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(Monday, April 19, 1993, Branch Davidians started setting fire to the complex around 11:30 a.m. CDT; during the Waco Siege) — The 51-day siege at the Branch Davidian religious cult compound near Waco, Texas, ended today as fire destroyed the structure after federal agents began smashing their way in.
The fire resulted in the deaths of 76 Branch Davidians, including 25 children, two pregnant women, and sect leader David Koresh.
The Branch Davidians were led by Koresh and were headquartered at Mount Carmel Center ranch in the community of Axtell, Texas, 13 miles northeast of Waco.
Suspecting the group, who had licenses to manufacture and sell weapons, of stockpiling illegal weapons, the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, and Firearms (ATF) obtained a search warrant for the compound and arrest warrants for Koresh as well as a select few of the group’s members.
The siege began on Feb. 28, 1993, when the ATF attempted to raid the ranch in order to serve a search and arrest warrant. An intense gunfight erupted, resulting in the deaths of four ATF agents and six Branch Davidians.
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Upon the ATF’s entering of the property and failure to execute the search warrant, a siege lasting 51 days was initiated by the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI).
Eventually, the FBI launched a tear gas attack today, in an attempt to force the Branch Davidians out of the ranch. Shortly thereafter, the Mount Carmel Center became engulfed in flames.
The events of the siege and attack, particularly the origin of the fire, are disputed by various sources.
Department of Justice reports from October 1993 and July 2000 concluded that although incendiary tear gas canisters were used by the FBI, the Branch Davidians had started the fire, based on listening devices overhearing their discussion, and evidence that showed at least three simultaneous ignition points.
The FBI contends that none of their agents fired any live rounds on the day of the fire.
Critics contend that live rounds were fired by law enforcement, and suggest that a combination of gunshots and flammable tear gas was the true cause of the fire.
