Tornado rips through county

Melodie Phelps, News Editor
Wayne County Outlook

Monticello Sat, May 17 2008

— Rain poured down Friday afternoon as Bobby Carrender stood a few feet
from his demolished mobile home on Furnace Mountain Road. He had weathered
the tornado that traveled almost nine miles through Wayne County at a
neighbor's house and had come home to survey the damage.
There was little left to salvage, but there was a lot to be grateful
for. Carrender was not hurt and he had found his dog, unharmed, near the
ruins of his home.
Carrender's home was one of nine destroyed in Wayne County. A total of
32 residences sustained damage in the tornado that devastated areas across
the county, according to Wayne County Emergency Management Director Bubby
Corder.
Those figures don't include the numerous barns and outbuildings that
were destroyed in the storm that weather officials have confirmed was an
EF-2 tornado, packing winds of approximately 130 miles an hour. Corder said
that at one point the storm was approximately one-quarter mile wide.
The storm, which hit Wayne County at about 1:50 p.m. Friday, traveled
along a path that began near the Clinton County Speedway at the county line.
Points along the path included Massengale Road, Old Bethel Road, Ragan Road,
and Furnace Mountain Road. The last known point where damage was reported
was Spann Hill. Memorial Park also sustained damage in the storm.
"It happened so quickly," said Corder. "A lot of people didn't realize
we had even had a tornado."
Corder and Assistant EMS Director Dewayne Perkins had received a call
from the National Weather Service at about 1:35 p.m. Friday. Weather
officials informed them there was a storm near the Wayne-Clinton County line
that had some severe rotation.
"They felt like it was going to develop into a tornado," said Corder. At
that point, weather alerts went out regarding a tornado warning and the
emergency sirens in Wayne County were activated.
As the storm traveled its path, it took electric and telephone lines
with it. There was no way that people affected by the tornado could actually
call emergency officials. Wayne County Sheriff Charles Boston said he
actually drove up to the damage before he realized what had happened.
Boston said the got a call from a Fish and Wildlife officer who informed
him that traffic was backed up on KY 90 near the Slat community. He drove to
find out what the problem was and discovered a tree across the roadway, as
well as damage to homes and buildings along both sides of road.
Emergency officials then began going door-to-door to make sure that no
one was hurt. Corder said there were no serious injuries as a result of the
storm. Crews from Wayne County EMS, the Monticello Fire Department, the
Wayne County Rescue Squad, and the Wayne County Sheriff's Department were
dispatched to different areas.
Corder and County Judge-Executive Greg Rankin headed out to survey the
damage and to make decisions regarding organization of the emergency effort.
Wayne County PVA Bobby Upchurch and his staff became instrumental in helping
with this step. Corder said that Upchurch provided GIS maps, which emergency
crews could use to mark areas where damage had been reported. This help to
determine the path of the storm.
"Once we found out the path of the storm, we could go back into those
areas and do a more thorough search," explained Corder.
Officials with the Red Cross and the Salvation Army called Friday
offering assistance to any of the storm victims needing shelter. Corder said
that for the most part people affected by the storm had a place to stay that
night.
"We were fortunate that most people were either at work, had come into
town, or had gone to a friend or neighbor's home," said Corder. He noted
that if the storm had come through later in the evening, when people were at
home, it could have been a very different result.
Rankin signed an executive order Friday evening declaring a State of
Emergency in Wayne County. On Saturday, emergency officials, along with
Rankin, gathered at the Wayne County Courthouse to begin the damage
assessment phase. Four teams were set up and assigned quadrants to visit for
damage assessment.
Also a representative from the National Weather Service visited damage
sites on Saturday and determined the strength of the storm. Corder said that
this assessment was based on the debris field, as well as the extent of the
damage to structures.
Monday morning, local officials were still working to try to gather all
the information needed to try to get financial assistance for those who
sustained storm-damage. No exact dollar figure for damage is available yet.
"Everybody is okay, which is the greatest thing," said Rankin. "Our
first goal was to make sure that everybody was safe, and then we wanted to
make sure people had a place to stay."
Now, Rankin said his administration is working to try to get some
financial help to those who need it. For example, he has talked with USDA
officials regarding the possibility of low-interest loan funding for farmers
who have sustained losses in the storm.
Both Corder and Rankin were pleased with the way emergency services
worked together during the crisis.
"Everybody did an unbelievable job, from the EMS, to the Fire
Department, to the Rescue Squad and the Sheriff's deputies," said Rankin.
"They were stretched then with the storm and some wrecks...Everybody stepped
in and works as long as it took. It was a long hard weekend for a lot of
people."
"We all really pitched in together as a team," said Corder. "I'm really
proud of our community took. Neighbors were pitching in and helping each
other. It's great to know we live in a place where people will come and
help."
Corder said one problem they encountered, particularly Friday afternoon
after the storm hit, was the number of onlookers who traveled along West KY
90 trying to see the damage. At one point, he said traffic was backed up
from Monticello to the Otter Creek Bridge.
"That really created problems for us...There were so many people out, we
had to worry about people being in the way," he said.

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