Roark: Official number of homes destroyed ‘low’

A week and a half after a deadly tornado swept through Newton County, the financial toll the twister had on Newton County continues to be assessed.

On Tuesday, Gary Roark, director of Newton County emergency management, said after completing initial assessments last week, federal officials said close to 200 homes in the county were either destroyed or so badly damaged they were uninhabitable.
Officials with the Federal Emergency Management Agency said 141 homes were destroyed in the county, with 51 having damage so severe no one could live in them, and another 185 sustaining minor damage. Another 80 homes had some damage incurred as a result of the tornado: shingles missing from roofs, siding peeled off of structures. Meanwhile, nine businesses were listed as having major damage.

But the numbers are low, Roark cautioned.

“There’s no doubt in my mind that we will have 175 homes destroyed,” Roark said. “I know the numbers are low, and really all they’re for is to show the president that we have enough damage for a disaster declaration.

“I know some businesses have been destroyed,” he said.

These include Lant’s Feed and Bridal Shop, which was completely destroyed, and Willis and Associates Printing, which sustained heavy damage.

“Businesses were hit hard as well,” Roark said. “There are so many stories out there.
On Sunday, I drove from my home in Seneca to the state line and Iris, and stopped and talked with folks. I heard some hair-raising stories, things that have happened to people. It’s a miracle we didn’t have more than 14 people killed. For some reason, it seems that at 6 o’clock on a Saturday evening, a lot of people were gone. My son, Brian, was up in Joplin. I talked to numerous people like that.”

Roark said while many homeowners have insurance, many do not. And of the ones that do, some are underinsured. Others with minor damage have deductibles so high that they exceed the actual amount of damage.

This makes the actual dollar amount of damages hard to determine at this time, he said. While insurance companies are busy making assessments of homes with insurance, the losses incurred by those without insurance aren’t yet rated. This will change once the federal government steps in to help with those losses. He said he expected a federal disaster declaration to be made sometime this week.

Meanwhile, help is available with debris cleanup. Roark said the Missouri Department of Natural Resources has waived regulations regarding burning, allowing property owners to burn limbs, brush, untreated lumber and the like. Other regulations as to what can go into landfills have also been relaxed, with appliances such as washers and dryers, refrigerators and other goods also being accepted into landfills.

The county will eventually contract collection services out, with landowners being able to bring storm debris to the edge of their property near a county or state road for pickup, Roark said.

Those wanting to clean up their property, but needing supplies, are urged to visit a donation pickup site at 1300 Howard Bush Drive. There, supplies ranging from food and clothing to water, drinks, and tools such as tarps and plastic sheeting, shovels, rakes, gloves, cleaning supplies are available free of charge.

“We want people to go out there and take advantage of it,” he said.

Supplies are also available at Newtonia Baptist Church and Racine Christian Church, Roark said, where volunteers and others cleaning debris are being fed. Calvary Church of Neosho is also feeding volunteers and AmeriCorps workers here to assist in the clean-up effort.

Calvary is also the site of the MARC, the Multi-Agency Resource Center, a one-stop shop of sorts where people affected by the storm can receive a hot meal, get a tetanus shot provided by the Newton County Health Department, and find out what types of disaster services are available.

Those needing help cleaning up or making repairs to their homes will soon get it, as a disaster services group arrived in Neosho recently. Hands On Disaster Response has a two-man assessment team in Neosho currently, although Bill Driscoll, an operations director with the agency, said a total of seven are expected by the end of the week, with the number of volunteers expected to swell to 15-25 soon afterward.

“It looks like we’re going to be doing tree and debris cleanup,” Driscoll said. “Also roof tarping and minor roof repair.”

Driscoll also mentioned that many may be uninsured, and while they have enough funds from claims to purchase roofing materials, they may not have enough to hire a contractor to do the work.

“If they can provide the materials, we can provide the labor,” he said. “We have a limited skill-set that changes from project to project.”

People needing assistance from Hands-On should go to the MARC center and make their request.

Immediate financial assistance is also available at the center from various agencies, Roark said.

Meanwhile, funding is available for farmers facing financial hardship because of the storm. Grants and low-interest loans, with rates around 3.7 percent, are available for farm losses, including replacing and repairing downed fencing. And the Small Business Administration has loans available for individuals as well as businesses wanting to rebuild their properties.