Shelby Shopper Shelby NC
Issue link: https://www.ifoldsflip.com/i/1500047
Thursday, May 25-May 31, 2023 www.shelbyinfo.com 704/484-1047 - shelby shopper & info - Page 19 Trees downed, power knocked out, houses & businesses damaged area-wide by MICHAEL E. POWELL CF Media michael@cfmedia.info The town of Cherryville was hit Tuesday, May 16, by a fast moving, straight- line winds storm, which brought very high winds and damages, including city and area-wide power out- ages to this area of north- western Gaston County. It has been over a week and damages from the storm are still being handled by city, county, and state emergency services. Some estimates put the straight-line winds and micro-bursts as high as 85 miles per hour. Shortly after the storm moved through the area, a media advisory from Gaston County Schools' Communications Director, Todd Hagans, noting, "Due to damage and power out- ages caused by a severe storm this evening (5-16- 23) in Cherryville, the fol- lowing four schools will be closed on Wednesday, May 17 for students and employees: Cherryville Elementary School; W. Blaine Beam Intermediate School; John Chavis Mid- dle School; and Cherryville High School. All school-re- lated activities on Wednes- day at these four schools are canceled." Since then, the four schools have re- opened and are back up to full working speed. Cherryville Mayor H.L. Beam, III called a news conference on Wednesday, May 17, and, along with City Manager Brian Dalton, a couple of the city's coun- cil members and the fire and police chiefs, spoke to a group of about 15-plus media outlet's reporters about what the city is doing to alleviate the problems and issues brought about by the damage wrought by the high-powered storm. Said Mayor Beam, "I want to thank all of the media for attending this press conference. I also want to thank our citizens for the great support we have received from them in this trying time. We have a command center set up at the Cherryville Fire Depart- ment and it is an area-wide set-up to help everyone." Mayor Beam spoke from a prepared sheet that noted the event was a "multi- agency weather event man- aged by the CFD, and the event resulted in area-wide power outages and over 97 reported incidents within a three-hour time period. He noted there was one injury to a civilian reported with non-life-threatening inju- ries. "That person," said Mayor Beam, "has been released." Beam also said the ma- jority of the damages "… were trees on structures and downed power lines, and a State of Emergency has been declared." Mayor Beam said over 100 personnel from "mul- tiple agencies assisted the Cherryville Fire and Police Departments. They are Gaston County, Cleveland County, Lincoln County, and Mecklenburg County, as well as surrounding fire departments and state agencies and other public service agencies." He continued, "Thirty residents were displaced and the Red Cross is as- sisting them and providing lodging for four of them. A shelter has been opened at the Shady Grove Bap- tist Church at 3420 Tryon Courthouse Road, and the National Weather Service will be on-scene shortly to assist as well." Mayor Beam noted at the conference that dam- age assessments were on-going, adding that, "At this time we have approxi- mately 55 structures that have been damaged but that number will continue to change as those assess- ments progress." He also noted that Antioch Church has provided 200 chicken plates that were made available then at the Cher- ryville Police Department for any citizens needing a hot meal. Mayor Beam stressed, "This is still an active scene. Please stay out of the area to allow our personnel to work. Fifty percent of the power has been restored but additional repairs will continue until all the power has been restored. Please treat all power lines as en- ergized and do not touch any of them whatsoever! Also, treat all intersections without working traffic lights as having four-way stop signs, and lastly, please re- frain from using 911 unless it is an emergency. Report any non-emergency re- quests to (704) 435-1730. Thank you for your time and for coming." Afterwards, in answer- ing one TV reporter's ques- tion about what the city is doing, Mayor Beam said of the city's power crews and city staff, "We are working hard to restore power. On a personal level, this is the closest thing to (Hurricane) Hugo I've seen. We are working as hard and as fast as we can to get power re- stored to all of our citizens and our businesses." City Manager Brian Dal- ton took a question regard- ing what priorities were first so far as getting power restored, and he replied, "Our priority is getting our schools back up. There is no time frame as of right now. Most everything east of town, the power is off. Everybody is working as hard as they can on all as- pects of restoring power." Mayor Beam agreed, adding, "This is in God's hands, but we are very re- silient! We have every con- fidence in our employees." The Gaston County Of- fice of Emergency Man- agement and Fire Services (GCOEMFS) used the Ev- erbridge system to send out a message of staying indoors to Gaston County residents. At this time, there is still a lot of debris scattered throughout the city. To re- port damage or downed trees and power lines, or if you need shelter, please call the Cherryville Fire Department at (704) 435- 1730. Along with Emergency Management officials, Gaston County Emergency Medical Services (GEMS), Gaston County Police and the Sheriff's Office, were also on site. Police officers from Lincolnton and Besse- mer City, as well as Besse- mer City Fire Department, Tryonata VFD, Waco VFD, and Hughes Pond VFD also assisted the Cher- ryville Fire Department. Cherryville bounces back after strong storm's damage A section of the north side fence at Fraley Field was blown down during last Tuesday's, May 16, strong storm and high winds. (photos by MEP/The Eagle/CF Media) On Oak Grove Drive, in Cherryville, broken power pole and generator were blown down by a fast-moving storm that brought heavy rain and very high winds last Tuesday, May 16. This Forest City power crew were hard at work last Thursday, a couple of days after the storm that hit the city and the surrounding areas, repairing a broken power pole on Oak Grove Drive, in Cherryville. The press corps from surrounding towns and cities all came to Cherryville last week to get in on Mayor H.L. Beam's called press conference addressing the storm clean-up and its progress. Cherryville Mayor H.L. Beam, III speaking at the press conference he called last week. With him are: City Manager Brian Dalton, Cherryville City Council members, Cherryville Police Chief Brandon Hunsucker and Cherryville Fire Chief Jason Wofford, along with Gaston County Com- missioner's Allen Fraley and Cathy Cloninger, as well as other Gaston County disaster and emergency services personnel, at the press conference called by Mayor Beam to update ev- eryone on the storm's aftermath and the ongoing cleanup.