Safety Goes Underground In Winterboro
Release Date: December 10, 2004
Release Number: FNF-04-038
Winterboro, Ala. -- As high winds and heavy rainfall from Hurricane Ivan thrashed Winterboro, 30 of its residents stayed safe and dry thanks to their new community shelter. But it wasn’t always this way. Before January 2004, the community didn’t have a secure shelter and residents had to take their chances inside the fire station, or inside their homes, many of which are mobile homes, when severe weather threatened.
When Hurricane Ivan came through Winterboro, James Sargent, who has lived there for almost 30 years, was among those who used the shelter.“I am in a wheelchair and I have a key to the shelter. When I heard it was coming I wheeled myself down there in about five minutes. It felt good to know that I could get to a safe location quickly,” said Sargent.
Before the shelter was built, Fire Chief, Kevin Sturdivant said his team of 20 Volunteer firefighters used to have to line people up inside the fire station’s hallway and pray it would hold. It simply wasn’t built to withstand high winds.
“Some people don’t look at weather as a threat to their safety, but I do. I’ve seen the damage it causes,” said Assistant Fire Chief Richard Matthews. Matthews, his wife and teenage daughter stayed in the shelter during Hurricane Ivan.
“I knew we were going to have some major damage so I was very happy to have the shelter to go to with my family. It was quite comfortable and I felt very secure,” said Matthews, who has used the shelter 6 times already.
In 2003 the community received a grant from the Alabama Emergency Management Agency, and the Federal Emergency Management Agency’s (FEMA) Hazard Mitigation Grant Program. The $17,200 grant supplied 75 percent of the funds necessary to build the shelter. The remaining 25 percent of the construction costs were provided for by funds contributed by the community and donated labor from firefighters and a local contractor.
The shelter, built underground in an embankment adjacent to the fire station, meets FEMA community shelter specifications. It can withstand an F5 tornado (winds over 250 mph), on the Fujita Scale, and the entrance can tolerate the impact of 200 mph windborne debris. It seats 50 people, is equipped with a telephone, television, internet access, as well as a UHF radio, and is wheelchair accessible.
On November 24, Sargent and others used the shelter as tornados ripped through the area. Four who sought shelter lived within 100 yards of the tornado’s path of destruction.
“One tornado came within 300 yards of the shelter. We didn’t have much warning for those tornados, so it’s good that we have our own shelter now,” said Sargent.
Last Modified: Friday, 10-Dec-2004 15:27:38