Freak storm leads to freak accident. One man remembers his father, the only man to die in the 2009 derecho.
On
Nothing happened.
Then another wave was supposed to come through and again they put inmates in their cells. Still no big storm. Arbeiter chalked it up to weathermen crying wolf.
That day, a derecho, sometimes called an inland hurricane, tore through
But, as far as Arbeiter knew, nothing had happened.
"I called the neighbors, and they said no damage at all here," Arbeiter said.
When he got off his shift he looked at his cellphone and realized he might have missed the mark. There was a message. It was about his father in
"He was never did anything but manual labor," Allen said of his dad. He retired from Southern Illinois University Carbondale, where he worked in the dormitories on campus. He also fixed appliances and owned an RCA home entertainment business.
George was at home with his wife
According to his son, George went up from the basement to take a look at what was going on.
"So he went up to the top of the steps to look out the door and pulled the big heavy door open," Allen remembered.
Next, Allen said is something he can't seem to explain.
"Well, a limb blew off the tree and went right through the door and hit him as soon as (he) got to the top and knocked him to the bottom of the steps."
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What didn't make sense to him, though, is how the limb blew against the wind down what he said was a breezeway and into his father.
With the amount of debris on George's property and in the area, Allen said it took two hours to get him out, all the while Allen's stepmother was stuck in the basement with her unconscious husband.
As soon as he heard what had happened,
Just a few short hours after he was thrown down the steps,
"He died right before six o'clock that night,"
While most of the region was busy trying to cut up downed limbs, rebuild roofs and find gas for their generators -- much of the area around
"We just were on hold," Allen said.
While they were on hold, they cleaned up the property. Allen said he was the one who removed the limb that had killed his father.
"We closed the basement off," Allen said. "My stepmother didn't want to go down there anymore."
He said they moved the washing machine and dryer and the deep freezer upstairs so she wouldn't have to have a reason to go down there. "She was just traumatized by being stuck down there with them for several hours."
Arbeiter has done his best to put things back together for himself, but still he said he goes right back every
Arbeiter said he does what most do to keep the memory of his father alive -- he still watches the stock car races and thinks of his dad and plays the music that he knew his dad loved. The day-to-day pangs of loss still catch him, though.
"Once a while, you just think, 'I need to give him a call, see what's going on,'" he said. "Then you have to rethink it, of course."
Mother Nature's challenge
The day of the derecho was scary at best. With down trees, no power and damage to the house, it was clear we were being challenged by Mother Nature.
When a few of us were discussing the day recently, the contribution by River Radio was mentioned. Members of the River Radio staff also had affects of the storm to their property, but the staff showed up and kept the sound waves going. The radio station gave up-to-date reports of weather and where people could get food, shelter, water and hope.
The entire region was affected by these unselfish individuals who put the community needs above themselves. I will always be thankful to the
One memorable weekend
My dad picked me up after school ended at EIU and headed down to
The amount of rain that came down is what I remember most. It felt like I had parked the car under a waterfall. Luckily, we were able to drive away when the storm ended, and then realizing we were could not get many places due to downed trees and lines.
Who knew this would be the beginning of one of the most memorable weekends I had in
I always say my Mom's car was blessed. A tree came down and hit exactly where the car is normally parked at my Grandparents. Then, the car was suppose to be parked at the Huck's in
Drove right through it in a 2008 Tahoe
Left
We got south of
Leaves and tree limbs were blowing sideways at our Tahoe. Later learned how bad the storm was. It also blew down my great-grandparents' barn in
Waterloo
A solid wall of water
We remember the super derecho! My husband had rotator cuff surgery the day before and we were at Southern Illinois Orthopedics for his therapy.
The first storms started rolling in and the medical and clerical staff rounded everyone up and put us in an interior room. After the storm passed, we left the ortho center and went to pick my sister up for lunch at Triple E BBQ just off of
While we were eating, another storm (the derecho) came roaring in. The ceiling tiles in the restaurant were blowing all over the place, the customers, including us, were standing at the windows watching trees and poles flying through the air. And the rain. Omg, the rain! It was a solid wall of water! It was scary as hell!
It didn't last long but it sure seemed like it did. We left as soon as it was safe. Tried taking my sister home (she lived on
We got back to our SUV and had to find a way to get to
When we got to Crainville,
My hubby was taking pain meds, so he was kind of out of it. Thankfully, our house didn't get severely damaged, we had a lot of limbs down, etc. We were without power for almost two weeks. Cooked everything possible out of the fridge and freezer, had to drive to
Crainville
More exciting than horrific
I was at the end of my sophomore year at SIUC, and everyone was packing up and moving out of the dorms for the summer. When the storm hit, I was in Kellogg Hall and even though a few people went to the basement, most of us just stood in the halls and watched trees fall over next to the lake. Someone yelled that a car got crushed out front. I remember calling my mom in the middle of it and excitedly narrating the storm. I think she was confused as to why I was calling her and not going downstairs.
After everything calmed down, I walked around and took pictures of the damage. The power was out, so I didn't have much light for packing the rest of my belongings to go home. And, not having anything better to do, a group of my friends got together and played Simpsons Clue by candlelight. Ultimately, I remember it more as an exciting experience than a horrific one, but then again, I didn't own property in the area.
The worst storm in my lifetime
I am 87+ years old, and the 2009 derecho was the worst storm I've experienced in my lifetime.
That Friday began as normal -- anticipating playing bridge at the
I drove home with a friend as passenger. We were horrified at seeing some huge, beautiful trees lying on the ground. I panicked when I saw some electrical wires lying across the road. I was hesitant to drive over them and waited until I saw another car do it safely.
Trees were blown down next to my home, but the dwelling was not touched. I was safe and felt the need to say a prayer of
My son came to visit me the next day (
All in all, for me everything was well that ended well. Others were not so lucky.
I'll never forget it
I'll never forget it. My day as
However, lunch was cut short due to a rainstorm brewing from the west. As the dark clouds started rolling in, I received a phone call from one of my employees. She told me to be prepared because there was a funnel cloud spotted in
We had a number of guests in the restaurant and I came back to alert the people that were sitting near the windows to please move to the center of the restaurant. Everyone responded with the exception of a few who paid and left. A tree on the south side of Denny's flew through the air, electricity went off and a light pole fell just inches away from an employee's car. I instructed the remaining guests and employees to go into our storeroom. Everyone responded and thank good goodness our emergency lights came on.
After the storm was over, I noticed that big trees and lines were down in
She was still a little excited and I could not understand her. I then asked to speak to
Thank God everyone at work and home were safe through this derecho. I'll never forget it!
A storm with what appeared to be an 'eye'
The morning of
Around 12:15 a wave of strong thunderstorms began moving across the area. The wind picked up. I noticed something peculiar on radar. Another storm was developing across the
The power started flickering in the hallway at about
I left for home around
I reached
'I didn't know where I was'
I worked at as a customer service supervisor at Kroger at that time. I had only been clocked in a few moments when I received a call from upstairs management.
"There's a storm heading towards
"Attention,
I began helping customers find the door to the cooler. The tiny room was crammed full of about 50 people. A woman with tears pouring down her cheeks refused to enter. "I can't handle this. I can't do this," she kept repeating. I didn't know what to do, instinctively I hugged her and begged her to go into the room to be safe. Another woman took her arm and told her to keep breathing and keep her eyes closed.
I heard the walls creaking from the wind and watched as the suspended aisle signs bounced frantically on their cables. I'm not religious, but I prayed, "Please, God, not here, not today, I'm meant for more."
The power didn't go off until after the storm. I spent the afternoon helping to preserve as much of the cold merchandise as possible. Because we were going to lose it anyway, management rolled out grill and began cooking up food for the crew and customers who wandered over in search of supplies and answers.
I walked home that night, across the town I'd lived my entire life, and for the first time ever I didn't know where I was. The city was unrecognizable.
A day I certainly won't forget
I was only 4 years old at the time, but I remember a lot about this storm.
My day started like any other. My mom went off to work as a preschool teacher, and my dad worked the evening shift at
When the first round of the storm initially hit, we were in
After the storm, I remember seeing a field of tree limbs. We thought that our mobile home was destroyed, but with god's grace, it wasn't. We walked through a flight of 30 steps covered with tree limbs to get back inside. A day I certainly won't forget.
Forced to be creative with our food options
I was a student in my senior year at SIUC. I worked as a carrier for The Southern and was unable to complete most of my
We had a lot of down time without power at our apartment complex and it allowed us all to get to know our neighbors better. We were forced to be creative with our food options as I remember watching my roommate cook eggs on the grill.
I remember watching the storm with my roommate and realizing it was unlike anything we had ever experienced.
A long journey home
At dawn on
When the rain and wind stopped, I walked in around fallen trunks and tree limbs past Pulliam and Shryock. The oldest part of campus' landscape looked destroyed. My destination was the physical plant offices where Dave worked. Our phones weren't working. He wasn't in his office.
The sun was now out and the sky was blue. I got our truck, but had trouble finding a route away from campus that was clear to drive through. I saw Dave driving an SIU vehicle at the
Chautauqua and Old 13 were blocked, so I drove New 13 to 127 South. A long line of cars stalled again and again. At the bottom of Tom Cat Hill, there were stopped cars as far as one could see north and south. We all got out to talk with each other, share stories of where we were when. We heard chainsaws ahead of us. We'd travel a ways between cleared trees, then stop again. I was on 127 for three and a half hours to get to the
From
I used the chainsaw and tractor to begin clearing the driveway. It would take days. Dozens of trees were down along our fields' extensive woodlines, which wouldn't be totally cleared up for a couple years.
I reached our high school kids at friends' houses in town. They would stay where there were showers, they said. We had no electricity or running water. Dave didn't make it home that night either. He slept a few hours in a chair at work. He directed overtime crews for many days.
The kids drove home to help haul limbs to piles. We rummaged through the refrigerator and cupboards for perishable foods and crackers. I had drinking water stored. All day and evening, we could hear chainsaws through all the valleys all around our property.
Dave came home after dark with extra gas and a
On
Most of the
A new home
On
On
It took me 90 minutes to drive from the bank six blocks to return the car having to navigate around all the downed trees. The rental folks left the hail damage to the insurance adjuster and they gave me a ride to the Amtrak station. It was surreal. All the lights were out but people were going in and out of PKs emerging with beers in their hands.
I had no idea how many hours I would be spending in PKs the next decade but was impressed by the apparent resilience of the business. No inland hurricane or power outage was going to shut them down. The train couldn't make it through the wreckage so we took a motor coach to
Community's love on display
I was only 8 years old when this storm hit, but I will never forget the impact it had.
That day, I was not at school like most kids my age, instead, I was at my grandfather's funeral,
I will never forget the feeling of my car lifting off the ground as I watched the men of my family hold down the tent that was about to fly away and take them with it.
Once the storm had passed, we decided that we couldn't go home. As many know, my family owns Southside Lumber and we just didn't think it would be right if we cleaned up our own houses without helping others who truly needed it. We opened the store for those in need of supplies, and we operated in the dark. Many who came in needed help, but most simply wanted to help us serve others.
I'll never forget feeling the love God has for us and that this community has for each other because of the
Adopting friends as family in the aftermath
Being a foreigner can be a little hard sometimes, but is something that a traveler agrees to face for the experiences of being immersed in another culture. Thus, in 2003 began the crusade of my life from
As a single mom of two young girls I started that day as always with the trip to leave them at a friend's house for childcare. Next, I went to SIUC to work, and at noon, I went back home for lunch. Suddenly, I still can feel in my skin the sensation, I heard the sirens, and I was shocked. The day became almost night and the wind was blowing everything. I could see nature in its highest expression, trees flying everywhere.
I was terrified thinking of my girls, far away, and I started driving to them. Finally, when I was four blocks away from the girls, the street was blocked. I climbed the trees on the street and finally I reached them. While I was climbing the trees, I started to think of my friends I made in those few months since arrived in
The first who came to my mind was Roy, I knew he was living in the forest, thus I called him ... Hi Roy, this is Laura. How are you? Are you OK? ... And he was calm and replied ... Laura, I am OK but my house is wrecked. I started to cry, and I told him, you can stay at our house if you need. He did it. We adopted Roy as part of our family and now in
Pergamino,
The day our woods changed forever
My wife and I live in
It was about
As the storm increased in intensity, we'd scamper out into other parts of the house to see the unreal scene developing only to retreat to our safe place when another huge limb or tree came thundering down. It took about 15 minutes of winds around 80 mph with gusts over 100 mph to make an indelible change to our wooded environment. We struggled to get out our debris-covered front and back doors.
The damage was surreal. Huge trees were uprooted, and devastation was everywhere. Using a chainsaw, it took over three hours to clear 750 feet of driveway only to discover the main road impassable. Fortunately, our home incurred little damage, but a nearby outbuilding was destroyed by a fallen oak of large proportion.
Our woods will never be the same. The thick tree canopy is mostly gone as the debris and now the thick undergrowth make access to our woods difficult still. Even though it changed our woods forever, we're thankful we survived.
Making friends in face of chaos
I was working in Best Buy when the storm hit.
It took me almost an hour to drive across town through downed trees and power lines. My roommate and I spent the next few days grilling every bit of food we had in the freezer and sharing it with the neighbors. I met more people in my neighborhood the week the power was out than the other two years I lived in that house.
I made several good friends during recovery.
Happily ever after
It was exactly one week before my high school graduation from
Going out into the hallway to sit, we were instructed to stay away from windows. I remember being able to hear the wind howling, rain pouring, thunder booming, and girls screaming with fright. No one knew exactly what was going on, but we knew that it had to have been something serious.
After the winds had finally calmed down, the school immediately called the buses to take us home. What would normally be about a 30-minute bus ride home took over an hour and a half. The buses had to take alternate routes to get us home because certain roads were flooded or blocked off by trees or powerlines. At one point, the bus driver told us he couldn't drive any further and had to just let us off the bus where we were at and walk home from there.
Looking back, I was OK with that because I was in high school, but I wonder what they did for the elementary kids? Anyway, school lets out around
In front of my house, there was a tree that was leaning toward our roof. It is no longer there anymore because my family had it cut down due to the storm. I remember lighting candles and using flashlights because no one had power. Also taking cold showers because the hot water heater didn't work.
Now with this tragedy happening and putting everyone in a frenzy, you would think emotions would be at an all-time high. However, everyone in the community was so nice to one another because we were all enduring this struggle together. I remember lots of people barbecuing because they had to cook all their meat before it spoiled. My grandmother's neighborhood was one of the first to receive power, so my family of course went to spend a couple nights at her house. Then as power began to come back to the rest of the city, more people starting coming out their houses.
I remember eating at
Storm enriches life in unexpected ways
I was looking at the tree which has just crushed my 14-by-70 mobile home when my phone rang. It was
Laura is a microbiologist, from
In the spring of 2010 Laura and the girls returned to
While visiting ISPN7 (a local university I visited with Laura and the girls) I ran into Ana, who is the chairperson of their English Department. I was invited to join a class, and I visited with the six seniors until we took a mate (a kind of tea they love) break, after which I discovered that news of my presence had spread, and now I was visiting with all the English students which numbered about 60. I visited
And of course, a shout-out to my fantastic neighbors who help without being asked.
Didn't foresee how much richer my life would become because of a storm.
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