Prayer during Rescue Operation Brings Priestly Presence and a Miracle

Teresa Neumann : Aug 8, 2013
Rajah Maples – KHQA

The mysterious priest does not show up in the nearly 70 photos of the accident scene—yet he was seen by the firefighters as he prayed for them and the victim.

(Center, MO)—Early on Sunday morning, August 4, emergency personnel were called to the scene of an accident where they found 19-year-old Kate Lentz trapped in an older model Mercedes after having been hit head-on by a vehicle driven by 26-year-old Aaron Smith.

Due to the solid construction of the Mercedes, rescuers found themselves working frantically for 45-minutes to extricate Lentz to no avail.

New London Fire Chief Raymond Reed said that by that time medical crews had determined Lentz was "failing and fast." Shortly after that assessment, Kate Lentz asked those working to free her to start praying out loud with her.

Out of nowhere, notes a KHQA News report, a priest suddenly appeared.

Said Fire Chief Reed: "He came up and approached the patient and offered a prayer. It was a Catholic priest who had anointing oil with him. A sense of calmness came over her [Lentz] and it did us as well. I can't be for certain how it was said, but myself and another firefighter, we very plainly heard that we should remain calm, that our tools would now work and that we would get her out of that vehicle."

Almost immediately after that prayer, the report says the Hannibal Fire Department showed up with fresh equipment and was able to finish the job.

Kate Lentz's friend, Travis Wiseman, was quoted as saying, "Where did this guy come from? We're looking for the priest and so far, no one has seen him. Whether it was a priest as an angel or an actual angel, he was an angel to all those and to Katie."

"We would like to find this gentleman and... thank him," concluded Reed. "It is my feeling that it was nothing more than sheer faith and nothing short of a miracle."

As for Kate, she reportedly suffered broken bones, as well as internal injuries, but is said to be “on the mend” after two surgeries, with two more to go.

Kate’s mother reports, “She sustained a lot of injuries, however, her face is beautiful, her teeth are perfect, she is sunshine, and everyone who's contacted us—those emergency personnel, the Missouri State Patrol, the deputies, the firemen—they are all saying the same thing, she never cried, she never screamed, she would just say, 'pray for me and pray out loud.'"

Fittingly, the name of the hospital where Kate is recovering is...Blessing.