Tornado Clean-Up, Citizen Safety Top Priorities

WINDSOR, Colo. -- An overnight curfew ended in Windsor after a large tornado hit the town, one of several in a 35-mile-long path of destruction.

Only authorized people are being allowed into the area Friday, but deputies were busy trying to stop unauthorized vehicles trying to access the area off road.

Several highways near Windsor remained closed following the tornadoes that struck parts of Larimer and Weld counties Thursday. The closures mainly impact traffic coming into or out of Windsor. Currently, State Highway 257 and SH 392 into Windsor are closed to through traffic and only local residents or emergency personnel will be allowed to travel into Windsor.

While there was no infrastructure damage to any state highways, there were many traffic signs and signal poles that were damaged.

“Right now, our main focus is to restore traffic functionality on the roadways that sustained damage,” said Colorado Department of Transportation Region Transportation Director Bob Garcia. “We will be working hard to replace things like stop signs and yield signs and get all signals operational once again.”

In addition to the roadway work, CDOT is working closely with incident command officials in Windsor to make staff and equipment available to assist in the emergency efforts.

As of mid-day Friday, only one fatality had been confirmed.

According to Weld County Coroner's Office, Oscar Michael Manchester, 52, was killed at the Missile Silo Campground near Colo. 257 near 10th Street in West Greeley. He was a transient, living in his RV.

After completing the initial search and rescue operation, two additional sweeps of the town were completed to check and re-check for injured citizens and those that needed assistance.

Three search and rescue dogs were also utilized during the operation.

Officials were not aware of anyone missing as of noon Friday.

Only 13 people were treated for injuries at hospitals, but more than 100 others got medical attention for minor injuries at a Windsor community center, said Jim Shires, a spokesman for emergency responders.

Fire personnel continued to work to address medical calls, gas leaks, water main breaks and downed power lines.

The entire town of Windsor was without power for several hours. Excel Energy crews worked tirelessly throughout the day and night to return power to some areas of town.

Windsor residents were attending morning town hall information meeting to learn more about the damage and what needs to be done to recover.

They learned that it will be at least another day before those who were evacuated Thursday will be allowed into the area to see their homes.

"We're working very diligently to get you in," said Bill Easterling, of the Jeffco Incident Management Team, called in by the state. He said hazards in the area will include gas and asbestos. He told the crowd that the area would be protected from looting until residents are allowed back in.

Residents were also informed that loose animals were brought to the recreation center. They include a lizard.

Mail for customers in the restricted areas will be held by the post office and can be picked up there. The post office is open until 5 p.m.

Congresswoman Marilyn Musgrave told those attending the meeting that she has requested additional federal aid from President George W. Bush.

Residents learned that infrastructure in Windsor was compromised in several areas and many roadways became impassable due to debris.

Hundreds of trees were uprooted, cars were toppled on top of each other, fences were blown down, roofs were blown off and empty railroad cars were overturned during the storm.

Many homes and businesses were partially or completely destroyed by the storm.

Most streets have been minimally cleared so that emergency personnel can travel through the neighborhoods. Additional work must be done before roads can be completely re-opened.

Weld Food Bank will distribute emergency food boxes to disaster victims Friday at the Windsor Community Center. Boxes will be distributed from 1 to 3 p.m. at 250 11th Street.

Those wishing to volunteer for the recovery efforts in Windsor are asked to call 211 to coordinate their response. Authorities are urging people to stay out of the Windsor area unless they are specifically requested to respond.

Citizens can contact the Co-Help line at 877-462-2911 to speak with professionals regarding health-related issues.

Domestic animals are being housed at the Windsor Community Recreation Center. Injured animals are being cared for by a veterinary staff at the same location.

The Budweiser Event Center is shutting down operations and all services were being relocated to the Community Recreation Center located at 250 N. 11th Street, in Windsor.

The Salvation Army is providing meals for first responders involved in the recovery efforts in Windsor.

FEMA sent assessment teams to the area to evaluate the damaged areas.

Priorities for Friday

Return the Windsor Nursing Home to full electrical services. (Currently running on generator power)

Addressing the special need population and their specific needs.

Working with Excel Energy to restore power to the entire town.

Working with Excel Energy and others to begin debris removal. (The process of cutting down, collecting and chipping trees.)

The tornado cut power to 60,000 customers. Only about 6,000 were still without power early Friday, but Xcel Energy said it could be a week before they are back on line.

"We can't find poles, wires, transformers" where the tornado went through, Xcel spokesman Mark Stutz said Friday. "Stuff is gone. There's nothing there."

Stutz said the company lost about 200 wooden utility poles, six tall transmission towers and about 10 miles of wire.

The utility also repaired about two dozen natural gas leaks, mostly in Windsor, that opened when houses were ripped off their foundations

The Weld County Sheriff's Department was providing citizens with updates and alerts via its Web site.

Windsor Tornado Fact Sheet

The Windsor-Severance Fire Department immediately deployed throughout town and began search and rescue operations. Emergency responders from many surrounding jurisdictions quickly arrived to assist with the effort.

Fire Departments:

Windsor-Severance Fire Department, Union Colony Fire Rescue, Loveland Fire Department, Poudre Fire Authority, Evans Fire Department, Platte Valley Fire Department, Eaton Fire Department, Milliken Fire Department, Boulder Fire Department, Johnstown Fire Department, Mountain View Fire Department, Lafayette Fire Department, Frederick Fire/Firestone Fire Department.

Ambulance Services:

Poudre Valley Ambulance

AMR

Weld County Paramedics

Law Enforcement:

Windsor Police Department

Greeley Police Department

Fort Collins Police Department

Weld County Sheriff’s Office

Larimer County Sheriff’s Office

Colorado State Patrol

Evans Police Department

Other Agencies:

Colorado National Guard

Colorado Division of Wildlife

Colorado State University

U.S. Forest Service

CERT (Citizens Emergency Response Team)

Several USAR Teams (Urban Search & Rescue)

Reaction

"I didn't want to see this. That's for sure," said Alexander Martinez, 41, gazing at a staircase, balcony, television and couch from his apartment that ended up in his front yard in an east Windsor neighborhood. The roof and a front wall were gone."

"It passed right over us like a big, white monster," said Thomas Coupe, 87, of Windsor.

Gov. Bill Ritter declared a state of emergency for Weld County on Thursday, mobilizing the Colorado National Guard to assist with disaster response.

"We had a FEMA person with us and FEMA needs to decide if they are going to bring teams in," Gov. Bill Ritter told 7NEWS on Friday. "If they do decide to come in, then we qualify for federal help and aid."

Earthmovers rolled into damaged sections of Windsor to clear debris and utility crews worked to repair downed lines and poles. Residents surveyed damage to their homes; in some areas, one house remained intact while another was demolished.

The tornado damaged three buildings at a State Farm Insurance operations center on Greeley's west side where about 1,200 people were working, but no one was hurt, company spokeswoman May Martinez-Hendershot said. "They were all able to get down into a safe center and we had no injuries," she said.

Some cars in the State Farm parking lot were tossed like toys and the force of the winds dragged other cars into the grass surrounding the parking lot, leaving trails of tire tracks through the grass.

Loree Wilkinson, 39, said her children, ages 6 and 9, were playing with hail outside their home until the hail got larger. She rushed them into the basement.

Wilkinson said her youngest child, Kazden, prayed: "Please don't let me die because I just graduated from kindergarten."

Weld County is known as a prolific tornado spawning ground -- but its twisters are usually small, short-lived and in the county's sparsely populated eastern plains. Thursday's deadly tornado moved through the western part of the county.

While destructive tornadoes are generally known to roar through the Midwest, Weld County had the highest number of reported tornadoes -- 213 -- of any county in the United States between 1950 and 2000, according to the National Weather Service. About seven tornadoes are typically reported in the county each year.