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“TRIBUTE TO THE VICTIMS OF THE NORTHWESTERN OHIO TORNADOES” mentioning the U.S. Dept. of Transportation was published in the House of Representatives section on pages H4571-H4572 on June 16, 2010.
The publication is reproduced in full below:
TRIBUTE TO THE VICTIMS OF THE NORTHWESTERN OHIO TORNADOES
(Ms. KAPTUR asked and was given permission to address the House for 1 minute and to revise and extend her remarks.)
Ms. KAPTUR. Madam Speaker, I rise to recognize and pay tribute to the men and women and children who lost their lives and were wounded in the tornadoes that ravaged northwestern Ohio on June 5 and 6. And that disaster prematurely took the lives of six people. We are talking about Wood County, Fulton County, Ottawa County, across Sandusky County, and adjacent counties.
Madison Walters has been tragically orphaned while her family, Mary and Ryan Walters and their 4-year-old son, Hayden, were all killed. We also remember Ted Kranz, Kathy Hammitt, and Bailey Bowman. Over $100 million of estimated damage occurred. Lake High School was leveled. So many businesses, homes, farms affected.
While this is a story of pain, it is also a story of hope and human goodness, as waves of thousands of volunteers have come to try to help and assist those facing such destruction. I would like to submit two articles for the record that detail examples of this compassion. And it shows to us again the signs of a great Nation that binds together, and neighbor helping neighbor.
I urge the administration, in the strongest manner possible, to declare our region a Federal disaster area so necessary aid can flow to those whose lives have been so dramatically affected in a region already suffering from economic recession. Help, Hope From Volunteers Lift Spirits in Tornado-Wrecked Towns; More
Than 1,600 People Turn Out To Lend a Hand
(By Claudia Boyd-Barrett)
Millbury resident Tim Miller has lost his house, and he wants to say thank you.
Not to the tornado which left him and his family homeless last weekend, but to the hundreds of people--most of whom he doesn't know--who have come to help pick up the pieces.
Thursday, on what remained of his back deck and next to a hole in the ground that was once his house, Mr. Miller perched a handwritten sign addressed to the volunteers. It read ``Thank You Everyone.''
``I have to,'' Mr. Miller said. ``All these people come out and help you out, you've gotta thank them somehow.''
With volunteers and emergency crews continuing to pour into Wood, Fulton, and Ottawa counties Thursday, recovery and cleanup efforts were moving full-speed.
In Lake Township, site of some of the worst devastation, Police Chief Mark Hummer said he expected the bulk of the cleanup to be done by Saturday. After that, there will be small debris to pick up and rebuilding efforts will begin, he said.
Volunteers included schoolchildren, adults taking time off work, retirees, nonprofit groups, and businesspeople.
Among them, a dozen employees from the Shelly Co. in Findlay and children from a little league baseball team ferried hundreds of hamburgers, hotdogs, and refreshments to residents and other volunteers in the Lake Township area.
Nine-year-old Ryan Kerr was one of the volunteers. He said he wanted to help ``because I feel really bad about all the people losing their homes.'' And, he added, ``it's fun.'' Recruitment of volunteers has been so successful that the United Way announced it would close two of its volunteer reception centers today. With so much of the general cleanup work done, there is only need for specialized volunteers, the agency said.
``The community's response has been absolutely tremendous,'' Bill Kitson, United Way of Greater Toledo president and chief executive officer, said in a statement.
``In the past three days, we have deployed more than 1,600 volunteers to help with clean-up efforts. I'm truly at a loss for words.''
The closed centers were at Grace United Methodist Church at 601 East Boundary St. in Perrysburg and at the Mainstreet Church at 705 North Main St. in Walbridge.
United Way officials said that if people still wish to volunteer and think their specialized skills can be used in restoration efforts, they should call 2-1-1 and give their personal information for reference.
General volunteers are needed in Ottawa and Fulton counties, however. In Fulton County, volunteers can go to Shiloh Christian Union Church, 2100 County Road 5, between 9 a.m. and 6 p.m. today while the location will change to the Swancreek Township Hall, 5565 County Road D for the weekend. Ottawa County has a volunteer reception center at Genoa High School.
Bill Walker, the emergency management director for Erie County who has been helping out in Ottawa County, said the cleanup there would likely continue into next week.
``There's still a lot of work to do,'' he said. ``But it's way better than what it was.''
Amid the cleanup efforts, emergency officials also worked to ensure the area is prepared for future storms. They tested sirens yesterday across Wood County and one siren in Lake Township failed to sound. The siren, outside the fire station on Ayers Road, was fixed within a few hours.
Police Chief Mark Hummer said the siren had electrical problems and may have been struck by lightning.
It was not known whether any other sirens failed to work during the testing that lasted about three minutes and started at noon.
The Lake Township site where the siren wasn't working is the closest location to an area of Millbury that was among the hardest hit in the township.
Lake Township fire Chief Todd Walters said the siren was tested a week ago and was working when the tornado hit on Saturday night. Other sirens that were activated Thursday in Lake Township were at the Municipal Building in Millbury, Walbridge behind the police department, and on East Broadway in news conference yesterday morning, the township's police and fire chiefs encouraged people to prepare for future storms by having a battery-operated radio, as well as food and water in a safe area of the house, on hand at all times.
According to the National Weather Service, there is a chance of showers and thunderstorms today and through the weekend, but severe weather conditions have not been predicted.
Also yesterday, Ohio Department of Transportation Director Jolene Molitoris toured the storm-ravaged areas and spoke with officials involved in the recovery efforts. She pledged continued help by ODOT crews in clearing roads and making them safe for emergency personnel and the public.
Ms. Molitoris said she was inspired to see the progress made by the various government agencies on the ground and by volunteers.
``Everybody is a team and there's a power in working together,'' Ms. Molitoris said. ``It reminds us of what it means to be Ohioans.''
In another sign that things are slowly recovering, the Lake Township Police Department moved to a former Ohio Highway Patrol substation on Lemoyne Road. Emergency dispatchers for the Lake Township Fire Department and EMS will continue to work out of the Northwood police dispatch center, however.
Meanwhile, others were recovering on a more personal level. After losing the house they had moved into just three weeks ago to the tornado, Melody Kisseberth and her fiancee, Steve Avers, said they are gradually coming to terms with their ordeal.
``I was devastated for days, but now I'm trying to see the bright side,'' Ms. Kisseberth said, as she picked up the debris along with dozens of volunteers. ``I realized we need to be thankful because there's a lot of people worse off than us.''
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Relatives Pull Together for Girl Orphaned After Tornado
(By the Blade staff)
The extended family of a 7-year-old left orphaned and homeless by the June 5 tornadoes said Monday they are
``pulling together'' to protect the little girl.
Madison Walters' mother, Mary Walters, 36, and her 4-year-old brother, Hayden, were killed shortly after a powerful tornado struck the family home in Millbury, Ohio, ripping off the second story.
Her father, Ryan Walters, 37, who was critically injured, died Sunday at Mercy St. Vincent Medical Center in Toledo.
Madison was released Sunday from the same hospital after days of treatment for broken bones. Her aunt, Amy Sigler, said the child is being cared for by family members.
``She is doing well and is surrounded by her loving family,'' Mrs. Sigler said.
Barbara Walters, Mr. Walters' mother, said she was not surprised at her son's passing, but the family had hoped for a better outcome. She said the couple left a will ``with specific instructions'' for Madison.
The family declined to give specifics about which family members she will live with, citing a desire for privacy.
Mr. Walters will be buried Friday with his wife and son in Lake Township cemetery, Barbara Walters said.
Mrs. Sigler described her brother-in-law, a long-distance runner, as an ``exemplary'' father and husband who dedicated many volunteer hours to help manage the computer systems at Mainstreet Church in Walbridge.
She said faith in God is helping the family cope with their grief.
``God's grace is amazing,'' she said. ``We know we're going to see him again.''
Mr. and Mrs. Walters apparently were asleep in an upstairs bedroom of their Main Street house when the tornado struck. Their children were asleep in the same part of the house, family members said.
The house appears to have been in the direct path of at least one tornado, and was flattened to the foundation.
Mrs. Sigler, who lives in nearby Northwood, said she tried to call her sister to warn her about the approaching storm. She had watched news reports of violent thunderstorms moving across northwest Ohio, and knew the family was asleep. ``The phone just rang and rang,'' she said the day after the storm hit. ``I knew as soon as it hit and she didn't call that something was wrong.''
The storm was one of northwest Ohio's worst.
The others killed include Ted Kranz, 46, who died after part of his Case Road home fell on him after he left his basement to check on a generator; Wauseon resident Kathy Hammitt, 56, who was en route for home along State Rt. 795 after visiting her husband at a nearby hospital, and Bailey Bowman, a 20-year-old mother of a 2-year-old boy, who was killed as she tried to seek shelter at the Lake Township police building.
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