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Nostalgia

2007-06-01 16:32:00

Remember...

Answer: You are so correct. The devastation of the Greensburg tornado was the worst ever in Kansas. The loss of life and the property damage was unparalleled. There were so many lives that were changed in that short period of time. These past few weeks have been extraordinary insofar as the weather. It seems like there have been warnings of some kind somewhere in the state or the surrounding states daily. One always remembers the older folks talking about all the bad weather when they were kids...but I would have to say May of 2007 tops about anything they could have ever remembered. The Greensburg tornado was the most destructive...over the widest area...of any tornado ever. And yes, I do remember the Udall tornado. I remember working at Channel 12. Our studios were in the basement of the Lassen Hotel in the area where the Petroleum Club was located originally. We had just finished the evening news. I was an on-camera announcer and had done commercials this particular night on the Bob Cummings Show....and Liberace. Joe Mackonkey, who was then News Director and an on-air anchor for the 10 o’ clock news....had delivered the pre-reports of a tornado that had struck Udall, Kansas that evening. He asked me if I would like to accompany him and the other news reporters to Udall to view the damage. I was amazed to see not only the damage but the loss of life. There were 83 citizens of Udall that were killed in that storm. Outside the damage was horrible. The entire town, like Greensburg, was wiped out. Greensburg suffered the largest area of devastation that ever was reported from a tornado...and Udall suffered the greatest loss of life. Remembering the Udall tornado has caused me to remember all kinds of bad weather in the past. I remember the flooding that used to occur so often. When I was very young, I remember my Aunt coming to our house at 11th and Lewellen and hearing the news then reported only on radio (TV was not here yet in the 40’s), and she would have to leave and hurry to her home located in the 29th block of North Market because of the flooding that was occurring. I can remember laying awake many nights and listening to the flood water fill the basement. I would watch it start by running down through the gutters then over the yards and into the homes. Some of the kids in my neighborhood had a real small row boat and they would get groceries and supplies from the store and take them to folks who decided to stay in their homes. I can’t say enough good things about the engineers that designed, and the city leaders who had the foresight to install the ‘big ditch’. This project has saved the city and its citizenry untold millions of dollars and suffering from floods. There have been so many ‘big snows’ too, that have crippled the city. Imagine how devastating one of these big snows would be without the equipment we have today. I remember in 1948, my Dad had a brand new Pontiac that he bought at Byron Stout, on South Main. Dad was driving and a car was approaching us. The car jumped the ruts that he was trying to stay in and slid into our car taking off the fender. Kansans are tough people. It has been said by most everyone...celebrities, officials, witnesses and news reporters (both local and national)...that the spirit and resiliency of the folks who live in Greensburg are fantastic, indicating their strong desire to rebuild their town. I am sure with all of our prayers, they will do exactly that. Let’s hope June is more friendly.