Beebe tours his 17th community in ruins

STUTTGART - Gov. Mike Beebe on Monday toured his 17th storm-tossed community in 2008, this one in the Arkansas prairie, as Stuttgart residents continued to clean up after a nasty twister that dismantled the city's commercial district.

In all, 15 businesses were destroyed and as many as 35 others were damaged. Up to 200 homes sustained some damage, and as many as 60 were severely damaged or destroyed, county and state officials said.

Dozens of businesses on South Main Street and 22nd Street remained closed Monday, many of them too damaged to open. Others were inaccessible by vehicle or without power.

Saturday night's tornado was an EF-3 on the Enhanced Fujita scale, packing winds between136 and 165 mph. It bore down on Stuttgart as storms in Benton, Woodruff, Cross, Lee, Phillips, Craighead and Mississippi counties also caused damage.

The storms spawned at least seven tornadoes statewide, though investigators with the National Weather Service offices still were making assessments Monday.

It was the fifth outbreak of tornadoes this year. Tornadoes in January, February, April and earlier this month killed 20 people. Arkansas also saw a foot of snow in February and persistent flooding triggered by heavy rain in March and then again in April.

On Monday, Arkansas County Judge Sonny Cox said more than 1,000 volunteers have poured into Stuttgart to offer assistance.

"We're terribly weather-weary ..." Beebe said. "But through it all, our people are resilient. As I say, over and over again, people come to each other's aid."

Beebe has taken 10 trips - some with multiple stops - to tour 17 communities this year that have sustained flood and tornado damage, according to Beebe spokesman Matt De-Cample.

The governor declared Arkansas and Phillips counties state disaster areas Monday as the National Weather Service forecast yet another round of storms.

Thunderstorms capable of producing hail and heavy rain are expected to hit western Arkansas communities tonight. A storm front threatening heavy rains is expected to soak the central and southern part of the state Wednesday and Thursday, said Chuck Rickard, a senior forecaster in North Little Rock.

Rickard said the storm front looks milder than this past weekend's.

But that could change.

"There's an outside chance of a tornado tomorrow night, but this system isn't nearly as strong as the system we saw this last weekend," Rickard said Monday.

In Stuttgart, officials have closed access to much of the southern part of the city, from 18th street north to 22nd street south, and from Buerkle Street east to Park Avenue west, Cox said.

State troopers and National Guardsmen stood at intersections and detoured motorists and pedestrians through residential areas.

"Our checkpoints are to make sure we keep people out of here who don't need to be here because it hinders our utility companies and our efforts to make sure that somebody don't walk in here and [steal] something," Cox said.

South Main Street, from 18th Street to 22nd Street, looked like a giant junkyard Monday afternoon.

Power lines, insulation, shingles and mangled aluminum and other metal littered the streets.

At the Trade Wynds thrift and motorcycle supply store at 2007 S. Main St., co-owner Diane Carroll and eight others collected items such as lamps, bandanas and toys from the business to try to move them out.

The tornado ripped off the business's roof, and Carroll feared another batch of rain would destroy the items in the store.

"We don't have a roof, and if it rains this stuff will be no good," Carroll said. "I'm not even sure if I can sell this stuff now. We may just have to auction it off. I have plenty of insurance, I think. But with insurance you never know. You never get paid what everything's really worth."

Across the street, Larry Lefler of Lef Realty watched as workers put a tarp on his roof. The building survived with only minor structural damage.

A building Lefler owns next door, which he was renting to a certified public accountant and Stuttgart Home Health Care, faired much worse and will need to be completely rebuilt, he said.

"This is my first tornado, and I'm a rookie at this," Lefler said. "I didn't know what to think, but it looks like a war zone. You have to keep the negative stuff out of your mind and keep positive about what you're going to do and get it done."

As many as three dozen businesses on 22nd Street and South Main Street were damaged. They include the Joe Morgan General Motors dealership, the Family Dollar and the Sherwin-Williams paint supply stores near 19th andMain streets, all of which were destroyed.

The roofs of Sherwin-Williams and Family Dollar cavedinto the stores, and the tornado completely sucked out the walls and glass of the car dealership.

Morgan estimated as many as75 vehicles in the lot were damaged.

"We're just trying to collect our thoughts and get the insurance people working on it," Morgan said.

"We're taking it hour by hour to figure out how we're going to get back in business the fastest way."

"This is absolutely devastating to this community, but the great thing about it is all the people here will pitch in," he added.

"We'll put it back together."

The city's three major businesses - Riceland Foods, Producers Rice Mill and Lennox Industries - came away unscathed, said Stephen Bell, executive vice president of the Stuttgart Chamber of Commerce.

Still, two businesses employing about 50 workers together - Patriot BioFuels and Rice Capital Inc. - were damaged, although Bell was unclear of the severity of the damage at Rice Capital Inc. Patriot BioFuels co-owner Tommy Foltz said his company was destroyed.

"It's hard to predict how this will impact the tax base because we haven't seen anything like this - we've always been so lucky when it comes to severe weather," Bell said.

"Still, I'm really optimistic about rebuilding because of the way everyone pitched in to help after the storm hit."

Neighborhoods in the city didn't fair much better than the businesses. On Monday, men carrying chain saws and riding in tractors roamed city streets and hauled debris.

In some areas, piles of tree trunks lined the roads awaiting transport to the dump.

By Monday afternoon, some 3,000 Entergy Arkansas customers were still without power, mostly in Stuttgart. An Entergy spokesman said he expected the few hundred people in Helena and Camden without power to see their lights come back on by late Monday.

Because so many power lines were down and roads closed in the Stuttgart area, repairs will take longer. Entergy Arkansas officials said it may be Friday before power is restored to the town.

Stuttgart school officials were working fervently Monday to find a way to get students back in the classroom. At least one school shut down due to extensive damage.

Meekins Middle School isn't safe for students to return to, so the 300 fifth- and sixth-graders will move to a community college for the rest of the school year, said Stuttgart Schools Superintendent Laura Bednar.

She said counselors will be on hand to talk with students when classes resume.

School officials were working on a plan to add bus stops and find space to relocate all students by Wednesday.

Other plans are more tentative, she said.

It was unclear Monday afternoon whether students will be able to go back to Stuttgart High School because damage was still being assessed. Bednar said her goal was to resume classes for all students by Wednesday, a plan that largely depends on power being restored.

Classes are scheduled to let out on May 29. Some students are in the middle of taking state and advanced placement exams.

The school district can apply to the state Department of Education for a waiver that allows them to miss a certain amount of hours of instruction, but Bednar said it was important to get students back to school.

"We have so many families who have lost their homes, but we know this is a way we can help provide some stability," she said.