TornadoVolunteersPraised

Director James Praises Volunteers Helping Missouri Tornado Disaster Victims

JEFFERSON CITY March 17, 2006-During a telephone conference call to update disaster information, county elected officials and their emergency management directors praised corporate and volunteer efforts to help local citizens recover from the weekend tornadoes, which killed ten people and injured 100 others.

“We appreciate the humanitarian organizations that have helped thousands of people in our state cope with these severe storms,” said Mark James Director of Public Safety. “Missouri’s tornado victims have a long road to recovery, but we are grateful that volunteerism is extremely strong in this state.”

Perhaps some of the most valiant yet unrecognized volunteers are storm spotters. The four National Weather Service offices, which cover Missouri, trained over 6600 storm spotters last year. The storm spotter training is usually conducted in February and March.

“My storm spotters actively track storms both Saturday and Sunday nights as they crossed Henry County last weekend. One of my volunteers was out tracking storm while his home suffered over $4,000 in storm related damages,” said Bob Easton, Henry County Emergency Management Director.

Saturday night, two people were killed when their pickup truck was lifted off the highway and smashed into a propane tank adjacent to the highway, ten people were injured and ten homes reported destroyed in Perry County following the tornado.

The Mennonite Disaster Relief Services is another organization working on debris removal in Northeast Missouri, specifically Monroe, Randolph and Putnam counties.

Nixa was one of many communities whose citizens suffered major damages for the tornadoes. Christian County Emergency Management Director Phil Amtower used his Community Emergency Response Teams (CERT) volunteers to help inside the county emergency operations center operations, to manage volunteers, set up donations sites, and collect damage information.

The Red Cross helps local governments collect damage assessment information, which is submitted to SEMA. The American Red Cross does an outstanding job of managing sheltering operations in local communities after a disaster.

Feeding disaster victims and volunteers is a massive undertaking jointly operated by volunteers from the Red Cross, Salvation Army and the Southern Baptist Mobile Kitchens. The Red Cross is operating six mobile feeding operations in Gravois Mills, Renick, Sedalia, Monroe City, Springfield and Cleaver. Currently there are six Southern Baptist Mobile Kitchens operating in Missouri. The Salvation Army and the Southern Baptist are operating fixed feeding operations in El Dorado Springs, St. Mary, Middlegrove, Monroe City, Aurora and Marshville.

Randolph County officials were overwhelmed when Wal-Mart sent a tractor-trailer loaded with food for the Randolph County tornado victims. They are planning on sharing the bounty with victims in neighboring Monroe County.

In Christian County, Lowe’s sent tarps to a multi-agency resource center for citizens to cover roofs or broken windows to minimize the damage to their homes. Across Missouri, numerous concerned citizens, school organizations and even National Guard units are holding fundraising events to aid their neighbors and friends impacted by the storms.

*News Release*
*Public Safety*	Matt Blunt, Governor	Mark James, Director
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE For more information, please contact: Terri Durdaller Communication Director Work:(573) 751-4819 Cell: (573) 301-2023
Director James Praises Volunteers Helping Missouri Tornado Disaster Victims JEFFERSON CITY March 17, 2006-During a telephone conference call to update disaster information, county elected officials and their emergency management directors praised corporate and volunteer efforts to help local citizens recover from the weekend tornadoes, which killed ten people and injured 100 others. “We appreciate the humanitarian organizations that have helped thousands of people in our state cope with these severe storms,” said Mark James Director of Public Safety. “Missouri’s tornado victims have a long road to recovery, but we are grateful that volunteerism is extremely strong in this state.” Perhaps some of the most valiant yet unrecognized volunteers are storm spotters. The four National Weather Service offices, which cover Missouri, trained over 6600 storm spotters last year. The storm spotter training is usually conducted in February and March. “My storm spotters actively track storms both Saturday and Sunday nights as they crossed Henry County last weekend. One of my volunteers was out tracking storm while his home suffered over $4,000 in storm related damages,” said Bob Easton, Henry County Emergency Management Director. Saturday night, two people were killed when their pickup truck was lifted off the highway and smashed into a propane tank adjacent to the highway, ten people were injured and ten homes reported destroyed in Perry County following the tornado. The Mennonite Disaster Relief Services is another organization working on debris removal in Northeast Missouri, specifically Monroe, Randolph and Putnam counties. Nixa was one of many communities whose citizens suffered major damages for the tornadoes. Christian County Emergency Management Director Phil Amtower used his Community Emergency Response Teams (CERT) volunteers to help inside the county emergency operations center operations, to manage volunteers, set up donations sites, and collect damage information. The Red Cross helps local governments collect damage assessment information, which is submitted to SEMA. The American Red Cross does an outstanding job of managing sheltering operations in local communities after a disaster. Feeding disaster victims and volunteers is a massive undertaking jointly operated by volunteers from the Red Cross, Salvation Army and the Southern Baptist Mobile Kitchens. The Red Cross is operating six mobile feeding operations in Gravois Mills, Renick, Sedalia, Monroe City, Springfield and Cleaver. Currently there are six Southern Baptist Mobile Kitchens operating in Missouri. The Salvation Army and the Southern Baptist are operating fixed feeding operations in El Dorado Springs, St. Mary, Middlegrove, Monroe City, Aurora and Marshville. Randolph County officials were overwhelmed when Wal-Mart sent a tractor-trailer loaded with food for the Randolph County tornado victims. They are planning on sharing the bounty with victims in neighboring Monroe County. In Christian County, Lowe’s sent tarps to a multi-agency resource center for citizens to cover roofs or broken windows to minimize the damage to their homes. Across Missouri, numerous concerned citizens, school organizations and even National Guard units are holding fundraising events to aid their neighbors and friends impacted by the storms.
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