Published: May 13, 2008 09:20 am            

Pryor helps out at Picher

Mayes County Emergency Management and county fire departments helped search teams at Picher over the weekend.

Firefighters from Pryor, Osage and Chouteau arrived Sunday morning after an EF-4 tornado devastated the town Saturday evening. Pryor Assistant Fire Chief Sherman Weaver and four other Pryor firefighters helped search for cars and people yet unaccounted for. Osage and Chouteau Fire Departments each sent two firefighters to assist in the recovery efforts. MCEM helped manage search teams and record casualties.

Picher, a former mining town, has approximately 800 residents. The twister killed seven people and leveled a 20-block area.

“The fire station and city hall are still standing,” said MCEM Assistant Director Michael Dunham.

Dunham estimated the tornado’s path stretched over 20 miles. Multiple ambulances and air evac helicopters were on scene to transport the injured, which numbered 150.

“It was a mess,” said Weaver.

Weaver said chat from the piles of mining waste lay three or four inches deep in cars. Many residents suffered injuries from the chat riddling their skin like shot pellets. Weaver and other firefighters searched in outlying areas Sunday. Picher’s assistant fire chief counted 16 or 17 fire departments helping from Missouri, Kansas, and Oklahoma.

Gatorade donated drinks for those helping in the Picher recovery efforts. Pryor Fire Department delivered the drinks Monday morning.

        

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