Marshfield News-Herald from Marshfield, Wisconsin • 1

if mm. mtmmfm Marshfield WEATHER: Tonight: Cloudy, lows 55-60 Saturday: Sunny, highs mid 70s More weather on Page 10A id. (1 Vol. 76, No. 118 MARSHFIELD, WISCONSIN FRIDAY, JULY 19, 1996 20 PAGES 2 SECTIONS 50c News Jni( To rnati rips OaEcf le 17 Bnjwedl OAKFIELD (AP) A tornado left Oakfield a "bombed-out town" after ripping through the rural Fond du Lac County community, injuring at least 17 people and leaving hundreds homeless, authorities said.

Tornados were spotted Thursday night near Weyauwega, Waupaca, Irma, Princeton, Berlin, Oshkosh, Fond du Lac, Beaver Dam and Belgium. But damage seemed to be most dramatic in Oakfield. "There are dozens of homes down a lot of damage," said Fond du Lac County Executive Allen Buechel. He estimated that half of Oakfield was leveled by a tornado that hit sometime after 7 p.m. "The devastation is unreal," Lawrence people were freed from their basements after being trapped by debris, Buechel said.

The area worst hit a four-block by one-mile section looked like a "bombed-out town," he said. "There's a church and school very near me that is gone," he said, walking through the community as work crews attempted to clear debris. "And of course there is hardly a tree that is untouched for blocks." Standing in front of what used to be his house, Tim Shady said he heard the tornado approaching "like a loud, steady locomotive," before he and his family went to the basement and took refuge under a pool table. See-TORNADO--Page 2 Indcrmuehle, captain of the Oakfield First Responders crisis response team, said today. "They're trying to clear streets now.

It's amazing the way the homes are scattered about. Some we can't even find." The Friday Canning a major employer in the area, was leveled, said Oakfield resident Brett Wachendorf, whose home escaped damage. "All that was left was piles of pallets and cans," Wachendof said. Electrical power knocked out in the community was later restored in parts of the area, Buechel said. But Lt.

Fred Mathwig of the Fond du Lac Sheriff's Department said natural gas turned off Thursday night remained off this morning. Gov. Tommy Thompson planned to visit the devastated area today and declare a state of emergency in Fond du Lac County, making available state help, said Thompson's press secretary, Kevin Keane. The governor would also call up the National Guard if local officials request it, Keane said. "They are a phone call away from the governor's office in getting anything they need," Keane said.

In the tornado's aftermath, residents walked up and down streets scattered with tree trunks, pieces of glass and sheets of metal and the smell of gas hung in the humid air. Several 5 -f 1 .1 i 1 Tornado devastates Oakfield No deaths were reported, people were injured. ty was leveled by a tornado on Thursday. The powerful winds destroyed homes and left hundreds homeless, authorities said. Steve Cowles heads home from work at the Friday Canning Oakfield plant after the Fond du Lac County facili Council to pursue downtown TIF Area tornado warnings given Although no tornadoes touched down in the Central Wisconsin area, residents were warned early Thursday evening that funnel clouds were developing.

"They had a radar echo of one developing over Spencer at around 4 p.m.," Marshfield Emergency Government Director Steve Uthmier said. "It wasn't confirmed or sighted." Uthmier said he was at the Marshfield Police Department at the time and the skies were clear so he decided not to activate the warning siren. The siren is activated during severe thunderstorm warnings as well as tornados, Uthmier said. It is designed to warn people who are outside to get inside and take shelter. It is not specifically designed to warn people who are already indoors.

Southern Marathon County was the target of tornado warnings and heavy rain, but Emergency Government Planner Jerry Boettcher said his office had not received any reports of damage. However, the warnings did force Farm Progress Days officials to ask people to leave the grounds early on the last day of the event. Executive Secretary Mike Wildeck said about five minutes after Sheriff's Department personnel started visitors on their way, the weather cleared. Staff and volunteers used the time to begin taking See--WARNING--Page 2 100,000 at Farm Progress MARATHON CITY After three days and more than 100,000 people getting a glimpse of the latest in agricultural technology and ideology, Farm Progress Days wrapped up Thursday evening. Judging from the food sales, the pop sales and the parking Jots, this was a tremendous crowd, said Mike Wildeck, executive secretary of Farm Progress Days.

The Executive Committee planned for between 90,000 and See photos, 3A 100,000 guests for the annual event. The total exceeded those expectations, he said. The crowds caused some problems Tuesday, when the parking area had to be expanded to the field demonstration area. Vendors reported higher food sales during the first day of the event than usual for Farm Progress, he said. "We were pretty overwhelmed by the crowd," Wildeck said.

But, adjustments made to food service, parking and the admissions area helped accommodate the crowds. The buildings, constructed in recent weeks, will be torn down and machinery used for demonstrations should be off the property will be removed by the end of July, Wildeck said. It may take longer for the fields used to park thousands of cars to spring back to health, but Wildeck said if the weather cooperates, the harvest may be fine. Part of the agreement with the host family is that the organization will absorb the out-of-pocket cost of returning to the farm to its normal operation. That means the field that held Tent City will be tilled again, and any damage will be repaired.

Although the whole big affair will be torn down and gone by the end of July, the impact of what See-FARM-Page 2 Fyng colors An American flag flaps in the breeze above some farm equipment at Farm Progress Days Thursday morning. (News-Herald Photo by Dan Young) Woman honored for saving Jews LONDON (AP) Fifty-five years ago, Zora Sebek used false identification to help a Jewish girl escape the Nazis. The Roman Catholic teen-ager went on to help five more Jews avoid concentration camps. On Thursday, Israel awarded her the title "Righteous Among The Nations" for saving Jews in the former Yugoslavia. "Every evidence of a gentile who saved Jews in the most difficult of circumstances and at great personal peril strengthens our belief in humanity and in the triumph of good over evil," Israeli Ambassador Moshe Raviv said before presenting her with a citation and medal.

For Mrs. Sebek, who left Belgrade three years ago after war broke out in Yugoslavia, the risk to her own life played little part in her decision to do what she could to help the Jews. "I think it is very fortunate to be able to do something," she said in an interview. "If more people in Europe had acted sim ilarly, there would have been fewer victims of the Holocaust." Mrs. Sebek, now 72 and living in London, said she was spurred to act by her friendship with a Jewish boy who was imprisoned in a concentration camp and by her family, who stressed the importance of religious tolerance.

Medal of honor Zora Sebek displays her medal of honor presented to her by the Israeli Ambassabor to Britain, Moshe Raviv, in recognition of her assistance to Jewish people during the Holocaust at the Israeli Embassy in London Thursday. (AP Photo) SECTION A Local, Statt Opinion Obituaries Abby, Gott Business Lifestyle Records, Weather 3 A 4 A 6 A 7A 7A Page 8A Page 10A Page IB Page 3B Page 9B Page 10B SECTION ports Classified Comics, Senior By JAMIE MARA Of the News-Herald The city will forego a policy requirement regarding consultant fees in order to hire a firm to explore creation of a downtown Tax Incremental Financing district for raising parking development funds. In a special session Thursday night, the Common Council voted 5-3 to pursue the TIF under the guide of Vandewalle Associates, a Madison firm handling similar duties for a TIF for the new Mill Creek Business Park. Vandewalle's consulting fees would total $13,000 well above the $5,000 limit at which current city policy requires the process to be opened for bids from qualified firms. The aldermen met behind closed doors for an hour and 20 minutes before the vote.

Mayor Richard Daniels said after the meeting that the consultant policy would have to be waived because of a fast-approaching deadline for creation of the TIF. However, 15 (AP photo) A TIF is a tool municipalities can use to raise funds for certain public improvements from taxes on developments occurring in a designated area. Under a TIF, a boundary is designated for the district (due to blight or rehabilitation need) and the value of the property in that zone as of Jan. 1 is figured. The city can then earmark the property taxes generated on any increased value in the district specifically for the public improvement project rather than having to distribute the taxes to the other taxing entities, such as the state, county or school district.

Daniels said in this case the TIF would be used to raise money for developing more parking in the tlowntown. The parking situation has taken on added concern since the recent completion of a large expansion of the Rogers Cinema movie theater operation on S. Central Avenue, which began earlier this year. The boundaries for the proposed See-COUNCIL-Page 2 Members suggested the candidates' vision in implementing future programming on the Public Access channel may be the most important. The candidate who can offer the highest quality programming using the resources available will likely be the top choice, said Don Nystrom, Committee chairman.

"We have great vision and very little money," he said. "You probably can never do the programming that any of the three candidates would like to do." Nystrom said it is unrealistic to assume Public Access funding will be increased in the city budget in the future. All three candidates proposed similar budgets to run the channel, about $20,000 annually. Committee member Walter Friant said he would like to see the See-CABLE-Page 2 i ft farmer Cable TV candidate to be recommended 1 Young By MICHELLE SVOBODA News-Herald Intern One of the three candidates interviewed Thursday evening for the city's cable access coordinator position will be officially announced July 25 for recommendation to the city's Cable TV Committee. Dan Kummer and Paul Johnson, both of Marshfield, and Michael Dieck of Mosinee will be judged on a 100-point scale by three members of a Cable TV subcommittee.

Scores will be tallied in four areas: 40 points for technical competence, 30 points for work ability, 15 points for creativity, and 15 points for overall cost. "I think all three of them have the expertise and technical abilities to do the job," Committee member Dean Markquardt said Thursday night. "Other factors may be more important in the decision." Cervin Weaver, 6, holds on to his dad as he and his brother Calvin, 7, check out the farm machinery with their father, Nelson Weaver, and friend Arlan Hamm Thursday at Farm Progress Days. They're all from Curtiss. (News-Herald Photo by Dan Young).