Nevada County Picayune and Gurdon Times Newspaper Archive

Tornado Rips Through South Clark Co.

Memorial Day was memorable for residents in South Clark County as a tornado ripped through the region leaving destruction and devastation in its path.

According to Clark County Judge Grady Runyan, at least 30 homes were damaged heavily and more than $1 million in damages done by the sudden storm.

Mary Burns, who lives in the area around Highway 182, also known as Sticky Road, said there were two tornadoes, with one going over her home, though it left no damage there.

She said there was no warning of a tornado. When it occurred, it wasn't raining and there was no wind, she said. "It popped up fast."

The storm struck about 3 p.m., twisting trees in half, ripping them out of the ground and knocking out power lines.

The roof at the home of Bryan and Debbie Caldwell was ripped off and a garage building destroyed by the tornado.

Elsie Clark's home, which is right next to the Caldwell residence, also sustained roof damage and a brick out building was demolished.

Huge trees in Clark's pasture were pulled from the ground like twigs and broken into splinters by the high swirling winds.

Sonny Allen lost a barn as well. An out building at his farm was moved from its foundation and the windows were blown out of the front of the house. Additionally, the Allen place had roof damage and porch swings broken like a child's toy.

According to Jim Caldwell, Bryan's father, his son looked out and saw pine tree tops being snapped off.

The younger Caldwell then grabbed his son and went into a bathroom for protection from the twister.

Clark said the storm didn't last long. In fact she went out onto her porch and saw the winds blowing in the tops of trees.

A friend, Margie Wingfield, was with Clark at the time and suggested they look for cover.

Frances McGill, Clark's daughter, who lives east of Okolona, said there was a hailstorm at her house, but no serious damage.

McGill received a call from Ann Caldwell saying the tornado had touched down in the area where her mother lived.

McGill attempted to reach her mother's home by Sticky Road, but couldn't get through. She wound up having to travel down Center Ridge Road.

"Our electricity was off," she said. "We didn't know there was a storm anywhere. It's unbelievable no one was hurt."

Runyan said he, too, saw the funnel cloud, estimating it to be about a half-mile wide. "It was one of the biggest tornadoes I've ever seen," he said.

The judge, after hearing of the tornado on the scanner, grabbed his chainsaw, made sure it had gas and oil and headed for the storm scene. He worked with his county crews and the Arkansas Forestry Service for four hours helping clear trees from roads.

One of the worst hit places in the area was around Palmetto Road. Timber, Runyan said, was chewed off four feet above the ground.

County road crews were out until about 10 p.m. Monday night clearing the roads of debris. They went back to work Tuesday morning to continue the clean up effort.

"I was listening to it on the scanner at the house," he said. "I heard a spotter say there was rotation in a cloud, then a funnel had formed, was coming down and bounced up. That's when I grabbed my chainsaw."

Working with exceptional speed, Gov. Jim Guy Tucker declared parts of Clark County a disaster area because of the destruction the tornado left behind. Runyan said he expects portions of Dallas County to be declared disaster areas as well because the tornado hit there also.

This will help area residents rebuild because of the state and federal aid available. Tucker, Runyan said, has a fund for this type of emergency.

Gurdon Mayor Rick Smith said the Gurdon Police Department assisted in clearing the road and directing traffic in the affected area.

"There were a lot of people there with chainsaws and skidders. People from Arkadelphia loaded their chainsaws and came to help," Smith said. "The main area of concern was the Center Point Road where trees blocked the road and live power lines were down."

Smith spent the afternoon checking on residents in the area, making sure they were all right.

Other areas hit by the tornado were the Dalark and Manning regions, as well as the back side of Curtis.