PDA response team arriving in Northeast Wisconsin after EF-3 tornado
Extensive damage reported from a lunchtime twister on Monday
LOUISVILLE — Members of the National Response Team (NRT) from Presbyterian Disaster Assistance have been deployed to Winnebago Presbytery, following an EF-3 tornado that ripped off roofs, flattened homes, toppled trees and flipped automobiles in Northeast Wisconsin.
The four-member team was scheduled to arrive Friday to assist with recovery from the tornado, which occurred around lunchtime on Monday, tearing through a region that includes Appleton, Menasha, Neenah and Fox Crossing.
“We really appreciate the prayers and support of the church and are grateful to Presbyterian Disaster Assistance and look forward to welcoming an initial response team,” said the Rev. Dr. Dave Colby, general presbyter of Winnebago Presbytery. “We are grateful for trained people to come in and offer their wisdom and their compassion and their expertise as we deal with the aftermath of the storm.”
The tornado, which caused extensive damage, power outages, gas leaks and trauma, developed shortly before noon Central Time just north of Wisconsin Avenue in Appleton, then tracked south, intensifying rapidly as it moved into Winnebago County, according to the National Weather Service. The tornado was on the ground for about 12 miles and reached a width of more than three-quarters of a mile, with winds peaking around 140 mph, according to news reports.
“The tornado snapped and uprooted numerous trees and produced damage to several area homes and businesses along its path,” according to the weather service. Congregational United Church of Christ of Neenah/Menasha is among the significantly damaged structures.
Though PC(USA) churches were spared, the congregations of both Memorial Presbyterian Church in Appleton and First Presbyterian Church in Neenah “really want to do everything that they can to let their neighbors know that they care about them and to serve them in any way they can,” said the Rev. Kathy Lee-Cornell, PDA associate for national disaster response.
NRT members will be connecting with pastors and partners while in the area, and residents without a church home due to the storm have been invited to worship with Presbyterians on Sunday.
Meanwhile, Memorial Presbyterian Church has opened its doors to neighbors to give them respite from the heat and to plug in their devices. First Presbyterian Church in Neenah supported a resident whose house was being threatened by a tree, Lee-Cornell said.
“They weren't sure if the tree was going to fall on the house, and so members had shown up just to help him get whatever he could out of the house in the event that, in the tree removal process, it ended up landing and demolishing his home,” she said.
That’s just one example of how the churches are “showing up wherever they can, however they can, and we will too as PDA, and we will walk them through best practices that we know from other churches and communities, and we will make sure that they feel supported and know that they are supported,” Lee-Cornell said. “The presbytery has committed their support as well.”
The community is grateful that no one appears to have been killed in the storm.
“For a tornado that had such a wide path and such a long path, it’s really a miracle that the (Presbyterian) churches were not in the path, and for the most part, members are okay,” Lee-Cornell said.
There have been numerous disasters in various parts of the country this year, making it critical for Presbyterians to help financially, according to PDA.
As of the end of May, “we've given close to a million dollars through 34 grants to 23 presbyteries and synods, and that doesn't include June and July, which has been busy,” Lee-Cornell said. “We've continued to provide financial resources to (address) immediate needs and to our long-term recovery partners. … For folks who wish to continue to support PDA, giving to our tornado fund will allow us to continue to provide that uninterrupted connection with our presbyteries who are impacted by these disasters.”
Presbyterian Disaster Assistance is a ministry of Presbyterian Life & Witness. Consider supporting PDA’s response to the Wisconsin tornado and other storms by giving to DR000200.
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