“War, uh, yeah. What is it good for? Absolutely nothing. Say it again,” Edwin Starr sang in the 1970 number one hit song “War, which was a renowned anti-Vietnam War anthem.
One could say much the same thing about tornadoes, like the ones that ripped through Laurel County and five other counties on May 16-17. Statewide the tornadoes on that date killed 19 people, including 17 in Laurel County alone.
The EF-4 tornado in Laurel County also damaged an estimated 1,500 homes and tore apart countless lives. As of May 30, 280 of those homes were classified as totally destroyed, 195 homes had major damage, 133 homes were classified with minor damage, and 134 homes were classified as been affected. Only 817 of the homes had been surveyed as of that date, Laurel County officials announced Friday.
In addition, over 7,750 tons of debris has been hauled to the Laurel Ridge Landfill in Lily.
Many Laurel County residents, who had their homes destroyed or damaged, will be suffering physically for a long time. This doesn’t even include the post-traumatic stress disorder that those folks are experiencing in addition to survivor’s guilt that many Laurel County residents are feeling, who didn’t have their homes destroyed while friends and neighbors did.
I’ll say it again (LOL). The Laurel County tornado itself – much like the Vietnam War – was good for absolutely nothing.
While the tornado itself was good for absolutely nothing, we have seen goodness emerge in its aftermath.
One of the great things about America, and particularly Southeastern Kentucky, is that we are there for our neighbors and friends and even complete strangers when the chips are down.
As of May 30, 2,128 people had registered as volunteers in Laurel County.
Others have given in other ways. (Before some of you – you know who you are – call to complain after reading this because you or your group isn’t listed, let me say that, no, the following is not a complete list of groups, businesses, organizations and individuals, who have volunteered or given. It is just some of the ones that I am aware of and ones that I have mentioned to illustrate the wonderful giving nature of our area.)
For instance, the Whitley County Fiscal Court has put together a gift card drive to help their neighbors to the north in Laurel County with numerous people and agencies making donations, including the Whitley County Sheriff’s Department among others.
The Corbin Police Department served last month as a drop off location for donations.
There were two members of the Corbin Fire Department, who had their homes significantly damaged in the tornado to say the least. Many Corbin firefighters volunteered spending hours helping tornado victims.
The Corbin Police Department and the Corbin Fire Department were among the first agencies outside of Laurel County to respond to the tornado with some Corbin police officers calling up the chief at 2:30 a.m. requesting permission to go aid in the search.
There were and are countless free meals donated by businesses to tornado victims and volunteers as they work to recover in the aftermath of the storm. Other businesses have pitched in other ways, such as W.D. Bryant and Son Ace Hardware helping with a chainsaw sharpening station a few weeks ago in London. Other businesses and individuals have pitched in with heavy equipment and other efforts.
This doesn’t include efforts by area churches, or just by regular folks, who took in tornado victims and put a roof over their heads while they waited for assistance.
As of May 30, 479 Laurel County residents were being sheltered somewhere by the American Red Cross.
Whitley and Laurel County Emergency Management Director Jerry Rains told me Monday that cash and gift cards are some of the best ways to donate right now. He listed Cumberland Valley National Bank, United Way and Martin’s Peterbilt, which are all taking monetary donations at this time
If you haven’t given to relief efforts yet to help these folks impacted by the tornado, please consider doing so. Also, keep in mind that this is going to be a long-term recovery. After FEMA, the American Red Cross and other groups leave the area, many of our neighbors in Laurel County will still need our help.
They will also need help with things that these agencies and/or insurance companies won’t help with. For instance, I know of one instance, where a group turned down a lady asking for help replacing her walker that was lost in the tornado. She was using her cane to get around. However, another local group pitched in to make sure she got another walker.
I am pretty sure that there will be plenty more of these types of stories in the future.
