The Leaf-Chronicle from Clarksville, Tennessee • 1

uii r. i i i i i i iTJTTtTJTFFTTTTJ 4 rS Sessr vi i i Clarksville, Tennessee Sunday, January 24, 1999 RJl A GANNETT NEWSPAPER fMI irsju VOL c1999 The Leaf-Chronlcla Co. $1.50 LmI 0 05(9 City struggles with recovery as tornado damag estimate skyrockets Contacting the paper Although The Leaf-Chronicle is working out of several locations because of Friday's tornado, business is being conducted. Starting today, circulation, news and the newspaper's general office can be reached at 552-1808. Offices will be open from 7 a.m.

to 1 p.m. weekends, and from 7:30 a.m. to 5 p.m. Monday through Friday. Display advertising offices at Cochran Advertising, 1413 Madison can be reached by calling 551- 4074.

The office will be open 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. weekdays. During this period, advertising deadlines have been slightly modified. All display ads must be received by noon two days Erior to publication.

lassified ads are due at 2 p.m. the day prior to 1 1 vy 7 17 TJf' 1 .3. feC r'i rm r- 1 'rflTWIM 'ill lini," 1 ---r tit Methodist Episcopal Church, consoles Pastor Douglas Norfleet of Madison Street United Staff photo by Tonl Methodist Church, which was demolished. Starmer Damage ranges from downtown to St. Bethlehem neighborhood INSIDE Complete storm coverage More local stories on the tornado inside: Page A2: The path of the tornado Page A3: Churches rebuild PageA4: Business roundup Page A5: Law and justice overview Page B1 Emergency officials view county Page B2: Localized flooding reported 1 I "Win Staff photo by Greg Williamson J.

i. I Walter Reed, pastor of the St Peter African Red River District finds a silver lining in wakeofetorm By DAVE LAVENDER Of The Leaf-Chronicle Staff Friday, the roof over Alice Powers and her family's heads was crushed by a splintered tree. Their spirits lell in the gray of a day-long rain-Saturday, she woke and the sun came up hazy, poking through the clouds over her neighborhood. Next door to the Lincoln Housing Projects and Austin Peay State University, this neighborhood in shambles felt forgotten in the shadow of a fallen historic downtown and the ripped up campus next door. Satxnday morning at the Red River District was a slow turn for the better.

Victor Robinson began the morning's first chorus of chainsaws on a mammoth hackber-ry that laid waste to Dorothy Smith's house while 11 -year-old DeShawn Russell came dribbling a basketball up the limb-strewn street Strange things hardened. Somehow after the storm, Powers found a ring next to her carShe lost it a year and a half She also called Home Depot to ask for help getting the branched mtruder out of her kitchen. By 10 volunteers had garnered in her yard. Smiling strangers, ITm about straight now, said a smiling -Powers, whose backyard bellies up to APSU.1 am truly blessed Yesterday, I didn't see no way" A group of Amish farmers from Pembroke, Ky, also came down in a van not just to look, but to look where they could help. They wot about to grve up whra they saw orange hats on Home Depot workers clearing out Powers' backyard, a gully full of trees as round as whiskey barrels uprooted from die ground, "It didn't look like anybody was ready to start," said Samuel Stoltzfiis, one of the farmers, were about ready to give up when By REBECCA LOGAN Of The Leaf-Chronicle Staff Those whose lives and livelihoods were shattered in minutes by a random force of nature now wait for answers from amid the red tape and bureaucracy.

Most answers will not come overnight Many won't be known for quite some time. Continued assessments brought the devastation from Friday's tornado to a level that prompted Saturday morning condolences from Vice President Al Gore and the; worst devastation rating granted by the Federal Emergency Management Agency. It was damage so far into the tens of millions that nobody would guess just how far. The tornado ripped through the downtown area, and hit neighborhoods miles apart There was early talk of $10 million for Austin Peay State University alone. However, it was also damage that left Pat and Buddy Devers waiting on word from their insurance agent so they would know if they could stay in a rebuilt version of their 100-year-old home of 36 years.

"I don't feel like living somewhere else," said Buddy Devers of his Lawn Street home. 1 love my trees and I don't have anymore all gone." In other neighborhoods from Crossland Avenue to St Bethlehem, entire rooms, walls or floors are gone. Of the first 325; houses inspected by one crew, 1 75 had been damaged to the point of filing a report, said Clarksville Regional Planning Commission Director David Riggins. "Out of those, the average damage was 41 percent" Riggins said. While the business of government is a daunting task, Mayor Johnny Piper stressed to those who work for him they must concentrate on individuals as welL "We need sorncthirtg they can put their hands on.

These people need to know there is a plan ni place for how do I get back my life." Staff photo by Toril Stamw Alice Powers shows a ring she had; lost more than a year ago and found in her driveway after the tornado hit her Ford Street home. we heard these Like it was driving the: street the tornado up most of the houses down Ford Street and turned the corner at Roman Street where two houses were sucked down to a gutted shell. Just about every other house along these streets and Shearor were hit hard in this little neighborhood behind the city's watertower. -In-the --words' of 63-year-old "-William -Norrhington, who lives at the corner of Ford and Roman streets, it "came changed gears and picked up speed." -That speed at the Roman comer threw a 14-foot johnboat over a house and into the -side yard of Mejyjn Clardy, who said it seemed like "the trees took over." The house of his wife's aunt across the street was blown away. Gone.

As was Rosi Qardy's, next door. Luckily, Clardy was checked into St Thomas Hospital in Nashville Thursday night for surgery. Continued on A2 David Halpin holds onto a cart of papers while helping Cleveland Turner Law Office employees remove material from their demolished building along on Third St near Franklin St In downtown Clarksville after the tomadohtt town area to retrieve valuables and records from the work place proved overtiming. Originally owners from businesses that had not received the "no entry" stickers were tokl to wodd be given one hour to get their belongings inside the polke-eriforced perimeters. But thousands of people showed up at the designated meeting spot on from of the Clarksville Area Chamber of Commerce office.

Many were there just to look. But as city officials were flooded with jails such as where to payjwaterbills. the same officials were trying to predict which walls will crumble next and how to run a police operation without a main office. They've done an excellent job with this so far" said Kelly Zadakaus, a regional manager with the Tennessee Emergency Management Agency. "Like I tokl them, this is like trying to eat an elephant one chunk at time." Just getting folks in the damaged down Continued on A2 4 Jt,.