By BILL McMILLEN
Morning Sun News Editor
FRANKLIN - Tim Sayre took a deep breath as he looked
over what had been the site of his family home near the intersection
of Seventh and Broadway in Franklin.
All that was left was a concrete porch, with indoor-outdoor
carpet still firmly attached, and concrete blocks that had served
as the foundation for the house where Sayre and his family had lived
the last 14 years.
"It was right here," he said. "Right here."
Until Sunday afternoon, when a tornado ravaged
Crawford County, leaving a 20-mile-long, half-mile wide path
of debris in its wake. At least four people were killed, including
an elderly woman who lived across the street from Sayre.
"It's the first time I've been in one," Sayre said.
One was more than enough.
"We were in the neighbor's basement," Sayre said
as he surveyed his property, looking for belongings that were
few and far between. "As soon as they sounded the sirens, we were
gone."
And about half an hour later, so was much of Franklin.
But in the basement of the home of Gayle Hribar,
Sayre and his family were safe. Hribar's house also was destroyed
- dozens of homes in a two square milearea essentially disintegrated.
"I guess we were down there for about 30 minutes,"
Sayre said as he assured a neighbor that his wife and three children
were safe. "Everybody (in the family) is OK."
"It's just unreal," said Tracy Whetzell, who lived
on Grapevine Street about half a mile from the main path of the
tornado. Unlike many in Franklin, Whetzell still had a house.
"We had a tree uprooted, dumped across the driveway,"
he said. "The house? It's fine."
May Jeffrey also considered herself fortunate.
Jeffrey, at 1004 S. Broadway in Franklin, just north of the U.S.
69-Kansas 57 junction, wasn't home when the storm hit. Concerned
about her dog, Cheyenne, Jeffrey drove toward Franklin but pulled
off the road across from Frontenac Express when she heard the storm
warnings.
After the storm passed, she continued home to find
many shingles gone from her roof. A section of her fence is gone
from the backyard and a utility shed had been moved a couple of feet
off its moorings.
"It blew part of my fence away," she said, looking
over the debris and trying to figure out where all of it came
from. "I'll have to have a new roof."
But Jeffrey - and Cheyenne - were fine.
"She probably hid under the bed," Jeffrey said
with a laugh. "She was glad to see Mama."
Jeffrey said she was glad she wasn't home to experience
the storm, even though the worst of it hit about half a mile north
of her house.
"I'd probably been scared spitless," she said.
Continuing north on Broadway - Old 69 Highway -
the damage got progressively worse. In Jeffrey's neighborhood,
treetops were ripped off, roofs were damaged and cars were peppered
with hail ranging in size from marbles to baseballs. Just north, however,
entire trees were uprooted, tossed onto houses. And north of that, near
Seventh Street, the damage was devastating.
"It don't take long to lose everything you've got,"
said one Franklin resident.
"I've never seen anything like this," Whetzell
said.
"My house is gone and my van is gone," said Sayre,
loading up what few things he could find into the back of a heavily
damaged pickup truck. The van, like the house that had been there
only an hour earlier, was nowhere to be found.
"I've got to go find my van," he said. "And my
gun cabinet."
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top
May 5, 2003
Officials: At least four dead in Crawford County
By The Morning Sun
-
Four people were killed and more than a dozen were
injured by the biggest tornado to hit Crawford County in recent
history. Storms claimed at least 10 lives in southeast Kansas
and southwest Missouri.
Cutting a path nearly half a mile wide, the tornado
touched down near McCune, in western Crawford County, around 4:40
p.m. Sunday and churned its way across the county through the outskirts
of Girard, the tiny community of Ringo, into Franklin and the fringes
of Mulberry before moving into Missouri.
Two deaths were reported in the Girard area and
a third was an elderly woman in Franklin. The fourth Crawford
County death was reported by the state adjutant general's office
and had yet to be confirmed by Crawford County officials.
"We have three confirmed fatalities right now,"
said Crawford County CoronerDr. Adam Paoni from a makeshift
morgue at Smith-Carson-Wall Funeral Home at Girard. "I don't have
any more information than that right now."
Names of the Girard area victims were not available.
The Franklin victim was identified at the scene as Josephine
Maghe, whose body was found by emergency personnel in the rubble
about 50 yards north of where her house once stood on Broadway Street
in Franklin.
They are the first tornado related fatalities in
Crawford County since a Mulberry woman was killed by a storm
in the 1983. And they were among at least 10 people killed in southeast
Kansas and southwest Missouri on Sunday.
Cherokee County Sheriff Bob Creech said three people
were killed when a tornado hit south of Columbus around 6 p.m.
One death came when a mobile home "disintegrated" about three miles
south of Columbus, Creech said. The other two were in a house that
was destroyed near Crestline.
Another person died west of Liberal, Mo., according
to Barton County Sheriff's Deputy John Simpson, and the Jasper
County Sheriff's Department reported two fatalities near Carl Junction,
Mo. There were no available reports of injuries in those counties.
Mt. Carmel Regional Medical Center in Pittsburg
reported treating at least 15 victims from the Crawford County
tornado Sunday evening.
"Two in surgery, two in (intensive care unit),"
reported nursing shift supervisor Henry Ford. "The rest were minor
injuries, cuts and things like that," he said.
Ford said a couple of people treated for chest
pains Sunday night were apparently stricken after weathering
the storm or learning of it.
At Hospital District No. 1 of Crawford County at
Girard, five people were treated for storm-related injuries,
according to Connie Womble, director of nursing. Two victims were
transferred - one to the University of Kansas Medical Center in Kansas
City, Ks. ., and the other to St. John's Regional Medical Center at
Joplin, Mo.
Hospital District No. 1 and Mt. Carmel both were
prepared for the influx of storm victims.
"We had a tremendous response," said Dennis Nehls,
director of the Girard hospital, which put in place a disaster
plan, mobilizing staff and volunteers.
Mt. Carmel took similar preparations.
"We had two (operating room) crews, extra lab,
extra x-ray folks and extra (emergency room) folks waiting,"
said Krista Postai, vice president for marketing and planning.
"From the storm until the time we got our first patients was an
hour to an hour and a half, so we were very well equipped and actually
relieved that there were fewer injuries that we expected. Initial
reports sounded pretty scary."
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Tornado
leaves trail of rubble
May 5, 2003
By BILL McMILLEN
Morning Sun News Editor
It was believed to be the worst tornado in Crawford
County history. It left death, injury and destruction in its wake.
And it changed the lives and landscapes of the Pittsburg area so
quickly, few people had taken the time to figure out what they were
going to do next.
"You can stay with us," said a woman hugging a
suddenly homeless relative after the storm Sunday afternoon devastated
a neighborhood at Franklin. "Don't worry about that. You can stay
with us as long as you need to."
The state adjutant general's office reported four
fatalities in Crawford County. At least 20 people were treated
at area hospitals for injuries caused by or related to the tornado
that touched down near McCune and mowed a half-mile swath for nearly
20 miles.
Makeshift shelters were set up in three area communities
as dozens of homes were destroyed, maybe as many as 100 were damaged
and scores of residents were without power or other utilities.
A temporary shelter was set up at the Mulberry
Senior Citizens Center. Red Cross relief shelters also were opened
at St. Joseph's Catholic Church parish hall at Arma and St. Michael's
Catholic Church parish hall at Girard. Many Arma-area residents went
to USD 246 schools for safety during the storm; Arma schools plan on
serving meals today to persons who have been displaced by the tornado as
well as to emergency personnel. Schools will be closed to classes.
"We're hoping to have school on Tuesday," said
USD 246 Superintendent Marvin "Buddy" Bualle. "We'll try to get
back to normal as quickly as possible, but with Franklin and Mulberry
both being hit... we can't get buses around in those areas."
The school buildings, he said, were not damaged.
The Franklin Post Office was destroyed - along
with more than a dozen homes in the community south of Arma. According
to postal officials, mail for Franklin residents will be sent to
Arma, where patrons may pick it up at the service window.
The Crawford County Sheriff's Department was manning
two command centers Sunday night, at Chicken Annie's east of
Girard and near Seventh and Broadway in Franklin.
The tornado touched down around 4:40 p.m. near
McCune and followed a path that took it through portions of Girard,
through Ringo, into Franklin, south of Mulberry and into Missouri.
It took roughly 15 minutes for the tornado to tear up a large chunk
of the county.
Bill Davis, meteorologist with the National Weather
Service in Springfield, Mo., said he could not categorize the
tornado until NWS officials survey the damage today. County, state
and federal officials also are expected to assess the damage.
Richard Mapes, of Mulberry, said he saw the tornado
pass. It touched down about two blocks from Mapes' house.
"It was only a quarter mile," he said. "I was there."
He said he stood in the street and watched as the
tornado tore through Franklin before approaching Mulberry.
A woman who identified herself only as "Ms. Bellamy"
said she saw the tornado from her home about a quarter of a mile
east of the Kansas 57-U.S. 69 junction, known in Crawford County
as Ginardi's Corner.
"I watched it go across the middle of the field
across from my house," she said. "The wind was very strong. I tried
to close my back door but I couldn't because of the wind, and that
was the inside door. The storm door was already closed."
She said she rode out the storm, despite the high
winds, heavy rain and tennis ball-sized hail.
"I didn't take cover. I didn't think it was that
bad," she said. "Believe it or not, I wasn't really scared.
I've been here 38 years and this is the first time I ever saw anything
like this."
At Franklin, few people stayed to watch the storm.
Most sought shelter or left home to get out of the path.
"It's just unreal," said Tracy Whetzell, surveying
what had been a residential area in Franklin that now was scattered
piles of rubble. Whetzell's home suffered no apparent damage. But
about a quarter of a mile away, on the main street through town, destruction
was everywhere. Dozens of houses were gone; some were marked by
piles of rubble, others only by the remnants of their foundation.
Emergency personnel sifted through that rubble
looking for survivors while others tried to locate residents,
going door-to-door in areas where houses still stood. Collecting
names, addresses and whereabouts of residents was about the only
way county officials could keep track of who was safe, who was
injured and who was missing.
Emergency efforts were complicated by a swelling
number of onlookers and relatives who were searched for loved
ones; it was difficult at times to sort emergency workers, volunteers
and residents from those curious to see the devastation.
"We've got to get this area closed off," said Crawford
County Sheriff Sandy Horton from the Franklin command post on
the middle of Broadway.
Broadway - old 69 Highway from Ginardi's Corner
to the south edge of Arma - eventually was closed to all but emergency
traffic. Kansas Highway 57 was closed from the U.S. 69 junction at
Ginardi's Corner to the Kansas 7 junction in Girard, although many
people snaked through county roads to view the storm damage.
Back to top
Many left without
electricity
May 5, 2003
Sunday's storms left thousands of Crawford County residents
briefly without power. Others may be without lights for days.
Don Hill, regional supervisor for Westar Energy, said
late Sunday that crews were still doing damage assessment, but
miles of 69,000 and 160,000 volt transmissions lines were down.
Hill said crews from throughout southeast Kansas were
in the field and more were on the way.
"Our big problem is that we have a substation - the
Mulberry substation - that was totally destroyed and we are in
the process of figuring out how we can build something in there,"
Hill said. "We have temporary substations, but there is a lot of
work and repairing to get something online. We are just in the planning
stages there."
The substation served Arma, but by 11 p.m. Westar
switched the city to another source. The substation also served
Franklin and Mulberry.
The transmission line to Girard was also down, but
with the supply lines down the city fired its own power plant and
power was restored by 9 p.m.
Back to top
Residents
sift through damage, organize relief efforts
May 6, 2003
By OLIVE L. SULLIVAN
Morning Sun Staff Writer
ARMA - Buddy Bualle is exhausted. Like many others
in Crawford County, he spent Sunday evening helping friends and
neighbors sift through tornado damage and organizing relief efforts.
As Superintendent of Schools for Northeast USD 246,
Bualle called off school for Monday, although school will be held
today. He said parents of students who have been displaced by the
storms need to contact the school to arrange transportation.
"We'll get them to school if we just know where they
are," he said.
Bualle said sports events scheduled for Monday and
Tuesday were canceled as well.
"Our priorities switched on us very quickly.
"We've got kids without homes," he continued. He knows
of at least six Franklin families without homes. "And there may
be more."
Among the homeless are his son's in-laws. "I walked
through there last night. I saw a lot of parents without homes,
or just thankful they had just a little damage."
Bualle headed home Sunday night about 9:30 p.m., but
found he couldn't sleep. At 2:30 a.m., he gave up the battle and
got up.
"Even if it doesn't physically affect you, the emotional
toll does," he said. "First you go numb. It's a small town, you know
everybody. A lifetime of stuff's gone."
Eric Whetzell, Mulberry, was in that numb state. "Tornado
wiped out my house," he said at the Red Cross shelter in Arma's
St. Joseph's parish hall. "I was there 'til the last minute. Seen
the neighbors leave, then I heard the roar and then I just got out."
His wife and four children are safe, but the house
is gone, along with everything they own, including clothes.
"Tried to scrounge around for clothes, but most of
them were mangled up," he said.
Half his house is across the street from its foundation,
while the other half is in a nearby strip pit.
Whetzell applied to the Red Cross for immediate relief,
receiving boxes of food and packets of personal items like toothbrushes
and toothpaste. The Red Cross volunteer also told him how to apply
for Federal Emergency Management Agency assistance to find shelter
later on.
But that means he needs proof of residence.
"I lost all my paperwork," Whetzell said. "Everything."
The volunteer assured him he could go to the city hall for a copy
of his utility bill.
Even though the parish hall was equipped with cots
for at least 50 people, no one spent the night there Sunday night.
Whetzell said his family spent the night with his mother.
A shelter at St. Michael's Parish Hall in Girard also
stayed empty Sunday night, according to caretaker Jim Davied.
Aaron Phillips, director of the Pioneer Chapter of
the Red Cross, said many victims wanted to stay close to their homes
in spite of the damage. "Right now we have shelter here," Phillips
said at St. Joseph's.
"Last night we had people in and out looking for family
members, not anyone willing to stay the night," he said. "That's
pretty common in these situations. We're expecting an influx tonight."
St. Michael's will also be open to provide shelter
tonight. Other shelters are located in Mulberry at the senior citizens'
center and at the Golden Era home in Arma.
Monday morning, Red Cross shelter director Paul Fairbanks
said, "Quite frankly, we're trying to get our feet on the ground."
He was organizing the efforts of emergency relief vehicles (ERVs),
which were delivering meals to rescue personnel and volunteers in
Franklin and Mulberry.
Karen Nugent, a volunteer from Coffeyville, explained,
"Right now they are processing people at the shelter trying to find
hotels and motels to put them up, those who have no place to go,
no relatives, trying to give them food and find the local agencies to
help them with clean- up."
After Sunday's storms had passed, 10 guardsmen from
the National Guard 891st Company A were deployed to help provide
security in and around the Franklin and Arma area. Those guardsmen
will remain on duty through Wednesday at the site.
Meals for the rescue workers and tornado victims were
prepared by Janet Pommier and Jeanette Simon, cooks at Northeast
High School, and delivered by the Red Cross.
Nugent and Tom Alexander, another Red Cross volunteer
from Coffeyville, took their ERV to Northeast to load up more than
a hundred meals for workers at the "Ground Zero" command post in
Franklin.
Nugent and Alexander drove into town last night to
help set up the shelter at St. Joseph's.
"What we needed the most that first night was basic
information," she said. "People were coming up emotional crying,
'I can't find my grandpa' and we did not have the information because
it was just to early. So we felt pretty helpless and it was pretty
chaotic. What we needed was what we couldn't give them. And yet everyone
responded as quickly as they could it was just a matter of timing. People
were in shock and in tears and there was not much we could do but be
there and offer some compassion."
She called the aid the Red Cross is receiving from
Northeast schools and others "just amazing."
Northeast High School Principal John Underwood helped
custodians Danny Rhodes and Ed Babcock load vats of mac and cheese
casserole and green beans, packs of cookies and chips, a pan of
hot dogs and buns, and cartons of milk into the rescue vehicle.
"We cooked what we thought would be easy to handle,"
Underwood explained. In addition, he said, the cooks served 150
breakfasts Monday morning.
The kitchens will continue serving meals to rescue
workers and tornado victims today, Bualle said. "People can come
get it or we'll take it out to them," he said. "We're going to have
school tomorrow, but still anyone who wants meals, we'll provide them,
just whatever we can do."
He said the shower facilities at the high school are
also open. "We left it open all last night," he said.
Recalling the 1983 tornado which killed one Mulberry
woman, Bualle said, "This is twice we've had tornadoes hit our community."
He said school was closed simply because so many students
were affected by the damage to their homes, but added, "We had
kids wanting to do things to help. We've even had other schools
calling wanting to help. It's been unbelievable. It's something special."
John Shore, a Pittsburg resident, showed up at Northeast
to drop off a load of clothing for the victims. He said he had heard
a call for donations on the radio.
He wasn't the only one. The Arma Police Department
asked Underwood to move buses out of the bus barn so donations of
food, clothing and other supplies could be stored there.
Shore said he was in the process of moving. "I'm packing
up and heard on the radio they needed clothes, so I thought I'd
bring them on over."
Even though Pittsburg wasn't hit directly, he said
he's still trying to locate a friend from Carl Junction.
Another volunteer was going on 30 hours of service
in spite of the pain she was in, and yet another was working in spite
of the loss of a good friend, killed in the tornado that struck Ringo.
Bualle echoed their feelings. "I'm worn out, but I
don't know if I can rest."
Nugent said, "I think the community has come forth
and we have had so many offers of what we need, from food to blankets
to toys. One guy came up and offered his chainsaw and tractor. So it
is amazing what the community has done to give us the tools we need
to help these people."
One thing the rescue volunteers still need, she said,
is sunscreen. "That's one thing we didn't think of."
Finally, the Crisis Resource Center of SEK (formerly
Safehouse) is offering clothing to those in need. Staff noted that
they have women's and children's clothing and some men's closing,
as well as household items and some personal care items. For more
information, call 1-800-794-9148 or 620-231-8251.
Staff Writer Olive Sullivan can be reached at olive.sullivan@morningsun.net,
or by calling 231-2600, Ext. 134.
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May 6, 2003
Sebelius visits area, promises quick help for victims
By JEFF WELLS
Morning Sun Staff Writer
FRANKLIN - Officials from county, state, and federal
government are in the preliminary stages of offering assistance
to victim's of Sunday's tornado outbreak.
Gov. Kathleen Sebelius visited the wrecked unincorporated
town of Franklin Monday afternoon and said the state is trying
to rush federal aid, including cash payments, to the area.
The governor talked with Debi Fager-Maghe. Fager-Maghe,
of Riverton, was collecting from the debris items belonging to
her mother-in-law Josephine Maghe. Maghe was one of three Crawford
County fatalities in Sunday's tornado.
"I'm so sorry," the governor told a weeping Fager-Maghe.
Sebelius told her state and federal agencies will
provide relief.
"I was insurance commissioner before this and they
should be sending someone down shortly," she said.
Sebelius conducted a news conference among the
rubble that was the homes lining Broadway Street.
"This is a tragedy that will be difficult to recover
from," she said. "Stuff can be put back together, but you will
never recover those loved ones."
The governor arrived in Franklin via a Kansas Highway
Patrol motorcade after flying over the damage and into Pittsburg's
Atkinson Municipal Airport. Dick Hainje, regional director for
the Federal Emergency Management Agency, State Sen. Jim Barone, D-Frontenac,
and three state representatives joined Sebelius in the trek from
Topeka.
"We are here today to tell the people of Crawford
and Cherokee counties how very sorry I am on behalf of all of the
citizens of the state for the losses you have suffered and the lives
that are lost."
Sebelius said she telephoned Michael Brown, undersecretary
of FEMA, before leaving Topeka. She said he would travel to the
region in the next few days.
"Expediting that help and assistance will help
people get their lives back to normal as quickly as possible,"
she said.
The governor said the insurance department will
assist residents in gathering the necessary paperwork. The Kansas
Department of Health and Environment will establish a temporary headquarters
in the area so residents will be able to obtain copies of vital records
such as birth certificates.
Seven counties in Kansas, including Cherokee and
Crawford, have been declared state disaster areas and the governor
said she will ask President Bush to do the same on the federal
level. She said she is trying to coordinate the state's request with
Missouri, also devastated by storms Sunday.
"It has more impact at the federal level when there
is a multi-state effort under way," she said.
Hainje said FEMA has been in contact with state
officials since the beginning of the calamity.
"We started tracking the activity right away,"
he said. "We work real close with state emergency management -
just like they work with local emergency management. I made it clear
in my discussions with the folks at headquarters in Washington D.C.
that it was a very devastating situation out here."
In the midst of a trying fiscal crisis, Kansas
will likely need to use state funds to match federal aid.
"We will find the money to match the federal aid
and make sure that people have the help they need to recover,"
Sebelius said. "That is our number one priority to take care of
Kansans with the budget dollars available."
Republican Senators Pat Roberts and Sam Brownback
and Rep. Jim Ryun, R-Kansas, also sent letters to Bush requesting
a disaster declaration.
Hainje said after the governor signs a formal request
for a disaster status, the document will go to FEMA's regional
office in Kansas City, and then the national office.
"What we've tried to do is work with them all day
to see that those requirements will get done as quickly as possible
and then get them forwarded to Washington D.C.," he said.
FEMA will then determine if it the damage is sufficient
for a declaration.
"This is a very major significant event in Kansas
so I'm quite sure that we are going to reach those levels, but
only the president declares a disaster," Hainje said.
Hainje said it will take several days for FEMA
to conduct damage assessment and up to 10 days for the declaration.
Meanwhile, the local, state, and private agencies will be delivering
support.
"We have already mobilized most of the forces that
we can and we will continue to do that," said Rep. R.J. Wilson,
D-Pittsburg.
Wilson said that the delivery of disaster relief
will occur in steps - starting with providing emotional comfort.
"We are going to do everything we can," said Rep.
Bob Grant, D-Cherokee. "Whatever they need, they need to give
us a call and we will do our best to get it done."
Sebelius complimented the public and private agencies
which rushed to help victims.
"Neighbors and friends feel themselves to be neighbors
and friends whether they live across the street or 200 miles
away," she said.
Later in the day, Sebelius visited a similar scene
in Wyandotte County.
Back to top
County death
toll remains at three
May 6, 2003
By JOE NOGA
Morning Sun Staff Writer
The Crawford County death toll from Sunday's tornado
remained at three as Sheriff Sandy Horton declared that all residents
in affected areas had been accounted for Monday.
"We've checked the water files. We've checked the
area. We've had dogs come in from Wichita and work the area early
this morning, so right now the residents have been accounted for
and we have just opened it up for the residents of Franklin to come
back in to the community to check their homes and gather any belongings
they can find," Horton said Monday from a makeshift command post on Franklin's
main street. "This is going to be a real tough time for a lot of people."
The Crawford County Sheriff's Department released
the names of the three people killed in Sunday's storm.
Sharon Lashbrook, 48, lived on 200th Street approximately
one mile from Ringo; George Bolte, 68, of Ringo; and Josephine
Maghe, 87, of Franklin, all died as a result of the twister, which
was first reported on the ground five miles north and four miles
west of McCune.
Nineteen other people were hurt and taken to Mt.
Carmel Regional Medical Center in Pittsburg and Hospital District
No. 1 of Crawford County in Girard. Two people were taken to St.
John's Regional Medical Center in Joplin, Mo., and one was taken
to KU Medical Center in Kansas City, Ks..
Horton said officials are now starting from where
the tornado began and going back through to check every farm house
and damaged structure to make sure no one else was injured during
the storm.
"There is a lot of damage out there so we are still
checking. But to our knowledge, we don't have anybody missing."
Crawford County Emergency Preparedness Director
Eldon Bedene said officials from the state Emergency Management
Agency would be going house to house in the area that was damaged
to assess whether individual structures are safe and post them accordingly.
Bedene said about 95 homes in Crawford County were
destroyed. It was unclear how many had been damaged. He said
the main concentration of damage was in Ringo and Franklin.
Bedene said he has declared the area a disaster
area.
"The county commission will sign the paper at (today's)
commission meeting and I will send it to Topeka," he said. "The
governor declared. But really they can do it on my say so, but
I still have to send an official letter signed by the president of
the commission to Topeka. But we've got to get the president to declare
it a disaster."
According to the sheriff's department, the twister
traveled in a northeast direction for 26 miles leaving a path
of destruction in its wake until it exited Crawford County, entering
Barton County, Mo.
Horton said the tornado first was spotted by deputies
northwest of McCune, allowing many people time to prepare. But
the fact that it stayed on the ground most of the way across the
county was unexpected.
"Did it catch us off guard? I think any tornado
is going to catch you off guard no matter what," Horton said. "But
did it surprise us as to the length of it? Absolutely. We did not
expect it to traverse the whole county. It really took us in several
different directions. We had Ringo damage, we have this, we had rural
farm houses damaged."
Horton said that he called everybody out that they
could find Sunday from the sheriff's department and the rural
township fire departments to deal with the storm. Many other area
agencies volunteered services and all remained in Franklin, Ringo
and other parts of the county Monday afternoon.
"We have every local agency in the county," Horton
said. "Pittsburg, Frontenac, Arma has been here, plus several
surrounding counties. We have had eight or nine ambulances from
other counties. It has just been tremendous the amount of help we've
had. The state flew some emergency preparedness people in here.
So we are very happy with the response we've had. I just can't even
tell you how many different agencies were represented."
The adjutant general of Kansas, Maj. Gen. Gregory
B. Gardner, said the National Guard unit from Pittsburg, 891st
Engineer Battalion, also lent a hand Sunday night securing the area.
"This is the beginning part so what they did (Sunday)
night was security and helping wherever they could help," Gardner
said. "We will continue that as long as the sheriff says he needs
it. These folks belong to the 891st Engineer Battalion, so we'll probably
end up shifting them from security to debris removal with all the
trucks and loaders. But that still remains to be seen."
Horton said the current focus of emergency officials
will be helping people get their personnel belongings and the
restoration of utilities.
"We still have areas to the east of us without
power," he said. "We need to get the electric set up here and
get that working. Gas service is here. We've got the main gas service
shut off, but we still need to shut off some of the meters that are
under the debris right now. We are going to help the residents as best
we can and still secure the perimeter."
Late Monday afternoon there was no one in Franklin
with power and, according to Horton, there was no indication
when it would be restored.
The Kansas Department of Health and Environment
issued a boil water advisory for Franklin. KDHE officials issued
the advisory because of a loss of water pressure in Crawford County
Rural Water District No. 7 following Sunday's tornado. Low water
pressure increases the possibility of back siphonage which could
result in the water supply being contaminated. The advisory will remain
in effect until rescinded by KDHE.
Customers of the water system are asked to boil
water for one minute before use, dispose of ice cubes and do not
use ice from a household automatic icemaker, and disinfect dishes
and utensils by immersing in tap water containing one teaspoon of
unscented household bleach per gallon of water. Water used for bathing
generally does not need to be boiled.
For more information persons may call Henry Ashbacher
at (620) 249-2900.
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Power
company employees working to restore power
May 6, 2003
By The Morning Sun Staff
As the sun came up Monday, the lights came back on
for some Crawford County residents who lost power after Sunday's
tornados.
Westar Energy said more than 200 of its employees
were working to restore power in southeast Kansas Monday evening.
The company said 66 transformers in southeast Kansas were damaged,
along with 656 primary lines and 234 poles.
As of Monday afternoon, Westar said 16 transformers
had been replaced and 65 primary lines and 56 poles had been repaired.
Westar said about 180 customers in an area stretching
from Ringo to Franklin remained without power Monday evening because
the tornado destroyed a substation in Mulberry Sunday evening.
That substation also served the city of Mulberry,
which provides service to its residents through its own distribution
system. Westar said it will construct a temporary substation until
the permanent substation can be repaired.
"Our crews will continue to work around the clock
until we can get the equipment fixed and restore power to our
customers, including the city of Mulberry," said Don Hill, Westar
operations director. "We've brought in crews from Westar Energy divisions
throughout the state."
Westar said that 16,000 of its customers lost power
during the storms in both southeast and northeast Kansas.
Girard City Administrator Mike West said Westar Energy's
transmission lines to the city were repaired early Monday morning.
The city returned to Westar power at 8:30 a.m. The city operated
its own generators overnight to keep power after a Sunday afternoon
tornado barely missed the county seat. West said there was no significant
damage in the city of almost 3,000.
Mike Willis with Westar said all of the company's
southeast Kansas crews, 12 outside crews, and 10 contract crews
were in the area.
"We are in the process of cleaning up the downed lines
until the poles we've ordered get in and we can set them," Willis
said.
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Josephine
Maghe
May 7, 2003
FRANKLIN - Josephine Maghe, 87, of Franklin, died
Sunday, May 4, 2003, at Franklin.
She was born Nov. 15, 1915, in Dade County, Mo., to
Amos and Daisy Alexander Rhodes, and grew up in southwest Missouri
and southeast Kansas. She was a homemaker who lived in Franklin
most of her life.
Mrs. Maghe worked for Stanley Products, the Crawford
County Treasurer's Office and later for the U.S. Census Bureau.
She was a member of the Arma United Methodist Church, Mt. Carmel Regional
Medical Center Auxiliary and the Arma Eagles Auxiliary.
She was a former Democrat Precinct committeewoman
and a former member of the Franklin Water Board.
She married Joe Maghe on Oct. 26, 1935, at Lamar,
Mo. He preceded her in death July 8, 2002.
Survivors include one daughter, Jo Anne Swezey, of
Franklin; one son, Joseph Maghe, of Riverton; one brother, William
Rhodes, of St. John; nine grandchildren and 10 great-grandchildren.
She also was preceded in death by two sisters, Arelva
Cernes and Dolly Rhodes, and five brothers, Floyd Rhodes, John
Rhodes, Alfred Rhodes, Herbert Rhodes and Vern "Tuffy" Rhodes.
Funeral services will be 10 a.m. today at Bedene Funeral
Home, Arma, with the Rev. Steve Cole officiating. Burial will be
in Pittsburg Garden of Memories Cemetery. The casket will remain
closed. Arrangements are under the direction of the Bedene Funeral
Home, Arma.
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Bush issues disaster declaration
May 7, 2003
By The Morning Sun Staff
President Bush on Tuesday issued federal disaster
declarations for seven counties in Kansas and 39 in Missouri,
an action that allows federal emergency assistance to flow to the
affected areas.
Two Federal Emergency Management Agency inspectors
from Kansas City were working in Franklin Tuesday, but Director Mike
Brown did not visit the devastated southeast Kansas community.
Brown visited victims in Kansas City, Ks. ., Pierce
City, Mo. and Tennessee.
"He reluctantly can't visit southeast Kansas because
of time constraints," said Crystal Payton, a public information
officer.
Qualifying residents and business owners in the following
Kansas counties are eligible for federal aid: Cherokee, Crawford,
Labette, Leavenworth, Miami, Neosho and Wyandotte.
Among the potential benefits of the federal aid:
* rental payments for temporary housing for victims
whose homes are not livable
* grants for home repairs and essential household
items that were damaged
* grants to defray costs of certain medical, dental,
funeral and transportation needs
* unemployment payments for individuals who temporarily
lost jobs
* loans for small businesses and farmers
* crisis and legal counseling
* assistance to the state and local governments for
debris clean-up and hazard prevention projects
Affected residents and business owners can get more
information starting Wednesday by calling 800-621-FEMA or 800-462-7585
for the hearing and speech impaired.
The Associated Press contributed to this report.
Back to top
May 7, 2003
By JOE NOGA
Morning Sun Staff Writer
FRANKLIN - Sadie Pichler was one of the lucky ones.
Pichler, who is listed in good condition at Mt. Carmel
Regional Medical Center, reluctantly went to her basement just before
the tornado that ripped through the county Sunday destroyed her
home.
"They found her down in the basement. Part of the
house fell on her," said her son, Frank Pichler, from the house
that used to stand at 505 Lasota in Franklin.
"She is getting transferred out of the ICU today to
a regular room," Pichler said of his mother, now 85.
Frank Pichler, who was raised in the house but now
lives in Bartlesville, Okla., said that his mother was against the
west wall of the basement when the house collapsed on top of her.
Pichler said that, even though his mother had lived
in the house these 61 years, he doesn't think she will rebuild
in Franklin.
He was there with other families member sifting through
the debris looking for anything of value.
"We were in here yesterday and we picked up mementos
all over the place," he said. "My dad died died about five years
ago and my mom has stuff of his here if we can find it. But I don't
know if we can find it. There are a lot of memories here."
Crawford County Sheriff Sandy Horton said that he
believes cleanup efforts are going well.
"Our goal is to open the road ways early today. Any
of the residents who wanted back in are in with volunteer help
and they are doing a good job, " Horton said from the county's mobile
command center, which was set up in Franklin.
At 4:22 p.m. on Sunday, the National Weather Service
issued a tornado warning for Crawford. Officials in Labette County
notified the Crawford County sheriff's department of a funnel cloud
in their county heading towards Crawford County.
Crawford County sheriff's deputies reported a tornado
on the ground five miles north and four miles west of McCune. The
tornado traveled in a northeast direction for 26 miles until it exited
Crawford County.
In the storm's wake, 19 people were taken to area
hospitals and three Crawford County residents were dead. Nearly
100 homes were destroyed, several livestock killed, crops destroyed,
a radio tower fell, power lines were down and at least 19 railroad
cars derailed near Mulberry.
"A lot of plans are being made and a lot of work is
being done," Horton said of clean up efforts. "The county is working
on a dumpsite near Franklin. Some of the debris will need to be
buried, any of the wood products that can be burned we'll need to
get burn permits. But we do have a dump site location and we are trying
to prepare that site today."
Horton said he was not sure when the mobile command
center would be taken out of Franklin or when official activity
near Ringo will dissipate. But he did say that he will begin scaling
down security in both areas once he is confident that the residents
have retrieved everything they could from their homes.
"We're hoping to scale down the security crew today
and open the roads," Horton said. "We will be determining on a
day-by-day basis how long we will be on site and patrolling."
According to Horton, who will be cleaning up debris
is yet to be determined.
"We need to see whether this is declared a disaster
or not. If it is then we will be looking not only at the county
but also the National Guard and that type of help. But it is too
early to say that.
Back
to top
Workers close
to returning power to storm victims
May 7, 2003
By JACK DIAMOND
Morning Sun Staff Writer
A second wave of storms dodged Crawford County on
Tuesday, allowing workers to make huge strides in restoring electricity
to damaged areas. Westar Energy officials said they expected power
to be restored to almost all locations by this morning.
"Assuming that something doesn't go on, we expect
to have that one before daylight tomorrow," Westar operations director
Don Hill said. "Š Come tomorrow morning, if we have 20 customers left
(without power) I'm going to be surprised."
Power was restored in Franklin to all but six houses
Tuesday evening, Hill said, and had been restored to the Ringo,
Radley and McCune areas by Tuesday afternoon, although some homes were
damaged and unable to receive electric service.
Hill said the new Mulberry substation was expected
to become operational early Wednesday morning and that the city
of Mulberry had its distribution system repaired and ready for power.
Beyond that, Hill said all that was needed to restore
power to Mulberry was repairing a few miles of lines between the
new substation and the city.
Progress apparently was made rapidly on Tuesday. Late
in the morning, Westar said it still needed to repair 127 poles,
50 transformers, and 591 primary lines. It already had repaired
107 poles, 16 transformers, and 65 primary lines. The big fear was
more storms, which hit Bourbon and Cherokee counties but missed Crawford.
"The ground is wet and muddy, but it isn't unbearable
yet," Westar spokesman Kent Myers said Tuesday morning. "If we
get much more rain, it's really going to slow us down quite a bit."
Myers said the new temporary substation is functionally
the same as a permanent one, but it will be built on a rock base
and wood poles rather than a concrete base and metal poles.
"It's still reliable but it's not meant to stand for
20 or 30 years," he said. Points in Franklin had been served by the
Mulberry substation, but power was back-fed through another substation
before the new substation was online.
On the natural gas front, about 86 Kansas Gas Service
customers in Franklin were without service Tuesday afternoon,
according to Joe Sinnett, KGS community relations manager.
"The gas probably will not be able to be back on there
until the end of this week or possibly the first of next week,"
Sinnett said. "We have to go through, abandon those services that the
houses have been destroyed on, and then make sure the system is up
to standards there before we can Š energize the line."
Sinnett said there were three KGS crews in Franklin
working 7 a.m. to 7 p.m. shifts.
The state's order to boil water in Crawford County
Rural Water District No. 7, serving the Franklin area, remained
in effect Tuesday.
"It's nothing to be completely alarmed about. It's
standard procedures by KDHE," said Henry Ashbacher of the water
district. He said four water samples - two on each side of the damaged
area - were taken on Monday and sent to a lab in Topeka. Results are
expected today.
Ashbacher said all customers have water available,
but some lines are being disconnected in the damaged area before
bulldozers begin to clear the debris.
"I have not been notified of anybody without service,"
he said.
Chuck Kunshek of Crawford County Rural Water District
No. 2, which serves Ringo, said that water had been shut off at
damaged properties but the rest of the district was still being served.
No boil orders were in effect for that district.
Westar and KGS customers can report outages by calling
(800) 544-4857. Gas leak emergencies can be reported by calling
KGS at (888) 482-4950. Before digging, people should call Kansas One
Call at (800) 344-7233 so that lines can be located.
Telephone company SBC Communication said it is offering
30 days of free call-forwarding and voice mail services to residents
who were forced from their homes by the storms. It also said it would
install new SBC local service at their new locations for free.
Customers who have evacuated their homes can sign
up for the services by calling (800) 464-7928.
Staff Writer Jack Dimond can be reached at jack.dimond@morningsun.net
or at 231-2600, Ext. 138.
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Assessing
the damage
May 7, 2003
Official says Franklin likely was devastated by F4 tornado
By JEFF WELLS
Morning Sun Staff Writer
FRANKLIN - A veteran weather observer said the tornado
that struck Franklin Sunday afternoon was one of the strongest he
has seen in almost 30 years with the National Weather Service.
Bill Davis of the service's Springfield, Mo. office
said that the winds which flattened a large part of Franklin were
more than 200 mph.
Davis and a colleague surveyed affected areas of Crawford
County Tuesday morning. Among the debris, they found evidence
of the storm's fury. The pair gave special attention to the aspects
of the damage that others ignore. They photographed the foundations
of homes which were lifted into the air, examined the trunks of trees
stripped of bark, and measured the distance vehicles were thrown.
"A lot of these houses are what we call sliders so
it is hard to tell because they were not battened down very well,"
he said. "A wind speed over 100 mph would take those off their foundation;
but, there is a lot of other evidence here for 200 mph winds."
Davis said he would assign the tornado's classification
on the Fujita Scale of Tornado Intensity after an aerial survey;
however, he said it was worse than the "very severe F3" tornado which
hit Pierce City, Mo. Davis said the tornado which hit Badger and Carl
Junction, Mo. was an F2.
On the Fujita Scale, an F4 is described as a "devastating
tornado" with winds of 207 to 260. Well-constructed houses are
leveled by an F4; structures with weak foundations are blown off
some distance. It throws cars and turns other large objects into
missiles.
Davis said contrary to popular belief the level of
official disaster assistance is not tied to tornado's F rating.
"I think people think that it is tied to that, but
it isn't," he said. "You can get the same aid with an F0 tornado
or strong straight-line winds as you can an F5 tornado. There is
nothing, as far as aid, tied to it."
Davis said Sunday's tornado was a quarter of a mile
wide and left a 26-mile path across Crawford County from where
the tornado first touched down northwest of McCune to where it
crossed the Missouri border near Mulberry. The storm killed three
in Crawford County and destroyed 95 homes. It claimed another victim
just across the state line in Barton County, Mo.
"The same storm that spawned this continued up to
the Stockton, Mo., area and then up into the Camdenton, Mo., area,"
In Stockton, the storm killed three more persons and
ripped into the business district. Later Sunday evening, it passed
south of Camdenton killing three and destroying several homes along
Missouri Highway 5.
The storms were fueled by three very strong super
cells. Davis, who has been with the NWS since 1974, said they were
among the worst of his career.
"It looks like a battlefield - it is a cliché
- but it looks like a battlefield," Davis said while viewing the
damage.
Staff Writer Jeff Wells can be reached at jeff.wells@morningsun.net
or at 231-2600, Ext. 137.
Back to top
Praeger offers
reassurance to victims
May 7, 2003
By JEFF WELLS
Morning Sun Staff Writer
FRANKLIN - Victims of Sunday's tornado outbreak may
face higher insurance premiums or the loss of coverage after they
rebuild.
Insurance Commissioner Sandy Praeger met with tornado
victims in Franklin Tuesday morning before the threat of more
storms forced her to cut her southeast Kansas visit short. She said
that the residents' biggest concern is increased rates or the inability
to gain coverage in the future.
"They feel so helpless because they had nothing to
do with this," she said. "This is not anything that they had any
control over and we just need to give them reassurances. I want them
to know that the Kansas Insurance Department is going to do everything
we can do to make sure they are made whole again, as much as they can
be."
"That is a scare - that we will all have higher rates
and the loss of companies out of the area," said Rob Lessen of
Fox Insurance Agency.
Praeger said her role is to make sure the insurance
companies deliver.
"I'm not anticipating any problems. The response has
been very positive," she said.
Tim Thielen, a State Farm claims representative from
Hutchinson, said his company visited its policy holders with damage
within 48 hours of the tornado.
Sharon Scholes was among the customers Thielen visited
Tuesday. Scholes' mother, Irene Sipes, was inside her home when
the winds ripped off a section of the roof and sent debris flying
inside. She survived, but her house at 803 S. Broadway may be beyond
repair. Scholes said she was happy with State Farm's response. Thielen
visited the home several times starting Monday, she said.
State Farm had approximately 200 claims in the area
with 18 homes destroyed, Thielen said. He said he wrote some checks
Tuesday for policy limits on homes which were totally lost.
Dale Endress, 501 S. LaSota St., called his agent
Monday morning, but had not heard from anyone as of noon Tuesday.
Endress' two-bedroom home was destroyed, but he was not home when
the storm hit.
Gayle Hribar worked Tuesday in the rubble of the home
owned by her mother, Alice Baldwin, at 601 S. Broadway. Baldwin
carried insurance on the property and had talked with the insurer,
but Hribar was concerned that her mother may not have enough coverage
to cover the loss.
"Our goal is to see that the companies respond quickly
so that people begin the healing process," Praeger said.
With chainsaws blaring in the background, Praeger
said in an interview that the companies seemed to be responding
and were sending in additional adjusters.
"I think that the companies are coming together,"
she said. "I think they realize this was a big storm."
Praeger planned to meet with the presidents of the
state's five largest insurers Tuesday afternoon.
"We will also talk to companies about the importance
of not letting something like this count against a person and their
homeowners insurance," Praeger said.
Lessen, who had several customers lose homes in the
disaster, said people should work their agents and call the commissioner
if they have any questions.
"We will do everything in on power to make sure that
people get what they need quickly," Praeger said.
In a press release Monday, Praeger offered victims
the following tips:
* Contact your insurance company immediately to report
losses.
* If you have difficulty in reaching your insurance
agent or company, call the Kansas Insurance Department's Consumer
Hotline (1-800-432-2484) for assistance.
* Take notes summarizing your conversation with your
insurance company and write down the name of the person with whom
you spoke.
* Take photographs showing damaged property.
* Make temporary or emergency repairs only as needed
to protect your property from further damage - including boarding
up broken windows, placing plastic over the roof where it is leaking
and drying out wet carpets and furniture. Get instructions from
your adjuster BEFORE calling anyone to repair or replace damaged
property. Your insurer's visual inspection of your loss may be required
before claims are paid.
* If you must move out of your home, keep your receipts
of hotel bills and meals. Your policy may reimburse these additional
living expenses.
* Beware of questionable contractors who arrive in
town to cash in on damage repair. Check references and deal with local
businesses, if possible. Consult the Better Business Bureau before
using out-of-town contractors.
Staff Writer Jeff Wells can be reached at jeff.wells@morningsun.net
or at 231-2600, Ext. 137.
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Kline warns victims
of potential scams
May 7, 2003
By JOE NOGA
Morning Sun Staff Writer
Kansas Attorney General Phil Kline was in Franklin
Tuesday surveying the damage, encouraging local residents and offering
advise for dealing with con artists, people who following tragedy
looking for opportunities to exploit.
"It's unbelievable," Kline said of the damage in Franklin.
"It's hard to take it all in. I can't imagine stand there seeing
my life spread out in that fashion before me. It's amazing that there
wasn't more loss of life. Our prayers and thoughts are with those
who are suffering."
But Kline's visit was more than just offering condolences.
He was here to coordinate the efforts of local law enforcement and
the attorney general's office to combat unscrupulous con artists who
often approach disaster victims in an effort to take advantage of
those who have already suffered injuries and property damage.
"Our roll is primarily is to inform the citizens,"
Kline said Tuesday. "There are those who watch these things from
afar and use people's vulnerability to exploit for their own benefit."
The Consumer Protection Division of the Attorney General's
office works with local law enforcement in the aftermath of disastrous
events.
"A multi-disciplinary Consumer Protection Emergency
Response Team (CPERT) makes contact with law enforcement and media
in areas affected by disaster within hours of the event. This team
serves as the conduit between harmed Kansans, local law enforcement,
and my office, to ensure that those affected are not then re-victimized
during the clean up and rebuilding phase," Kline said.
The information released by the attorney general's
office is designed to provide an overview of scams that have been
documented in the wake of natural or manmade disasters.
"We are providing materials to be distributed. We
are asking local law enforcement to keep us informed if they see
and of that so we can act but also so we can communicate that to
Wyandotte County, because these people tend to migrate where the
problems are and we just need to keep an eye on them," Kline said.
Kline said that it is understandable that local homeowners
will be anxious to have repairs done to homes damaged by the storm.
Media coverage of storms often results in con artists moving into
an area to make a quick profit.
Kline suggests homeowners remember the following:
* Only deal with contractors who have an established
local business. Outside contractors may not complete the work and
any warranties will be worthless if they are no longer in the area
when the homeowner or business owner later discovers defects.
* Obtain at least three bids on any major repair or
rebuilding project and check references to avoid a contractor
who does substandard work. Be especially cautious if one of the
bids is much lower than the others.
* Check to see if the contractor has a complaint history
with: The Attorney General's Consumer Protection Division, 1-800-432-2310
or (785) 296-3751; BBB of Greater Kansas City (816) 421-7800; BBB
of Northeast Kansas (785) 232-0454; or the Wichita Area Better Business
Bureau, (316) 263-3146.
* Ask for proof of the contractor's liability and
worker's compensation insurance to help protect you as a property
owner against any claim in the event someone is injured while the
work is being done on your property, and confirm that the policies
are current by calling their insurance agent.
* Make certain that all important details concerning
the work are written into the bid and contract including: The dates
the work will begin and is expected to be completed, the total cost
of the work, the type and quality of materials to be used, how and
when payments will be made, and the provisions of any and all express
warranties on the materials and labor.
* Find out from the appropriate building code enforcement
office which permits and inspections are required for the work
being done, and avoid a contractor who wants you to secure the permit(s).
Staff Writer Joe Noga can be reached at joe.noga@morningsun.net
or at 231-2600, Ext. 132.
Back to top
The long
road ahead
May 7, 2003
As one local official put it, there is a lot to do. In the
wake of Sunday's deadly storms and tornados, many of our friends and neighbors
have lost their property, their homes and, tragically, a few have lost their
lives.
Now that the storms have passed, the process of cleaning
up - and healing - begins. And, help is needed.
Anytime a tragedy such as this occurs, a number of
agencies and organizations jump into action to help the stricken.
After Sunday's storms, these organizations reacted quickly, setting
up shelters and helping those who lost all to regain their lives.
Both the American Red Cross and the Pittsburg Salvation
Army unit are working hard right now to help, but they need supplies
and they need volunteers.
Staff with the Red Cross, speaking Tuesday from the
organization's shelter at St. Joseph Catholic Church in Arma,
noted that they need items such as rakes, shovels, gloves, face
masks and lots of cleaning supplies as they help with cleanup efforts.
Additionally, the Red Cross continues to need items such as sunscreen,
but say they have more than enough clothing at this time.
Red Cross officials note that the Seventh Day Adventists
Church has established a distribution center at Northeast High School,
1003 E. South St., in Arma, and shelter organizers are asking that
all donations now go to the high school.
Meanwhile, staff at the Salvation Army are in great
need of bottled water, snacks and meals which are easy to prepare,
fruit and, again, sunblock, which is important for workers laboring
in the hot sun. Salvation Army officials say they also need work
gloves, shovels and rakes, but note that they also have lots of clothing.
Those wishing to donate to the Salvation Army can
drop off items at the organization's warehouse at 717 N. Broadway.
Still another need that must always be addressed after
any disaster is volunteers.
Staff at the Red Cross believe they will be working
on relief efforts for at least six weeks and, although they anticipate
they will need volunteers to help with clean-up after effected areas
are completely opened, they add that right now they need help from
those who know the affected areas, including streets, neighborhoods
and people, to go with volunteers and complete damage assessments.
They add that volunteers should go to the disaster
command center at Seventh and Broadway in Franklin and find out
what needs to be done.
Salvation Army officials, on the other hand, say they
need volunteers to help cook and deliver meals to storm victims.
Those interested in volunteering can go to the Salvation Army's Pittsburg
office at 307 E. Fifth St. at 8:30 a.m. and 2:30 p.m., which is when
their staff begins preparing meals each day.
Moreover, warehouse support volunteers are needed
to help categorize items to be given to storm victims.
Finally, donations are always badly needed. Providing
services to the victims of Sunday's storms will undoubtedly come
at a staggering price for organizations which are already stretched
thin.
The Pittsburg Area Community Foundation has established
a Crawford County Relief Fund to help those effected by the storms.
Funds donated to the foundation will be disbursed though the local
American Red Cross and other agencies.
For more information on donating to the foundation
fund, call 620-231-8897. Donations are tax deductible and may be
sent to: The Pittsburg Area Community Foundation, P.O. Box 1115, 117
W. Fourth St., Pittsburg, KS 66762-1115.
To give to Red Cross efforts, donations should be
made out to the Pioneer Chapter of the American Red Cross and sent
to: The American Red Cross, 128 W. Eighth St., Coffeyville, KS 67337.
Donations to the Salvation Army should be made payable to the Salvation
Army, earmarked for Crawford County relief efforts, and can be dropped
off on the west side of the parking lot at the Salvation Army Thrift
Store at the intersection of Fifth and Joplin streets in Pittsburg.
Lastly, University National Bank, in partnership with
the Salvation Army, has set up an account for victims of the tornado.
Cash donations will be accepted by mail or may be hand delivered
to the bank at 1206 S. Broadway, Pittsburg, KS 66762. Checks should
be made payable to: Disaster Relief Fund, care of University National
Bank, P.O. Box 1418, Pittsburg, KS 66762-1418. Call 231-4200 or 231-0415
for more information.
Work has begun to help those who were left helpless
by the recent storms, but we have a long road ahead. We urge local
residents to help wherever they can and to give of their talents
to help our community heal after this dreadful disaster.
Back to top
Residents
ponder Franklin's future
May 8, 2003
Community center, post office were town's centerpieces
By JEFF WELLS
Morning Sun Staff Writer
FRANKLIN - Sunday morning the unincorporated town
of Franklin consisted of 155 homes, a civic center, and a post
office. That evening, a devastating tornado destroyed dozens of
homes, the post office and the civic center.
"These were really the things that would bind the
community," said Shelley Phillips Corley.
In the weeks before the storm, town pride was emerging
after lying dormant for years. New faces were interested in maintaining
and improving the center, a community newsletter was published,
and the state announced a surprise grant for the water district. But,
Sunday night the whispers began. Would Franklin recover from losing
the two buildings which tied the neighbors together?
Kathy Shaffer, postmaster for almost five years, hiked
through a field of debris Sunday night to find the block and brick
building reduced to a small mound of twisted stone and metal.
"It sure didn't look like a large enough pile to be
the whole post office," Shaffer said.
The Franklin Post Office first opened in the late
19th century and had been in its present building for 40 years.
There were 90 post office boxes and 120 rural route customers served
by Shaffer. Now the Franklin mail is going to Arma. Rural delivery
is still going to those residences with intact mailboxes. The other
Franklin customers may pick up their mail in the neighboring town
while using their regular address on outgoing posts.
A postal inspector from Kansas City came to Franklin
Wednesday, but Shaffer said it was to soon to determine if the USPS
would rebuild there.
Jim Allen, field representative for Rep. Jim Ryun,
R-Kan., said he discussed the issue with the Congressman's Washington,
D.C., staff and post office officials. He declined to give further
details, but said more information may be available when Ryun visits
Franklin next Monday.
Meanwhile, Shaffer endeavors to make sure that the
mail goes through - even those letters that had to be removed from
the leveled building. Fortunately, she said, there was mail service
on Saturday and all rural route mail went out.
"So what was left in the post office was what people
didn't pick up," Shaffer said.
Social Security checks arrived in Franklin on Friday,
but only one remained in the post office when it was blown away.
Norine Laird came to the rubble Wednesday afternoon looking for
her benefit check, but Shaffer handed her only a rain-soaked magazine
and an undamaged bill.
Laird, a 72-year resident of Franklin, bemoaned the
loss of the post office.
"That is about the only thing we had left in this
town besides the community hall and it is gone as well," she said.
Veda Maxwell, another longtime resident, said there
are only three things notable about the community: the world's
longest intercity sidewalk stretching to Arma, the post office,
and the Franklin Community Civic Center.
With no schools or churches in the community, the
center served as Franklin's voting precinct and a meeting place
for local government and community organizations. Margaret Kennedy
remembered attending a World War II victory party at the center. Other
residents recalled thousands of birthday parties, wedding and anniversary
showers and receptions, graduation celebrations, and holiday events.
When someone in the community died, Josephine Maghe
called Shaffer and asked her to display a notice in the post office.
Shaffer would collect money for the deceased's family and then use
the funds for flowers or a meal at the center. Maghe, 87, died in
the twister.
Phillips Corley, president of the center board, spent
Tuesday afternoon salvaging folding chairs from the destroyed
building.
The board has some savings and insurance, but she
wasn't sure if that would be enough to replace the center.
"If we can't rebuild it - I'd like to see a nice storm
shelter for the community," she said.
John Houck, secretary and treasurer of the center's
board, said he recovered some New Year's decorations and a fire
extinguisher. He also found some paper plates and plastic cutlery
still wrapped and gave them to the Red Cross.
Last month, a new board including Phillips Corley
and Houck assumed operation of the center. They installed a new
sink, range, siding, and outdoor sign. Now all that remains is the
foundation and hardwood floor.
Two weeks ago, the Kansas Department of Commerce &
Housing unexpectedly awarded $350,000 in federal Community Development
Block Grant money to improve Crawford County Rural Water District
No. 7 - which serves Franklin. The water district sent the first edition
of a community newsletter with last month's bill.
Houck believes the community will not perish, but
recovery will fuel its pride. He said some residents planned to
talk with county officials about getting a storm warning siren and
even incorporating.
"There are so many outsiders living here that it has
been hard to get volunteers, but I think this will bring the community
together," he said.
Staff Writer Jeff Wells can be reached at jeff.wells@morningsun.net
or at 231-2600, Ext. 137.
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Agencies
attempting to reduce health risks of cleanup efforts
May 8,2003
By JOE NOGA
Morning Sun Staff Writer
Environmental health risks that occur after a tornado
can be great. But, emergency personnel are doing their best to
stay on top of the situation.
Officials face health issues on several fronts following
Sunday's devastating tornado, not the least of which is the Kansas
Department of Health and Environment continued order to boil water
in the Crawford County Rural Water District No. 7, Franklin. Officials
are also dealing with tetanus, dead animals and an enormous amount
of building material, some hazardous, as cleanup efforts continue.
"Primarily, prevention is what we are here to do,"
said Janice Goedeke from the Crawford County Health Department.
Goedeke, along with more than a dozen other volunteers
from health departments across southeast Kansas, were out at the
beginning of the week administering more than 200 tetanus booster
shots to everyone working around debris.
"Any wound that someone gets here can be dangerous,"
Goedeke said. "The bacteria level is high and we are certainly going
to get into infections. Wounds requiring further medical care are
being referred to personnel health care professionals."
Goedeke said there is a high demand for tetanus boosters
and workers have had to go out on foot and administer shots to
each individual house.
"The government has given us money to combat bio-terrorism
but it's not only for bio-terrorism but for other disasters as well,"
she said. "I have staff that I can pull in from other health departments,
so we are going to have 14 going out to give tetanus boosters."
Crawford County Sheriff Sandy Horton said he is dealing
with a different set of issues, such as how to properly dispose
of bloating animal carcasses and building material that might pose
health threats to the community at large if not disposed of properly.
"We have permission from the KDHE, to deal with dead
animals on a case-by-case basis," Horton said. "We are required
to bury dead animals. The county has sent equipment out, at the request
of property owners, to dig holes and bury livestock that has been deceased.
That's all you can do."
Horton suggests that if people don't know what to
do with their dead, decomposing animals they need to call the sheriff's
department.
"We'll have the county engineer people get in touch
with them and take care of it immediately," he said.
Another issue Horton faces is the burning and dumping
of housing material cleaned up after Sunday's deadly twister.
"The county has set up and been licensed to operate
a construction and demolition landfill, which is located just
west of Franklin," Horton said. "The county also has a burn permit.
KDHE has been on scene for several days and basically people are not
supposed to burn. All those items are supposed to be brought to this
location and either burned or buried."
Horton said a burn permit is required by the State
of Kansas for all material. Residents are to secure a burn permit
from the state by calling Victoria S. O'Brien, from the KDHE, at
1-620-431-2390.
Horton said the people from KDHE are present and driving
around looking for areas of smoke.
Horton said they called the command center twice Tuesday
reporting possible unauthorized burning.
"What we don't want is people burning shingles, asbestos
insulation, things like that," Horton said. "That stuff needs to
be buried. But, it all needs to get to the road and either the county
or the National Guard will pick it up and bring it here to the burn
pile or the landfill under the license and supervision of the county
or the guard."
According to Horton, the Kansas Department of Transportation
is going to put up flashing signs that indicate a burning zone in
Franklin and to indicate to drivers to beware of the possibility of
smoke on the highway.
Staff Writer Joe Noga can be reached at joe.noga@morningsun.net
or at 231-2600, Ext. 132.
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Cleanup
efforts progressing in Crawford County
May 8, 2003
By JOE NOGA
Morning Sun Staff Writer
Access to Franklin remains limited as scores of volunteers
line up to help victims of Sunday's deadly tornado clean up debris
and move it to the street.
"We are still going to have this area closed," Crawford
County Sheriff Sandy Horton said Wednesday. "There will be no
normal traffic pattern through here for quite some time."
Horton said he has kept the three roads that connect
Franklin to U.S. Highway 69 closed by barricade and taped off.
"We are certainly asking no one to go through those.
The access point to this area will be from the north end on Alternate
69 which will be manned every day for I don't know how long," Horton
said. "If people want to come in to help friends, that's fine, but
we need to verify they are here to help friends and who those friends
are."
Horton said emergency officials will be working at
contacting everybody and asking them where they are on cleanup efforts
and if they need more help.
Horton said that many organizations, including three
large church groups, have volunteered to help with cleanup efforts.
The main goal, he said, will be separating material
and getting debris to the side of the road.
"We are going to instruct homeowners and volunteers
that wood must be piled separate from other material and that this
all needs to be placed near the road, not in the road," Horton said.
Horton said cleanup in Ringo is going well.
"They have done an enormous amount of cleanup in Ringo
and here in Franklin too, really," Horton said. "But we've got trees
that are eight-foot around and there is no way to move them without
equipment."
Horton said the reason people need to move material
to the roadside is because county employees and/or National Guardsmen
who are going to assist in cleanup efforts are not allowed on private
property.
"We need to keep the cleanup process going because
if we are authorized to use the National Guard for cleanup, when
they pull in here they're going to be working. We've requested two
loaders and 10 dump trucks, but they cannot go on private property. So
everything on private property needs to be moved to the easement to
be removed. And that is going to be a headache," Horton said.
Horton said that he understands there are things that
will not be able to be moved by hand. He said he would talk to
the county to see if there are things emergency workers can do to
help with those items.
"But we still can't go on private property. So one
thing we need to ask the people, if you are a resident here, please
come to the command post, we will need information from you about what
help you are going to need," he said. "Right now, it's almost a shame
because there is so much work to be done and so many people who want
to help but they can't because we are still talking about people's
private property. We don't want to get to the point where we are just
moving things and homeowners are unaware of what we are doing. A lot
of people are going to want to be there."
Staff Writer Joe Noga can be reached at joe.noga@morningsun.net
or at 231-2600, Ext. 132.
Back to top
Boil order
lifted for residents with undamaged water service
May 9, 2003
FRANKLIN - Franklin-area residents with undamaged water
service lines are no longer being advised to boil water, the Kansas
Department of Health & Environment said.
Greg Taylor, KDHE environmental scientist, announced
the change, along with some conditions, in a fax to Henry Ashbacher
of Crawford County Rural Water District No. 2.
Taylor said, "Water service to properties with damaged
service lines will not be allowed to resume until substantial residential
property cleanup is complete and damaged service lines are located,
repaired, flushed, pressure tested, and demonstrate the ability to
maintain a chlorine residual for at least 24 hours."
He also said that abandoned service lines must be
sealed or removed to reduce the chance of contamination.
Back to top
Crawford
County, agencies set up disaster hotlines
May 9, 2003
By JOE NOGA
Morning Sun Staff Writer
In an effort to organized relief and volunteer help,
the Crawford County Sheriff's Department and the American Red Cross
have set up disaster hotlines for those in need.
"If you need assistance removing debris from your
property, we have a list of volunteers that are willing to help.
But, your permission is required for them to work on your property,"
said Crawford County Sheriff Sandy Horton.
Please call the sheriff's department on a designated
phone line at 1-620-724-6601.
Horton also said a burn permit is no longer required
by the State of Kansas to burn brush and wood. He said there are
temporary tree, brush and wood burn sites.
The Ringo burn site is located at 201 S. 190th St
and the Franklin burn site is located at 501 S. Vine St.
Horton said, although he has not heard officially
that the National Guard will be made available to help remove debris,
he is anticipating that happening.
The American Red Cross also has a disaster hotline
and according to Joanne Wittner, disaster director for the Pioneer
Chapter of the Red Cross in Coffeyville, they are taking calls from
anyone effected by Sunday's tornados.
"What we are doing is taking the calls for people
in the service center in Arma and we are referring people to where
they can get help. If we get people from Missouri that call in then
we are referring them to the Joplin chapter of the Red Cross," Wittner
said.
Things are kind of hectic. We are trying to get food
and drinks into the damaged area around Franklin and down in Cherokee
County. It's just so wide spread there are a lot of places to go.
We will stay in there as long as needed."
The number to call for assistance from the Red Cross
is 1-888-460-1050.
Other phone numbers include:
Kansas Gas Service for gas leak emergencies - 1-888-482-4950
Westar Energy to report power outages - 1-800-544-4857
Kansas One Call for digging 1-800-344-7233
Red Cross Assistance - 1-888-460-1050
FEMA - 1-800-621-3362
Red Cross - 1-888-460-1050.
Staff Writer Joe Noga can be reached at joe.noga@morningsun.net
or at 231-2600, Ext. 132.
Back to top
Pets also tornado
victims
May 9, 2003
By NIKKI PATRICK
Morning Sun Family Living Editor
Not all the victims of Sunday's tornado are human.
Pets were also injured and left homeless, and the Southeast Kansas
Humane Society has been working to help them.
"The tornado hit Sunday night, and I got called out
of bed at 1:30 a.m. Monday," said Pat Wininger, Humane Society shelter
employee. "My daughter Becky and I went 40 hours without sleep trying
to rescue animals."
"Some people are really hurting and really desperate,"
added Mary Kay Caldwell, Humane Society president. "People's pets
become part of their family, and they're very concerned about them.
A friend of mine finally found her cat, who was over 20 years old and
diabetic, and she just sat and cried. Another cat was claimed at the
shelter by its owner, and she was just ecstatic. These happy stories mean
so much to us."
Because of the magnitude of the disaster, American
Humane activated its Red Star Emergency Services and sent two trained
national responders to the area to assist the Humane Society.
"The Southeast Kansas Humane Society is completely
overwhelmed with trying to care for animals that are lost, injured
or homeless as a result of the tornadoes," said Jodi Buckman, American
Humane director of shelter services. "They are beyond their capacity
and so American Humane is providing our rescue expertise to assist
them in any way we can."
"We're very grateful for American Humane's help,"
Caldwell said. "The national responders have been helping in our
search and rescue operations. They've also suggested that we put
up a lost and found board at the shelter, and we're doing that. We're
also going to run found ads in the newspaper."
American Humane will also help the society establish
temporary shelter for animals left homeless, and has been working
with PETsMART Charities to coordinate the contribution of large
airline crates to assist with moving and holding animals.
Right now the Humane Society has about 20 dogs that
have been rescued from tornado debris.
"At one place in Franklin we rescued a little dog
who was sitting in a boat on top of a big pile of debris," Wininger
said. "He looked so cute sitting there."
Only five cats have been picked up so far, and Caldwell
said that traps will be set to catch some of the panicked animals.
"Cats are much harder to get than dogs," Wininger
said. "Dogs may back off from you or growl a little, but you can
talk to a lot of them and kind of coax them. The cats run off and
hide in tiny little places where you can't reach them. But their
eyes shine out at you at night, and that will help us know where to
put the traps."
Some pets have already been claimed by owners, but
some of the owners don't have a home left to take the pets to. "We
may need to look at having some foster homes for them," Caldwell said.
She and Wininger said they were deeply grateful for
donations of food for the animals. The Triple T Dog Food Company
and Natural Live have donated food, and the Pittsburg Police Department
has provided five 40-pound bags of dry dog food.
"Tornado victims who need food for their pets can
come out to the Humane Society and pick up food," Wininger said.
"If they can't come out to get it, we can deliver it to them."
She said that many pets injured in the storm have
been taken for medical treatment.
"Some of them belong to people who've lost their homes,
their cars, everything," Wininger said. "They can't pay for the
vet, so we've set up a 'Save the Animals' fund to pay their expenses."
Donations to the fund may be mailed to the Southeast
Kansas Humane S