Woke up this morning to see the terrible news about the tornadoes in the Henderson - Evansville area. I hope you folks and your families are ok up there.
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Woke up this morning to see the terrible news about the tornadoes in the Henderson - Evansville area. I hope you folks and your families are ok up there.
[font size="1" color="#FF0000"]LAST EDITED ON Nov-07-05 AT 00:52AM (EST)[/font][p]Thanks for the concern Dave:
The tornado went south of me by about 2 to 4 miles. It just missed my X wifes house by about 1/2 mile. My neighbors run a beauty salon and one of their employees lived in the Trailer Court that was devestated but she and her son are ok. They lost everything. I talked to my neighbors wife and she told me that her parents are without power still this afternoon. Her dad spent the day with her at their house today while her husband worked security. My neighbor works with the Warrick County Sherriff dept as a reserve deputy. He left last night right after the storms hit (3 am )and only came home for a brief time this evening and was back out again in the squad car. He is going to be dead tired come this evening. I'll talk to him when he gets finished and get more information when he gets some sleep and gets off duty.
PS: I hope that hoosierdon is ok.
St Mary's Hospital treated a lot of the injured. I think that they treated over 30 people and 12 were in critical condition. I last heard that 17 people were dead and that count will probably go up as rescue efforts continue on. Most of the deaths were from the trailer court. Some areas of Newburgh, IN were hit as well. The Newburgh neighborhood is a pretty well to do neighborhood and some of the homes in the 3000 sq ft size range. One entire family in a farm house to the NW of here in Degonina Springs was lost. The wife was pregangant and she and her child were lost as well as her husband. That really was a tradegy.
It's wierd seeing this on the news all day long. We are under a curfew right now and can't go out until daylight. Curfew started at 7pm CDS tonight Sunday. Schools are closed tomorrow.
Our internet service was disrupted today and lots of Warrick County lost power last night. (2:45am Sunday Morning). But power was restored in my neighborhood by 9 am and I just got my cabe internet service back a little while ago. 11 pm Sunday night
I drive by that trailer court all the time and never thought it would be hit by a tornado. It's on the wrong side of the levi and I always figured it would be flooded someday. That could still happen. They reported that there were approx 150 trailers in that park. Most of the South side of the trailer park was destroyed but the Northern section was not touched hardly at all. They say it was a force 3 tornado and possible a force4. With winds over 200 mph.
Elis Park (Horse Race Track)was hit hard and there is a lot of economic damage there. Some horses were there but I have not heard too much about them. I am sure that some were injured though. The horse barns looked to be pretty well torn up.
I went though a tornado in Petersburgh, IN on June 2nd 1990 and will never forget that event. That tornado devistated Peterburgh. I was in the Moose Lodge that night attending a wedding reception when two twisters went though the area and the second one hit the Moose lodge. I was stranded in Petersburgh, IN that night as the twister took our our brand new mini van and we didn't have a ride back to Evansville. We finally got a ride back home at 4 am that next morning. Therefore the reason for my internet name as Moose1am. At 1am I was thanking the gods that I lived though a force 3 tornado that went right over the building that I was in. I was told that the Moose Lodge was built like a fortress and had walls three bricks thick. My wife and I were ducked under a dining table in the basement up against a knee wall that seperated the bar area from the dining area. We have been out side when I heard the twister approaching. It was after dark and I could not see the twister due to a large tree in my line of sight but I sure heard it coming. When they say it sounds like a freight train coming they are right. I grabbed my wife that night as she was coming outside to see what was going on and took here back down the stairs into the basement dining area where we took shelter. The storm blew out all the doors and let the winds come inside the dining room. We have leaves and dust swirling around the inside of the dining room for 15 seconds and then it was over. We both were thinking that we were dead that night. So I know what the survivers of this tornado are thinking right about now. I was in shock that night and I am sure they are in a state of shock also. I still get very nervous when they say a storm in coming. I use to enjoy the lighting storms but not so much anymore.
I just hope that they don't find any more people that have passed away. Today as I was watching the news they discovered an 8 year old girl still alive.
We have a very good first responder program here and the local fire depts all work well with each other. They have a mutual aid pak and train together for disasters such as this. So they were able to communiate with each other and that really helps. They were staging rescue people and supplies in the Apple Center which use to be the old K-Mart building. They have revitalized that area and it's right at the intersection of HWY 66 and HWY 261 and was a great place to stage all the emergency trucks and supplies that were flowing into the area. Hwy 66 is our major East/West Corridor and was just updated to 6 lanes recently to help move traffic though Evansville and into Newburgh. So that is a great place to put supplies. Its real close to Bell Road where the Tornado did most of the damage in Newburgh. Plus there is a McDonald's and Wendy's right there as well. Got to feed those rescue guys. LOL
We were lucky in the fact that the twister missed the most populated areas of Evansville and Henderson, KY. It did some damage in Union Township which is South and West of Evansville and down by the River bottoms. That is mostly farm land down there so there was not much economic damage with the crops mostly harvested.
I was watching out the back door to the South and could see the clouds when the lighting lit up the sky.
The governor flew in today to assess the area.
The weather is good right now and it's warm and dry. So that will help the rescue efforts and also help the recovery efforts. We have good warm weather predicted for the next few days so that is good.
Regards,
Moose1am
I also hope that you all down there are OK. Mother nature can be harsh sometimes. Pray for those that have lost somebody or everything they have.
Luckily it missed us by about a mile to the south-east at the closest spot and somehow missed all of our friends and family in Tennyson. The closest it came to them was 2 doors down. Seeing all the damage first hand, alot more people could have died. Its amazing that only 5 people were killed in Warrick Co.
I was able to drive past the mobile home park on the way to work today and it is an unbelievable sight. Half of it is flattened. Last I heard there was one more body found in a retention pond which brough the count there up to 18 deaths.
Very sad ordeal but alot of people should be very thankful they are still alive
Glad to hear that you folks are ok....anyone heard from HoosierDon?
[font size="1" color="#FF0000"]LAST EDITED ON Nov-09-05 AT 08:45AM (EST)[/font][p][font size="1" color="#FF0000"]LAST EDITED ON Nov-09-05 AT 08:29*AM (EST)[/font]
Tornado missed us by quarter mile. We were only without power for 7 hours. Spent last day and a half helping co-worker pack belongings from their damaged home, they live(d) in the Meadowbrook subdivision. The devastation is unbelieveable. They found a 16 pound bowling ball and two bowling pins in their yard. Nearest home to them in path of tornado was 300 yards. That's a minor example of the force of the tornado. The recovery effort is just amazing. I saw utility company crews from Pennsylvania and Iowa. Everyone is pitching in to help.
Have not heard from Don in a week now. I saw the list of the people that were killed in the Tornado and his name was not listed so he is not dead. :) Thank god! There were over 150 people treated at the hospitals for all sorts of injures. I think there were about 24 still in serious to critcal condition. Most were treated for cuts, scrapes and bruses and sent home. Some are still in the two hospitals.
I am hoping that he is just on vacation in Florida or something. Either that or he was one of the fewer than 500 people still without electricity in the damaged area.
The road that his (use to be his) photography studio is closed these days due to the damage from the tornado. At least the news media is telling people not to travel on the the road leading into Newburgh from Evansville, IN. Hwy 662 I think is what it's called. I call it newburgh road. LOL Don's Studio is right near the intersection of Frame Road and Hwy 662. Sharron Lewis runs it now I think. I may call her tomorrow and see if she knows anything about Don. If I can remmber to do that.
Regards,
Moose1am
Hey guys, thanks for the concern. My family and I are ok. It missed us by about a half mile. I go right past the trailer park to get to the Angel Mounds boat ramp. The studio was not damaged at all, niether was Shannons home. We thank the Lord for that. There are a lot of people in this area that are hurting so please remember them in your prayers. The Warrick County Sheriff canceled all volunteer work today until Vectren (the elect co) has all the downed lines secure. They can't take a chance of energizing down lines as they start to bring areas back on line. Enough people have died. We sure don't want someone getting ahold of a hot wire. Thanks again for the concern expressed here. Makes a guy feel real good to know that someone is concerned....
Don
Good to hear your ok Don.
Hey Don:
Great to hear you are ok and that your safe. I was looking up the Photography Studios phone number and getting ready to call Sharron. I thought I would check here one more time before calling. Sounds like you have been busy volunteering. I read where they took a lot of the people that lived in the trailer court and drove them down to the Angle Mounds Boat Ramp's parking lot and then bussed them into the trailer court to pick up their belongings.
I went out with my next door neighbor last night around 11pm and he told me that the National Guard were pulling out of town. I noticed that hwy 261 was open South of Hyw 66. Man that is a good thing. The traffic backing up on 66 the last week at rush hour has really been bad.
Again it's good to know that you weathered the storm as well as your friends.
Regards,
Moose1am