Deltaville like a ‘war zone’

by Larry S. Chowning

A tornado and high winds blew through Middlesex County about 7:30 p.m. Saturday, April 16, leaving areas of Deltaville in shambles and destruction in isolated areas of Remlik.

At the Middlesex County Emergency Operations Center set up at the courthouse in Saluda, county administrator Charles Culley reported that one of the first emergency calls reported to the sheriff’s office involved a trailer that was blown apart on Warner Road in the Remlik area.

“That resulted in two ladies having to be hospitalized, said Culley. “It blew one lady out of the trailer and the structure was totally disintegrated. 

“That was a powerful straight line wind,” he said in describing the storm. “There was damage to trees and and power lines are still down. We thought those high force winds and what may have been a microbust were isolated to that area (Remlik) but we soon found out there was more coming,” said Culley.

At about the same time as the Warner incident took place, a larger and more powerful wind mass struck the Deltaville area. “Then we started getting calls from Deltaville. And, from what we were hearing, we knew we were in big trouble,” said Culley.

“Deltaville is like a war zone. We have people down there saying it’s worse than Hurricane Isabel. Tree damage is extensive, Zoar Church has had tremendous damage, and homes that were in the tornado’s path have been flattened or picked off their foundations and set down somewhere else,” continued Culley.

“We’ve had two dogs doing search and rescue all night long. They are still searching. Gas and propane tanks have been picked up and thrown about, and they just dispatched [at 8:45 a.m. Sunday] a fire truck to go to a site because there is a strong smell of gas.” said Culley.

“It’s still an active situation in the Deltaville area. So far, we’ve had no reports of injuries down there. If that holds, it will be a miracle. We’ve talked to people whose houses were flattened, and how they got out of alive is a miracle too.

Several times Culley said, “If we have gotten out of this [storm] without any fatalities or injures it will be a miracle.”

He noted there have been at least three deaths attributed to the tornado in Gloucester County.

The tornado skipped around, said Culley. “It did damage in the Williamsburg area and then skipped up and landed in Gloucester and then skipped across the Piankatank and hit us.”

Tracy and Paul Seitz live on Porpoise Cove Drive where the tornado set down. On Sunday, Tracy said the tornado caused more damage than Hurricane Isabel. Their house was lifted off its foundation and their next door neighbor’s home was flattened.

“We knew there was a storm warning,” said Tracy. “We were standing at the front door when we heard the winds. My husband yelled, ‘It’s coming! Get back in the house!’ We had enough time to run into the laundry room. The sound was of debris and things hitting our house and then, just like that, it (storm) was gone!”

“When we walked out it was like total devastation,” she said. “All the trees were down. The Waldens’ house next door was gone and then we were afraid for their lives.”

Johnny Walden, whose parents own the cinderblock house next to the Seitz house, was home when the storm hit. He got his mother Nancy to lie down on the floor of his parents’ bedroom and his 80-year-old father Stanley to lie in the bed while he stood in the hall. The storm collapsed two of the bedroom walls to the outside. Stanley suffered minor cuts to the leg and face, but all escaped serious injuries.

Stanley noted he had two baseball caps hanging on his bedpost and they were still there undisturbed after the storm, even though the house was flattened.

Johnny said the wind sucked their dog out of the house. The dog was later found unhurt.

The Middlesex County Emergency Services Shelter at Middlesex Elementary School at Locust Hill stayed open until 1 a.m. Sunday morning, and has reopened at 9 a.m. for anyone in need of help.

“We did not have anyone there last night but we’ve opened it this morning because we feel people who stayed in their houses last night will now realize they are not going to have (electrical) power back any time soon,” said Culley, noting that numerous power lines were knocked down by the storm.

In “downtown” Deltaville, Zoar Baptist Church had its steeple toppled and sanctuary destroyed, and many other buildings were damaged. Limbs and downed power lines were everywhere.

The Lower Middlesex Volunteer Fire Department of Deltaville held a press conference at the firehouse at 10 a.m. on Sunday to update citizens on storm damage and relief efforts.

Corrine Johnson’s mobile home (above) on Warner Road at Remlik was completely destroyed Saturday evening. Also, the mobile home of Bessie Bagby near the Johnson home was also flattened. Debris from the trailers was found 200 yards away. Both Johnson and Bagby were hospitalized. According to relatives at the scene, Bagby is in intensive care at Riverside Hospital in Newport News. (Photo by Larry Chowning)

posted 04.17.2011

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