane Smith and the Saints is based out of Austin, TX, and has been a big part of the Texas music scene for nearly 10 years now. They just released their third full length album Hail Mary earlier this year. Hailed for their energetic live shows and moody sound, they’ve garnered a strong following in Texas music and beyond.

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