Outdoor Giant Helps Greensburg Victims

On May 4, 39 minutes before what officials estimate to have been a 1.7-mile-wide wedge tornado ripped apart Greensburg, in southwest Kansas, a warning was issued after meteorologists determined something tragic was about to occur. Ten to 12 minutes before the first EF-5-rated tornado to hit the United States since 1999 touched ground, a tornado emergency was declared and residents were urged to seek shelter immediately, according to NOAA National Weather Service Central Service Director Lynn Maximuk.

Unfortunately, 10 residents may have never heard the warning, and the 11th death attributed to the tornado-who was taken off life support after ceremoniously giving his daughter away in a hospital wedding-was a police officer trying to protect and serve residents of this 1,600-person, midwestern town. The next day a NOAA quick response team estimated winds speeds during the storm reached 205 miles per hour.

"The devastation in Greensburg rightfully gained everyone's attention over the weekend, and our sympathy goes out to the families of those killed by the tornado," Maximuk said. "Greensburg residents experienced a level of destruction not seen in many years. We are thankful our staffs at the Dodge City forecast office and the NOAA Storm Prediction Center were able to provide watch and warning information in time for people to get to shelter."

By May 9 President George W. Bush first made and aerial tour, then walked the town "hoping to touch some souls." Some critics claimed National Guard deployments to the Mid East had made things worse, although the criticism was largely silenced during his visit, and at least one outdoor company has stepped up to help.

The day before Bush's visit, industry giant Coleman packed a semi-trailer filled with gear to support the displaced residents and emergency workers. Products dispatched included lanterns and fuel, shelters, airbeds and pumps, food and beverage coolers, sleeping bags, and battery-powered lights.

According to Tim Daniel, Coleman's vice president of special markets and coordinator of the company's emergency response team, "Today, most of what Coleman sells is designed for outdoor fun. But with this shipment, we're hailing back to their original purpose--to provide heat, light, shelter and comfort for people living in the outdoors, and this time, it's not by choice."

"The pictures don't do it justice," President Bush told reporters as he toured the once tight-knit community. "There is a lot of destruction." Ninety-five percent of Greensburg was leveled according to preliminary estimates.

During the president's tour of the devastation, one spray-painted sign said, "Please pardon our mess."

The tornado rating system, which was devised by Ted Fujita, describes an F-5 tornado as "incredible." Most reported tornados are a few hundred yards across. The last similarly rated tornado to touch down in the United States did $1.1 billion in damage and killed 36 people in Moore, Oklahoma, on May 3, 1999.