Terrifying Twister rips roof off school
Pastor Dale Morgan
Terrifying Twister rips roof off school *
POSTED: 0605 GMT (1405 HKT), September 23, 2006
ST. JAMES, Missouri (AP) -- Severe thunderstorms spawned tornadoes,
large hail and lightning in parts of the Midwest on Friday, killing a
boater trying to get to shore.
Two tornadoes swept through south-central Missouri Friday afternoon,
damaging more than 100 homes and tearing off part of a roof at a middle
school moments after a tornado drill. No deaths had been reported.
A firefighter videotaped two twisters moving through St. James, said
Phelps County emergency management director Bruce Southard. He estimated
the tornadoes were on the ground for 10 minutes.
"It's devastating," he said. "We've got nice houses that are just tore
to pieces."
In northwest Arkansas, Deborah Massey, 51, died when her boat was struck
by lightning as she and Preston Starritt, 36, both of Prairie Grove,
were on Bob Kidd Lake, Washington County Sheriff Tim Helder said.
Starritt was injured and treated at a hospital.
Several tornadoes were reported in the region, where power was knocked
out, trees broken and at least one home damaged.
"I've seen storms come through, but nothing that's taken down poles like
this," Springdale police Sgt. Billy Turnbough said flagpoles bent sideways.
In Missouri, 12-year-old Devin Wilburn said students at St. James Middle
School had just completed a tornado drill. Thirty seconds later, they
interrupted their science test to rush back into the hallway for the
real thing. The children knelt down and put their hands over their
heads, he said.
"I just heard a bunch of thunder and ripping, because the top of the
roof came off," Devin said.
No teachers, children or staff members were injured.
Preliminary information indicates a tornado warning was issued about 30
minutes before the storm hit, said Gino Izzi, a meteorologist with the
National Weather Service in Springfield.
A tornado also destroyed about half of the Manchester Packaging Co.
plant, which makes polyethylene film and bags, according to its Web
site. Southard said the twister ripped 70-foot-by-70-foot holes in the
main building of a Wal-Mart distribution center and another Wal-Mart
building used to service trucks.
Devin's father, Chuck Wilburn, was sleeping when he was awakened by a
"roaring wind noise." Wilburn, 42, said he ran to let the dogs in from
outside.
"I opened the door and saw the barbecue grill flying across the yard,"
Wilburn said, whose house lost a window and some siding.
Southard estimated between 100 and 125 homes were damaged. He said most
the damage was to roofs but some porches also collapsed.
The storm also ripped down trees, blocking traffic and leaving about
half the city of about 6,000 people without power. St. James is 86 miles
southwest of St. Louis.
Authorities also reported that two other small tornadoes downed trees
and took off shingles in rural parts of southeast Missouri. Tornadoes
and hail were also reported in northern Arkansas.
In Illinois, high winds destroyed three mobile homes and a log home in
Massac County, and about a dozen homes were damaged in Jackson County,
said Patti Thompson, a spokeswoman for the Illinois Emergency Management
Agency.
In the Chicago area, about 15,000 Commonwealth Edison customers were
without electricity after a storm downed trees, the utility said.
In western Kentucky, state police dispatcher Shari Clapp said weather
spotters in Livingston County had reported three unconfirmed sightings
of tornadoes near the Ohio River.
Some highways in Livingston and Henderson counties closed because of
fallen trees and flash flooding, authorities said.