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American Morning

Deadly Tornadoes

Aired May 05, 2003 - 09:06   ET

THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.

THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.


BILL HEMMER, CNN ANCHOR: One of the hardest hit places that we're learning right now, Lawrence County, Missouri, southwestern part of the state, southwest of Springfield, one tornado passed right through Pierce City, and just leveled the town, we're told.
Pierce City Councilman Thomas Majors joins by telephone.

Sir, hello to you. Is it true and accurate to say that your town has been leveled?

THOMAS MAJORS, PIERCE CITY COUNCILMAN: Yes, pretty much. The main street is all 200-year-old buildings and such, and just tore everyone of them down.

HEMMER: How big is your town?

MAJORS: About 1,300 people.

HEMMER: The fatality rate there, sir, is what, do you know?

MAJORS: For certain, I can't say that for certain. Two, I believe.

HEMMER: Two dead. What about the injured?

MAJORS: That, I can't really say. I just got back down here this morning, and you know, just trying to take calls from people from the news.

HEMMER: How are you doing, sir?

MAJORS: Fine.

HEMMER: Yes?

What are you hearing from people as they wake up this morning?

MAJORS: Just total shock.

HEMMER: Can you describe the area you just mentioned at the beginning that was leveled, these buildings 200 years old.

MAJORS: It's the main street of Pierce City, and we have antique shops and the pharmacy and grocery stores completely gone, and it just leveled all -- pretty much took the tops off everything and caved all of the walls in and everything.

HEMMER: Were these buildings occupied at the time, Sunday evening?

MAJORS: No, I don't believe so. I believe everybody got out. We had plenty of advanced warning. And I believe everybody got out pretty much.

HEMMER: Can you tell me how that advanced warning came in?

MAJORS: From the weather service, from the weather channel, and then -- or we have sirens here that are set off by Lawrence County, and they went off, oh, probably 20 minutes before it struck.

HEMMER: That may have saved a number of lives. Do you believe that to be true?

MAJORS: Yes. I'm sure it did, yes.

HEMMER: Where were you last night, Thomas?

MAJORS: Downtown, trying to help the mayor, Mark Peters, and I'm the senior member of the council, and just trying to do whatever I could, after I found out that my family was all right, and that we had lost -- of course, we have numerous trees down and power lines, and there is no power to the city at all. It hit a substation, I understand, northeast of town, and there is no power in any towns around.

HEMMER: Wow, listen, can you take us through your own personal experience? What did you see? What did you feel? What did you hear?

MAJORS: I was looking out the back door of my home, and we're situated about a block and a half off main street. And I could see the debris going around in circles and that, so I went down in the basement with my wife, and it was -- I could feel the pressure drop, you know, in my ears, I believe. And it was just a hum, roar, hum sound, and then it was over. We come back up and it was just devastation everywhere.

HEMMER: Was it minutes, or was it seconds?

MAJORS: It just seemed like it couldn't have lasted more than a minute, to me. And you know, found out everything was OK at the , and we went down a block, and there was a lady trapped and we got her out, out of her home. And she was uninjured, just leveled her house.

HEMMER: Wow, in the short time we have, what does your town need right now?

MAJORS: Oh, water, probably would be the main thing.

HEMMER: Are you getting much help, or is it even possible to get there?

MAJORS: Yes, we've got National Guard, we've got just towns from all around sending help, rescue, HAZMAT teams, everything. A lot of these old buildings contained asbestos, as you can imagine, being that old, and they are, you know, searching through the rubble with dogs and canine dogs, and I don't know. We need everything -- water, lights, food.

HEMMER: Getting word right now, there is a state of emergency declared in Missouri. So hopefully you will get more help as you go throughout the day here. Our heart goes out to you, Thomas.

Best of luck to you and the 1,300 members of your small community, Pierce City, Missouri, southwestern part of the state. That's Thomas Majors, sits on the city council there.

TO ORDER A VIDEO OF THIS TRANSCRIPT, PLEASE CALL 800-CNN-NEWS OR USE OUR SECURE ONLINE ORDER FORM LOCATED AT www.fdch.com







Aired May 5, 2003 - 09:06   ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
BILL HEMMER, CNN ANCHOR: One of the hardest hit places that we're learning right now, Lawrence County, Missouri, southwestern part of the state, southwest of Springfield, one tornado passed right through Pierce City, and just leveled the town, we're told.
Pierce City Councilman Thomas Majors joins by telephone.

Sir, hello to you. Is it true and accurate to say that your town has been leveled?

THOMAS MAJORS, PIERCE CITY COUNCILMAN: Yes, pretty much. The main street is all 200-year-old buildings and such, and just tore everyone of them down.

HEMMER: How big is your town?

MAJORS: About 1,300 people.

HEMMER: The fatality rate there, sir, is what, do you know?

MAJORS: For certain, I can't say that for certain. Two, I believe.

HEMMER: Two dead. What about the injured?

MAJORS: That, I can't really say. I just got back down here this morning, and you know, just trying to take calls from people from the news.

HEMMER: How are you doing, sir?

MAJORS: Fine.

HEMMER: Yes?

What are you hearing from people as they wake up this morning?

MAJORS: Just total shock.

HEMMER: Can you describe the area you just mentioned at the beginning that was leveled, these buildings 200 years old.

MAJORS: It's the main street of Pierce City, and we have antique shops and the pharmacy and grocery stores completely gone, and it just leveled all -- pretty much took the tops off everything and caved all of the walls in and everything.

HEMMER: Were these buildings occupied at the time, Sunday evening?

MAJORS: No, I don't believe so. I believe everybody got out. We had plenty of advanced warning. And I believe everybody got out pretty much.

HEMMER: Can you tell me how that advanced warning came in?

MAJORS: From the weather service, from the weather channel, and then -- or we have sirens here that are set off by Lawrence County, and they went off, oh, probably 20 minutes before it struck.

HEMMER: That may have saved a number of lives. Do you believe that to be true?

MAJORS: Yes. I'm sure it did, yes.

HEMMER: Where were you last night, Thomas?

MAJORS: Downtown, trying to help the mayor, Mark Peters, and I'm the senior member of the council, and just trying to do whatever I could, after I found out that my family was all right, and that we had lost -- of course, we have numerous trees down and power lines, and there is no power to the city at all. It hit a substation, I understand, northeast of town, and there is no power in any towns around.

HEMMER: Wow, listen, can you take us through your own personal experience? What did you see? What did you feel? What did you hear?

MAJORS: I was looking out the back door of my home, and we're situated about a block and a half off main street. And I could see the debris going around in circles and that, so I went down in the basement with my wife, and it was -- I could feel the pressure drop, you know, in my ears, I believe. And it was just a hum, roar, hum sound, and then it was over. We come back up and it was just devastation everywhere.

HEMMER: Was it minutes, or was it seconds?

MAJORS: It just seemed like it couldn't have lasted more than a minute, to me. And you know, found out everything was OK at the , and we went down a block, and there was a lady trapped and we got her out, out of her home. And she was uninjured, just leveled her house.

HEMMER: Wow, in the short time we have, what does your town need right now?

MAJORS: Oh, water, probably would be the main thing.

HEMMER: Are you getting much help, or is it even possible to get there?

MAJORS: Yes, we've got National Guard, we've got just towns from all around sending help, rescue, HAZMAT teams, everything. A lot of these old buildings contained asbestos, as you can imagine, being that old, and they are, you know, searching through the rubble with dogs and canine dogs, and I don't know. We need everything -- water, lights, food.

HEMMER: Getting word right now, there is a state of emergency declared in Missouri. So hopefully you will get more help as you go throughout the day here. Our heart goes out to you, Thomas.

Best of luck to you and the 1,300 members of your small community, Pierce City, Missouri, southwestern part of the state. That's Thomas Majors, sits on the city council there.

TO ORDER A VIDEO OF THIS TRANSCRIPT, PLEASE CALL 800-CNN-NEWS OR USE OUR SECURE ONLINE ORDER FORM LOCATED AT www.fdch.com