Tag Archives: woodward tornado

April is still tornado season in Oklahoma

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April is not a good month in Oklahoma, unless you’re a storm chaser.

The news today is full of stories about the latest string of deadly tornadoes that swept through Oklahoma and on to Arkansas.

These are close to home for Meda. As an infant, she survived one of Oklahoma’s deadliest tornadoes in the state’s history. We usually pause on the anniversary to reflect on the event. This year, we forgot.

What still ranks as the deadliest tornado to ever hit the State of Oklahoma, and one of the worst in U.S. history, swept up from Texas on the evening of April 9, 1947, striking the town of Woodward at 8:42 p.m. with the power of an F5 storm. At least 107 people were killed and nearly another 1,000 injured in Woodward alone. Over 100 city blocks, and more than 1,000 homes and businesses in the city were destroyed.

House destroyedMeda was just a few months old. Her father was working as a geologist in the Oklahoma oil fields. Meda and her mother were at home in Woodward when the tornado struck without warning.

Click on the photo for more pictures of their house.

They were lucky. When the house started coming apart, a wall fell down over them, protecting them from other flying debris. They were later able to get out of the rubble and were then found and rescued by a neighbor. A family photo made the pages of the Daily Oklahoman, and was later distributed by AP.

Meda’s mother wrote a long letter home about the ordeal, which you can read here.

Meda, of course, has no recollection of the tornado, but it was a huge part of her family’s history.

Saturday….Tornado’s mark twister anniversary, LRB iClips down, letters to Rep. Takumi, HI leads earmarks list

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The tornadoes that hit on Thursday, including one that touched down just across the Oklahoma border in Mena, Arkansas, came on the 62nd anniversary of the monster tornado that my wife, Meda, survived as an infant. That 1947 storm still ranks as the deadliest in Oklahoma history.

Hawaii reporters might want to put a local spin on that national weather story by talking to City Councilman Duke Bainum. The tornado swept through an area served by Diamond Bank, owned by Bainum’s family company. It’s got a branch in the little town of Mena, where three people were killed in Thursday’s storm.

Arkansas Diamond Bank: Mena Branch at 203 Highway 71 North, branch established on 1998-04-20. Info updated 2006-11-03: Bank assets: $126.6 mil, Deposits: $113.2 mil, headquarters in Glenwood, AR, positive income, 5 total offices, Holding Company: Bainum Bancorp

Bainum served as CEO of Diamond Bank until he returned to Honolulu last year to make his successful run for the City Council, and he’s probably quite familiar with Mena. I don’t know if he still carries the CEO title from a distance, although it’s listed that way on the bank’s web site. In any case, I would be surprised if he hasn’t been in close touch with the situation.

Have you noticed that LRB’s iClips daily news summary hasn’t been updated for the last week?

Don’t miss the selection of thank you letters from students to Rep. Roy Takumi after he spoke to a class at Pearl City High School. They’re gathered on the Hawaii House Blog (Part 1, Part 2).

Some of these were priceless:

John: “It was kind of boring but hey I was learning.”

Josephine: “And I realized that Representatives do alot of things and meet alot of people. Most people think you don’t do much since not much change is happening.”

Timothy: ” I am thankful that you answered my two questions with a long answer. That killed a good 20 min. of school time. Just kidding. ”

Randie: “Oh, I thought you were really funny. Maybe if you retire from politics, you could give comedy a try. ”

Such are the rewards of holding public office.

Can this be correct?? Watchdog.net ranks Hawaii’s two congressional districts as tops in earmarks per capita, with the 1st District at $757 and 2nd District at $734.

It was just after 5 a.m. when I got my laptop set up on the dining table. Ms. Kili was sitting right there purring and trying to rub her face on the top edge of the screen. Why is this so popular? I think it’s just an excuse for hanging around until I put a little more food down for her. To test the theory, I stood up suddenly. She immediately turned, jumped to the floor, and headed towards the food dish on the kitchen floor, turning to let me know that it’s time to follow. A portion of a scoop in her dish, and a bit more in Ms. Annie’s dish on the counter, problem solved. Hopefully they didn’t leave much for the much overweight boys to clean up.

[text]What’s this? More cat pictures? It’s not Friday!

No, but these mark the first pictures with a new camera. I at least had a chance to get it out of the box, charge the battery, and try to decipher the most basic operations in time to do a few test shots. It’s going to take a while to get get used to it. More later. In the meantime, click on Toby’s photo and enjoy a few extra cats.

Wednesday…The morning after a Thai meal, Gov. Lingle stumbles, civil unions bill close to passing House, another Oklahoma tornado, and walking before dawn

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[text]We had dinner with friends last night at Restaurant Row’s Payao Thai Restaurant, one of our few “regular” spots. I had my camera along but didn’t think to put it to use until we had done some serious eating.

All dishes were ordered “hot” which, as everyone knows, is really a notch or two below “Thai hot”. As my mother might ask, “are those red things peppers?” The short answer, yes. Hot peppers. And enough of them to do some damage, which I’m feeling the aftermath of at this stage of the morning.

I’m still trying to figure out what’s going on with Gov. Lingle these days. First she blows off the initial meeting between governors and Obama, saying she’s just too busy. Then she declines to join other governors in lobbying for a stimulus bill that includes substantial aid to the states, despite facing a budget meltdown at home that would be dramatically improved if that federal money came through. And facing high budget anxiety, her administration has yet to propose a budget plan to cope with falling revenue, instead asking the Legislature to push back its deadlines and essential be forced to rush through the process at the end of the session. And the Advertiser’s Peter Boylan tells us Lingle was again “too busy” to meet with the NFL commissioner for some serious one-on-one regarding bringing the Pro Bowl back to the islands.

What in the world is she thinking?

House Bill 444, that would provide civil unions in Hawaii, passed second reading on the House floor yesterday and was placed on the calendar for third reading with just 10 members voting “no”. Seven Democrats joined three Republicans in voting against the measure, which now seems almost certain to be sent over to the Senate.

I’m sure there’s a mention of the vote somewhere in today’s newspapers, although a quick Google search of online news failed to turn up anything.

The commitee report accompanying HB 444 details those testifying for and against the bill. It probably reads a lot like a preview of the 2010 gubernatorial election lineup.

A member of the Board of Education, the Democratic Party of Hawaii, Hawaii State AFL-CIO, Hawaii Government Employees Association, Hui O Mana Ka Pu’uwai Outrigger Canoe Club, TriKauai Triathalons, Holy Innocents Episcopal Church, Planned Parenthood of Hawaii, “I Do” Weddings, Profile Video Productions, Kauai Island Weddings, Screen Actors Guild Hawaii Branch, First Unitarian Church of Honolulu, Family Equality Coalition, Interfaith Alliance Hawaii, Waikiki Neighborhood Board, National Association of Social Workers – Hawaii, Legislative Committee of the Democratic Party of Hawaii, Gregory House Programs, League of Women Voters of Hawaii, Pride Hilo, Progressive Democrats of Hawaii, Children of Lesbians and Gays Everywhere, Da Moms, Kauai Wedding Professional Association, Japanese American Citizens League – Honolulu Chapter, Hawaii Friends of Civil Rights, Life Foundation, Americans for Democratic Action/Hawaii, Hawaii Women’s Political Caucus, PFLAG – Oahu, American Friends Service Committee, Filipino American Citizens League, League of Women Voters of Hawaii, American Civil Liberties Union of Hawaii, Nursing Advocates & Mentors, Inc., Pride At Work Hawaii, Hawaii State Democratic Women’s Caucus, Hawaii HIV/AIDS Community Planning Group – Steering Committee, University of Hawaii Professional Assembly, Advocates For Consumer Rights, GLBT Caucus of the Democratic Party, and a multitude of concerned individuals supported this bill.

The Office of the Lieutenant Governor, Hawaii Family Forum, Christian Voice of Hawaii, Hawaii Christian Coalition, Pro-Family Hawaii, Beth Israel Ministries, Good News Jail & Prison Ministry, Christians in Real Estate, ACTS Foundation, Fiction Readers, Grace 4U Ministries, Fishnet Ministries, Brother Ben Prison Ministries, River of Life Mission, SADAKA International Dance Company, Island Women Restore Lives, Victory Ohana Prison Ministries, Sons of Issacar, Christ Centered Consulting, Market Place Ministries, Youth Vision, Christian Voice of Hawaii, International Dance Academy, The Open Door Academy, Windward Spouse Abuse Shelter, Ho`olohe Pono, Heart Light Ministries, Mercy Ministries International, Shelter of Wisdom, It’s All His, It’s All God’s Ministry, Surfing the Nation, Dads Against Drugs, A2 Media, Hawaii Helps Disabilities, Waikiki Beach Outreach, HE Reigns Christian Network, and numerous concerned individuals opposed this measure.

News of another series of deadly tornadoes in Oklahoma caught our attention. Meda is a survivor of the Woodward tornado of 1947, still ranked as the deadliest tornado in Oklahoma history and one of the deadliest in U.S. history.

[text]I’m not quite sure why I’m carrying a camera during our early morning walk these days. It’s still dark through most of the walk, and doesn’t yet start getting much light until we’re well on the return path towards home. This was the scene when we got to the end of the beach in Kaaawa yesterday and turned around to head back home. Not much to be seen. But under some conditions, the sky can explode with color 30 to 40 minutes before dawn, and I feel like I just have to be prepared. Just in case.