Bedford man's daughter rescued from Somali pirates

10:50 p.m.

Word that an aid worker rescued in Somalia had ties to Bedford spread quickly through the area Wednesday.

Jessica Buchanan’s father, John Buchanan, lives in the city of Bedford in a residence owned by Mike Maxwell, owner of Maxwell Furniture in Bedford. 

John is self-employed and Maxwell described him as a quiet man who deeply loves his family.

“He’s just a hard worker,” Maxwell said, adding he was a perfect tenant.

Maxwell said he has met Jessica Buchanan and described her as a “great person.” She was not a resident at the home, he said.

John Buchanan did have an address on Hunting Lane in Goode, according to the commissioner of the revenue’s office. Neighbors in Goode said he moved from the address sometime after 2010. His wife, Marilyn, died in July 2010, according to an online obituary.

It is unclear how long the Buchanans lived in the area.

Receptionists in Bedford city and county government offices said they fielded numerous inquiries Wednesday about the Buchanan family and their connection to Bedford after initial news reports said Jessica Buchanan was from the area.

Maxwell said he was thrilled Jessica had been rescued.

“It’s the best thing that could happen to that man,” he said.

Edward Toomey, a friend of the family, said he knew Jessica Buchanan well, and met the family shortly after they moved to the area.

“I’ve met his children. They all come to visit and it’s a very close family,” he said.

Of Jessica, he said “She’s a sweetheart. They’re all nice.”

He said when he heard of her capture, “my initial reaction was, ‘I wonder if we’re ever going to get her back.’ I really wondered if they were going to pull that off.

“I saw it on TV this morning, and when I saw her face I wanted to make sure it was her before I called anybody. I waited for her face to come up again and I … I cried. I cried and I called Michael, the owner of the property here, and I couldn’t get it out,” he said.

Toomey said it was difficult to watch his friend go through something so difficult and not be able to help.

“You could tell it was always on his mind. Of course it was, it’s his daughter. You don’t know what to say, you can’t do anything, you can’t help him. It was rough.”

He said John Buchanan left for Washington, D.C., on Sunday. He added he couldn’t wait to see his friend again.

“I don't know if we’ll see Jessica, if she’ll be back here or not, but I definitely can’t wait to see him.”

4:45 p.m.

Jessica Buchanan's  father, John Buchanan, lives in the city of Bedford, about a mile from the National D-Day Memorial. He rents a house from Mike Maxwell, owner of Maxwell Furniture in Bedford.

He has lived there the past two years, Maxwell said, describing him as a family man and a terrific tenant. “He’s just a hard worker,” Maxwell said. “He’s a perfect person.”

Maxwell said he has met Jessica Buchanan and described her as “a great person.” She herself was not a resident at the home, he said.

In reacting to the news about her safe return, Maxwell said he was happy for John Buchanan, who had left town a few days ago, he said Wednesday.

“It’s the best thing that could happen to that man,” he said.

12:46 p.m.

By Lynchburg News & Advance staff

There is no record of Jessica Buchanan or her father owning property in Bedford County, although her father owned personal property at the address listed.

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12:04 p.m.

By WSLS News staff

WSLS's Jenna Zibton went to the Goode address listed for the father of Jessica Buchanan.  Jenna found the father no longer lives at the address listed.

WSLS has not been able to find another current Bedford County address for the family.

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9:58 a.m.

One of the two aid workers rescued by Navy SEALS in Somalia is a graduate of a small religious college in suburban Philadelphia and the head of the school says officials are grateful their prayers have been answered.

The Rev. Don Meyer says Jessica Buchanan graduated from Valley Forge Christian College in 2006. He says she "fell in love with Africa" after doing a student teaching stint at Rossalyn Academy in Nairobi.

Jessica Buchanan has a Bedford County connection; her father lives in Goode, according to NBC.

The 32-year-old Buchanan and Poul Hagen Thisted, a 60-year-old Dane, were rescued early Wednesday. They had been working with a de-mining unit when gunmen kidnapped them in October.

Meyer says those who know Buchanan want to offer their "deep gratitude" to the people who worked to free her.

--Associated Press

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EARLIER:

An aid worker with a Bedford County connection was rescued from Somali pirates early Wednesday after a nighttime raid by U.S. Special Forces.

Jessica Buchanan, with the Danish Refugee Council, was being held hostage along with Poul Hagen Thisted, of Denmark.

Jessica Buchanan's father lives in Goode, according to NBC.

The same U.S. Navy SEAL team that killed Osama bin Laden parachuted into Somalia under cover of darkness early Wednesday and crept up to an outdoor camp where an American woman and Danish man were being held hostage. Soon, nine kidnappers were dead and both hostages were freed.

President Barack Obama authorized the mission by SEAL Team Six two days earlier, and minutes after he gave his State of the Union address to Congress he was on the phone with the American's father to tell him his daughter was safe.

The Danish Refugee Council confirmed that Buchanan and Thisted were "on their way to be reunited with their families."

Buchanan, 32, and Thisted, 60, were working with a de-mining unit of the Danish Refugee Council when gunmen kidnapped the two in October.

The raiders came in quickly, catching the guards as they were sleeping after having chewed the narcotic leaf qat for much of the evening, a pirate who gave his name as Bile Hussein told The Associated Press by phone. Hussein said he was not present at the site but had spoken with other pirates who were, and that they told him nine pirates had been killed in the raid and three were "taken away."

A U.S. official confirmed media reports that the SEALs parachuted into the area before moving on foot to the target. The official said SEAL Team Six carried out the mission, the same team that killed al-Qaida leader bin Laden in Pakistan last May. The raid happened near the Somali town of Adado.

New intelligence emerged last week that Buchanan's health was "deteriorating rapidly," so Obama directed his security team to develop a rescue plan, according to a senior administration official who was not authorized to speak publicly.

"As Commander-in-Chief, I could not be prouder of the troops who carried out this mission, and the dedicated professionals who supported their efforts," Obama said in a statement released by the White House. "The United States will not tolerate the abduction of our people, and will spare no effort to secure the safety of our citizens and to bring their captors to justice."

A Western official said the rescuers and the freed hostages flew by helicopter to a U.S. military base called Camp Lemonnier in the Horn of Africa nation of Djibouti. Both officials spoke on condition of anonymity because the information had not been released publicly. Defense Secretary Leon Panetta visited Camp Lemonnier just over a month ago. A key U.S. ally in this region, Djibouti has the only U.S. base in sub-Saharan Africa. It hosts the military's Combined Joint Task Force-Horn of Africa.

Buchanan lived in neighboring Kenya before Somalia, and worked at a school in Nairobi called the Rosslyn Academy from 2007-09, said Rob Beyer, the dean of students. He described the American as easy to laugh and adventurous.

"There have been tears on and around the campus today," Beyer said. "She was well-loved by all her students."

The timing of the raid may have been made more urgent by Buchanan's medical condition. The Danish Refugee Council had been trying to work with Somali elders to win the hostages' freedom but had found little success.

"One of the hostages has a disease that was very serious and that had to be solved," Danish Foreign Minister Villy Soevndal told Denmark's TV2 channel. Soevndal did not provide any more details. oevndal congratulated the Americans for the raid.

The Danish Refugee Council said both freed hostages are unharmed "and at a safe location." The group said in a separate statement that the two "are on their way to be reunited with their families."

Ann Mary Olsen, head of the Danish Refugee Council's international department, informed Hagen Thisted' family of of the successful military operation and said "they were very happy and incredibly relieved that it is over."

The two aid workers appear to have been kidnapped by criminals - sometimes referred to as pirates - and not by Somalia's al-Qaida-linked militant group al-Shabab. As large ships at sea have increased their defenses against pirate attacks, gangs have looked for other money making opportunities like land-based kidnappings.

The Danish Refugee Council had earlier enlisted traditional Somali elders and members of civil society to seek the release of the two hostages.

"We are really happy with the successful release of the innocents kidnapped by evildoers," said Mohamud Sahal, an elder in Galkayo town, by phone. "They were guests who were treated brutally. That was against Islam and our culture ... These men (pirates) have spoiled our good customs and culture, so Somalis should fight back."

Buchanan and Hagen Thisted were seized in October from the portion of Galkayo town under the control of a government-allied clan militia. The aid agency has said that Somalis held demonstrations demanding the pair's quick release.

Their Somali colleague was detained by police on suspicion of being involved in their kidnapping.

The two hostages were working in northern Somalia for the Danish Demining Group, whose experts have been clearing mines and unexploded ordnance in conflict zones in Africa and the Middle East.

Several hostages are still being held in Somalia, including a British tourist, two Spanish doctors seized from neighboring Kenya, and an American journalist kidnapped on Saturday.