Governor going to Trumann as FEMA assesses Arkansas tornado damage

Gov. Asa Hutchinson observes the damage to Monette Manor on Saturday, Dec. 11, 2021 after a tornado tore through the town of Monette the night before. See more photos at arkansasonline.com/1212storm/..(Arkansas Democrat-Gazette/Staci Vandagriff)
Gov. Asa Hutchinson observes the damage to Monette Manor on Saturday, Dec. 11, 2021 after a tornado tore through the town of Monette the night before. See more photos at arkansasonline.com/1212storm/..(Arkansas Democrat-Gazette/Staci Vandagriff)


Gov. Asa Hutchinson will travel to Trumann today to meet with local leaders and tour tornado response efforts, according to his office.

Representatives from the Federal Emergency Management Agency arrived in Arkansas on Wednesday to assess the damage from Friday's tornadoes, which destroyed 61 buildings and killed two people.

Hutchinson said more than 300 buildings were "impacted" by Friday's storms.

Three or four tornadoes tore through northeast Arkansas on Friday night, according to the National Weather Service in Memphis. The Arkansas tornadoes have tentatively been rated at least EF-3 on the Enhanced Fujita Scale, meaning they had wind speeds between 136 and 165 mph.

In Arkansas, the towns of Monette, Leachville and Trumann took the brunt of the damage. One of the tornadoes headed across the Missouri bootheel and into Kentucky, possibly setting a record for the longest tornado path on the ground.

With help from the Arkansas Division of Emergency Management, the FEMA workers will put together a preliminary damage estimate to determine whether the state will meet the threshold for a federal disaster declaration, said Shealyn Sowers, a spokeswoman for the governor's office.

The assessment "will determine availability of both state and federal funding under the Individual Assistance program for uninsured property losses, or the Public Assistance program for cities and counties to repair damage to public infrastructure," Sowers said in an email.

During his weekly news briefing Tuesday, Hutchinson said total uninsured losses from Friday's tornadoes would need to be "somewhere between" $4 million and $5 million for Arkansas to be declared a federal disaster area.

On Saturday, Hutchinson declared a state of emergency and issued an executive order that obligated $100,000 from the Emergency Response Fund of the Governor's Disaster Fund to be used at the discretion of A.J. Gary, the director of the state's Division of Emergency Management, "to defray both program and administrative costs."

"At this time the state is providing resources as they are requested through local emergency managers," Sowers said.

She said it's important for homeowners to document any losses or assistance needed.

"If the federal disaster thresholds are not met, the state resources will be used to meet emergency needs," she said.

Sowers said people in the affected areas who need assistance should contact the local emergency managers. She said a variety of nonprofit organizations also are providing help.

But Anthony Patterson, the lead pastor at Healing Hands Community Church in Trumann, said many people are too proud to ask for help.

"I'm having a hard time getting people to leave their homes," Patterson said. "They have holes in their roofs, they have no water, but they will not leave their homes. Very large sense of pride here in our community. Strong people."

Patterson said 40 to 50 people stayed at the shelter set up in his church Friday night. Most were cold and hungry, he said.

On Saturday, shelters were opened at First Assembly of God Church and Old Landmark Worship Center, both in Trumann. Forty-six people stayed in the three shelters that night, Patterson said. The number dropped during the week -- to 26 Sunday, 11 Monday and five Tuesday.

With the dwindling numbers, the shelters at Healing Hands Community Church and First Assembly of God Church were closed Tuesday, and people needing shelter were directed to the Landmark church, Patterson said. It's within walking distance for people whose vehicles were destroyed by the tornado, he said.

Patterson expected more people to go to the Landmark church shelter Wednesday night because temperatures were expected to drop.

He said some Trumann residents were staying at a Days Inn in town.

The Red Cross announced that Wednesday morning it closed a shelter for tornado victims it was operating at the Earl Bell Community Center in Jonesboro.

Patterson said Healing Hands Community Church delivered about 2,000 hot meals the first two days after the storm, and other churches were doing similar good work.

Terah Redman, who has been spearheading the city's relief effort, said they've been providing 500 to 600 meals per day.

She said it's been a volunteer effort, with many restaurants in Trumann and Jonesboro providing meals.

"It's been an amazing outpouring from everyone," she said.

Patterson said the city's nursing home, Quail Run Health and Rehab, was destroyed by the tornado. He said four people were trapped inside when the roof collapsed, but they were rescued. and all 36 residents were transferred to a nursing home in Jonesboro.

Golden Wes Hembrey, a 94-year-old Korean War veteran, died Friday night when a tornado destroyed Monette Manor nursing home. The other Arkansas tornado fatality was June Ann Pennington, 52, of Manila, who was working at the Dollar General Store in Leachville when it was hit by a tornado.

Hutchinson and Gary visited Monette Manor on Saturday. They surveyed other tornado-hit areas by helicopter.


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