This page was going to include little local stories or
things happening that maybe weren't being picked up by the media......
well there hasn't been much time to do much with this section, all of us in the
area have found a few things to do this week.... if you have any journals,
stories, weird things you saw, etc., I would like to publish them here.......
please fax them to 920-693-3141, or email to the webmaster, and I can put them
in here, with or without your name. In the meantime it's just a few things
that have been happening....
By now you probably know of the big storm that hit our little town at
noon time on May 12, 2000. Big was the right word, terrifying and
impressive might be a better ones tho. It only lasted 10 minutes,
now they are calling it a 'super cell storm' and not a tornado.
100mph winds and 2.5" hail, it shredded the siding, dented cars and
knocked out most car and west house windows....
All stories and notes here are submitted by residents and volunteers and we can therefore
not vouch for the credibility or accuracy. We hope to have a few
anecdotes, stories, and more links to other sites with news.
Saturday May 13 was a day of hard work for our residents and hundreds
of volunteers that showed up. The weather was brisk, partly sunny,
but a biting wind. Utility electricity was not available today, some
areas were equipped with portable generators and lighting. Saturday
evening all volunteers need to be out of the village by 6pm, residents
will have a 10pm curfew.
5/13/2000. The National Guard [webwaster: 5/17 Command Center
clarified, it was actually Army Reserve] called in to help with heavy
equipment. I asked one Guardsman [sic] when he was last called out, he said he'd
been in the service 23 years and had never been called.
5/13/2000 There were 1700 registered volunteers from the public to
assist. This number was in addition to government and military personnel.
"It was noon time but it got real dark and windy, the hail stones
started coming through where the glass should have been, I started picking them
up so the carpet wouldn't get wet, then I saw my plants were getting blown in
the wind so I started to move them to the other side of the room away from the
open window. The wall came off so I went in the other room."
5/14/2000 400 volunteer people dedicated their Mother's Day time to Village
cleanup.
5/14/00 Lots of works remains!! For the week days (Monday through Friday)
starting May 15 there will not be staffing to coordinate volunteers. There
will be an organized cleanup again on May 20 [webmaster: later postponed to May
23, 9AM]. Stayed tuned to this
site and local radio for details.
Independent volunteers and
contractors during the week have been asked to display their permits when
in the Village. Permits
from this past weekend will be honored. Bring gloves and sturdy shoes.
5/18/00 In St Nazianz, the first house is razed and a
barn is finished up in the township. Looks like there will be only a few mobile
homes that are not totaled, all the others will soon be a somewhat remembered
part of history.
"It was like a freight train was coming through my house, I ran to the
garage with my son, I laid on the back floor of the car on top of him thinking
it was the safest place we could be. He asked me if the other kids (at
school) would be OK, I told them I didn't know. We held on to each other,
he told me he loved me, and we waited as the freight train came
through......"
5/18/00 Rural crews are heading home for the
weekend, too much rain and mud to work.
5/18/00 So far 700 tons of debris have been taken to
the landfill site, and we are only now starting the buildings demolition......
"We have 6 people sleeping on the floor of our house now."
5/23/00 Over 500 people came out on a pleasant week
day to assist with cleanup of fields and farmsteads. They picked through
almost 25 square miles, moving large roof sections, tin, boards and even nails
and individual pieces of roof shingles, to the roadsides where is was to be
picked up by Manitowoc County Highway crews. Valders High School sent 280
students, buses, and supervisors. Lunch provided by Red Cross, shirts and
hats by Aid Association for Lutherans.
5/24/00 Repairs and demolition continue throughout the
area.
The
Great Storm
On a warm spring day
In the middle of May
The sun was shining bright
And everything seemed just tight
It was that kind of day that everyone likes
But no one knew that disaster would strike
It happened just before noon
And the warning came none too soon
Manitowoc County was in for high winds and a huge storm
Because of the meeting of cold air and warm
The sky turned pitch black and wind started to wail
Then all of a sudden it began to hail
The hailstones were as big as three inches round
By then people knew that something was wrong
For a dreadful seven minutes, the storm raged on
it was like a vicious lion that just escaped from its cage
When the storm finally ceased
There were no bad injuries at least
But when they took a look around
No on could believe what they found
St. Nazlanz was hit the worst
So people helped them out first
Trees were lying on the ground
Siding and wood were scattered all around
Houses and barns were torn apart and crushed
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Not a house in Nazlanz stood untouched
Most of the people could not believe
And some could not bear to see
The destruction that the storm had done
It was a great loss to everyone People shed lots of tears
They lost precious things that they had known for years
The very next day help came from all around
Especially from the surrounding towns
The fire departments, telephone workers and volunteers helped out a lot
So did the Salvation Army and the American Red Cross
And as this poem draws to an end
Let’s hope we never have to experience this again
This poem Is dedicated to all those
homeless, devastated people out there, so they might feel our sympathy
and know that we care.
-Kelsey Esser Grade 6
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