wfn.org | Maryland church suffers 'devastating' damage from tornado

[NewsDesk <NewsDesk@UMCOM.ORG>]

April 30, 2002 News media contact: Tim Tanton7(615)742-54707Nashville, Tenn.
10-71BP{195}

NOTE: Photographs are available with this report.

By Melissa Lauber*

COLUMBIA, Md. (UMNS) -- A deadly tornado tore through southern Maryland on
April 28, killing at least three people, injuring more than 90 and damaging
about 100 buildings, including La Plata United Methodist Church in Charles
County.

The 250-mile-per-hour winds tore the roof off the church and left the
steeple lying on the lawn, said the Rev. Mary Jane Coleman, Washington East
District superintendent. A new building that housed the church's education
program and offices was demolished.

"It was devastating, just absolutely devastating," said the Rev. Edward
Voorhaar, pastor of the 948-member church.

When he was able to reach the church the next morning, Voorhaar heard
reports of two women, who had sought shelter in the parking lot, being
pulled out of their car from under rubble.

Voorhaar's house, a few miles from the church, also suffered extensive
damage when a large tree fell on it.

The storm struck at about 7 p.m. and was concentrated in the 6,500-resident
town of La Plata. It was part of a series of storms that struck a wide
section of the United States.

La Plata was cordoned off the next morning for rescue and damage-assessment
efforts.

"Emergency workers are going from development to development with
ambulances, like an ice-cream truck," said the Rev. Sheldon Reese, the
Washington East disaster response coordinator. "People are just numb and in
shock."

Of the three people killed when the tornado swept through the 10-mile
swatch, two were from La Plata and one was from nearby Prince Frederick.
News reports showed 20 crushed cars in a parking lot, a leveled elementary
school, demolished stores, torn power lines and devastated homes. Thirty
people were evacuated to a nearby high school, Reese said.

Some members of Trinity United Methodist Church, in the neighboring
community of Prince Frederick, also lost their homes, according to the Rev.
James Farmer, church pastor.

"We're nowhere near assessing all the damage," Coleman said. The conference
has offered its church buildings in nearby communities and other resources
as needed.
 
Bishop Felton Edwin May immediately requested and received a $10,000
emergency grant from the United Methodist Committee on Relief.

"Our first priority is to care for people," he said. "UMCOR and our
conference emergency response team are working with other disaster response
agencies to make sure people receive the care they need in the short term.
We are already beginning to build coalitions to plan the recovery and
rebuilding of the impacted communities. UMCOR and United Methodist
Volunteers in Mission will play a critical role in recovery and rebuilding."

The Baltimore-Washington Conference has activated its 20-member early
response team, which will assist victims of the tornado. This is the first
time this newly organized fast-response team has been called into action.

"The church will rebuild. I don't yet know how, but it is our intention to
continue our ministry on this site," Voorhaar said. "We're all shocked by
what's happened, but we're also grateful to God that more people were not
killed. There were no groups meeting at the church, thank God."

Lillian Livers, a member of St. Matthew's United Methodist Church in La
Plata, was just a few miles from the church when the tornado hit. "The sky
turned red. There were high winds and hail fell. It all lasted about three
to five minutes and then it blew away," she said. "Maybe God is sending us a
wake-up call. It certainly reminded me he was there." The church wasn't
damaged.

People can support the relief efforts by making contributions through their
conference treasurers to the United Methodist Committee on Relief. The
checks should be designated for "Domestic Disaster Relief, #901670-1," and
marked with the notation "Maryland Tornado." Checks can also be mailed to
UMCOR, Room #330, 475 Riverside Drive, New York, NY 10115. Credit-card
donations can be made by calling 800-554-8583.
# # #
*Lauber is associate editor of the UMConnection, the newspaper of the United
Methodist Church's Baltimore-Washington Annual Conference.

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United Methodist News Service
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