LESSON LEARENDED FROM 'UNBELIEVABLE' TORNADO

Hearing about the devastation left in Jarrell, Texas, after an "unbelievable" tornado ripped through the area in 1997 should serve as a lesson for Cape Girardeau and surrounding communities.

About 50 people -- from firefighters and police officers to public-works employees and volunteers -- attended a presentation Wednesday night at Glenn Auditorium on the Southeast Missouri State University campus to hear John Sneed, emergency management coordinator for Williamson County, Texas, and Judge Judy Hobbs, a county commissioner, talk about how the county responded to its worst disaster in history.

A category F-5 tornado, the highest rating given by the National Weather Service, hit Jarrell on May 27, 1997, leaving 27 dead and dozens injured. Two other communities in the county also were damaged by the storm.

Although Missouri is often threatened by severe weather and tornadoes, an F-5 category tornado has never been reported.

The tornado that hit Jarrell spanned a width of nearly three-quarters of a mile for nine miles.

If you have to wait for a disaster to strike before you can learn from it, it's too late, said Mark Hashheider, an emergency responder with the Cape Girardeau Fire Department.

"I never want this to happen, but I want to plan for it," he said. Hearing from the people who have gone through this in real life, you can glean from that experience, he said.

Looking back, Williamson County, Texas, learned what to do and what not to do during a disaster.

Because the county has been hit by nearly 10 tornadoes over the years, people are often prepared and take shelter quickly. During this storm, even the people who had called the county emergency management office to report the storm and request a siren warning were killed.

No one had expected to see such devastation from the storm, Sneed said. But in the aftermath, you'll see the best of people, he added.

Volunteers from all across the state and even the nation sent donations or offered to help clean up.

What was so amazing about the tornado was its pattern, or lack thereof. The tornado came in backwards, Sneed said. The tornado touched down first, spending 16 minutes on the ground over Jarrell. It was followed by hail, high winds and torrential downpours.

That rain hampered rescue operations because the sheriff's deputies and other officers got their vehicles stuck in the mud.

When rescuers finally arrived on the scene they found few injuries and even more bodies.

Hobbs still gets emotional talking about the tornado. Seeing pictures and hearing tape-recorded voices of people who didn't survive isn't an easy task.

"Unless you get down under or you have God's hand on you, you don't survive an F-5," she said.

Hobbs, who was a justice of the peace at the time of the tornado, acted as a coroner for the county. She helped identify bodies and set up a temporary morgue for their recovery.

Slides showed how the morgue was set up and how county officials went about identifying the bodies. What you can't see is how it affected the town.

Hobbs said many of the volunteer firefighters who helped her set up the morgue in the town's fire hall had lost their relatives. "These were their family members, and they'd lost homes but they never complained."

"They worked for the rest of their community."

That is exactly what city and county officials hope would happen in Cape Girardeau should a tornado strike.

"With floods you have a disaster in slow motion," said Walter Denton, assistant city manager. "You can see it coming.

With a tornado, there is nothing to prevent. But preparation for the response is key.

Finding solutions to some of the unforeseen problems can help police and emergency personnel when they do arrive on a scene, said Capt. Steve Strong of the Cape Girardeau Police Department. "Maybe we can learn from the bad experiences of somebody else," he said.

The presentation was sponsored by Procter & Gamble, Southeast Missouri State University and Project Impact.

STORMY SKIES

During the spring season, weather conditions are often ripe for tornado activity. The National Weather Service in Paducah, Ky., tracks the number of tornadoes in the region.

1996

No serious tornadoes were reported in Cape Girardeau County.

Perry County was hit April 19 by an F-3 tornado, the worst of the year in the Paducah Weather Service region. The tornado struck at 9:30 p.m. about one mile north of Perryville and spanned an 11.5 mile area to Menfro.

There were no injuries but $5 million in damage was reported.

1997

There were 12 tornadoes in the Paducah Weather Service region and most occurred during the late summer. None were serious. An F-2 tornado touched down in Kentucky during June.

1998

In the weather service region, 18 tornadoes were reported. Most occurred between April 13 and 16. None were deadly.

A tornado touched down April 15 at 8:50 p.m. near Crosstown in Perry County. No damage was reported. Another tornado was reported at 11:43 p.m. near Pocahontas. No damage was reported.

A deadly tornado ripped through Jarrell, Texas, on May 27, 1997. Thirty people died in the tornado, which hit at 4 p.m. The tornado covered a seven-mile area while on the ground. Thirty-five homes in Jarrell, about 40 miles north of Austin, were damaged or destroyed.

A tornado struck May 17, 1989, and killed one person, injuring 30 others. That tornado destroyed nearly two-thirds of the Jarrell community.