THE VIRGINIAN-PILOT
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: Thursday, November 16, 1995 TAG: 9511160745
SECTION: SUFFOLK SUN PAGE: 12 EDITION: FINAL
TYPE: Cover Story
SOURCE: BY TERRI WILLIAMS, STAFF WRITER
DATELINE: SUFFOLK LENGTH: Medium: 97 lines
THE WEEKEND STORM that leveled trees, damaged houses and shut off electrical power also brought out community spirit in big measure.
Neighbors came out to help each other. Police, fire and rescue squads came together to free citizens from cars that had been damaged by fallen trees.
``It's something you don't see in any other metropolitan cities - neighbors helping neighbors,'' said Suffolk Fire Department spokesman Jeff Messinger.
``I remember when there was a snowstorm in '79 or '80, and the farmers came out and cleared the roads,'' Messinger recalled. ``These are real self-sufficient people in Suffolk.''
And in 1995, it wasn't any different.
Messinger was called away from the movie ``Get Shorty,'' as he watched with his two daughters at Chesapeake Square Mall, when the storm hit.
``There was only 10 minutes left in the movie when we heard the rain coming,'' said Messinger. ``I told my older daughter that a storm was coming.''
Messinger and his daughters returned to Suffolk, and the work began.
Firefighters, police officers and the Nansemond-Suffolk Volunteer Rescue squad worked to remove debris from streets and help residents repair damaged houses. Messinger said about 20 off-duty firemen responded to more than 50 calls that weekend. The city's public works department and the Virginia Department of Transportation also cleared trees and limbs from nearly 20 streets.
Suffolk Police spokesman Mike Simpkins said about 23 officers responded to 222 calls Saturday. From 9 p.m to 10 p.m., Simpkins said, they had seventy-three 911 calls alone.
``It was a chaotic situation,'' said Simpkins. ``When you've got 20 or so police on the street, you're spread pretty thin.''
Simpkins and Messinger said they prioritize calls based on the degree of injury and whether there's a life at risk.
The most serious injury involved Elaine Salmon, who was pinned in her car when a pine tree fell on it. Salmon was listed in stable condition Tuesday at Sentara Norfolk General Hospital.
Other citizens were luckier. For most, the biggest problems were damaged roofs and electrical power outages.
Willie Byrum, who lives in the 300 block of Suburban Drive in Wilroy Acres, said he was upset that his homeowners insurance won't cover the damage to his prized Chevelle. As he waited for the insurance adjuster to assess the damage done to his garage roof and siding, Byrum cleaned debris from his driveway. In his 35 years in the neighborhood, Byrum said he'd never seen such a storm.
``That was a tornado, that wasn't no storm!'' Byrum retorted. ``It sounded like a freight train.''
Joe Jordan, another Wilroy Acres neighbor, agreed.
Jordan said he and his wife camped out in their kitchen when they heard the roar. ``It kept getting louder and louder. It had all the descriptions of a tornado,'' said Jordan.
Yet Jordan said the storm seemed to bring the community closer. Jordan said when the power went out - to remain that way for more than a day - neighbors came out with flashlights to make sure others were OK.
A few blocks away on Wilroy Road, 90-year-old Julius Nielsen was helped by friends and relatives at Bunny's Restaurant. About a dozen people showed up on Sunday to clear pine trees that fell in his yard.
Nielsen gets around, slowly, with a cane. The sight in his clear blue eyes isn't as good as it used to be, and you have to speak up so he can hear you. He appreciated the help.
``It would have taken me months, maybe a year, to clean up,'' said Nielsen. MEMO: [For a related story, see page 13 of The Sun for this date.]
ILLUSTRATION: [Cover]
[Color Photo]
AMID THE CHAOS, HELPING HANDS
ON THE COVER
Diane Taylor helps remove debris from her aunt's home on Wilroy Road
in Suffolk, which was damaged by falling trees. Photo by GARY C.
KNAPP.
Staff photos by JOHN H. SHEALLY II
Clayton Darden surveys damage to a shop on Wilroy Road that was
crushed by a fallen tree during the powerful storm that ripped
through Suffolk Saturday.
Daniel Burt puts his saw to work on a tree in his neighbor's yard on
Pitchkettle Road.
Left to right, David, Sandra and Robert Ritter work on yard full of
pine tree lims on Beaton Street.
Virginia Power lineman Jimmy Boyette, front, and Troy Barnes worked
for hours Saturday night to restore electricity. Many residents were
without power for more than a day.
by CNB