A tornado that destroyed 149 structures in Oklahoma’s Atoka County on April 14 is causing a major financial strain on residents and relief agencies, officials said.
About 65 percent of the people who lost houses when the tornado hit Tushka did not have insurance on the contents of their homes, and roughly half had no insurance at all, Red Cross spokeswoman Donita Quesnal told The Oklahoman.
The cost of helping the victims is continuing to rise as residents are picking up what little remains in the homes that were destroyed or heavily damaged. So far, the Red Cross has spent $221,000 on relief efforts, and Quesnal said the cost could climb to about $400,000.
Only about $40,000 has been donated to the relief effort, Quesnal said.
Tushka is home to about 345 people.
State officials said the tornado destroyed 149 homes and businesses in and around the town.
Another 47 had major damage, 33 had minor damage, and eight were mildly affected by the storm.
“You are talking essentially about the entire community,” Quesnal said. “That is obviously putting a financial strain on the area. A major manufacturing plant was also affected, so some of these people may be without jobs.”
According to the U.S. Census Bureau, the median household income in Atoka County is about $32,000 a year, about $10,000 less than the state average.
“Our town is a low-income town,” Tushka Mayor Brickie Griffin said.
Tushka is home to three large manufacturing plants. One of them, Nuttall Manufacturing, was heavily damaged in the storm, Griffin said.
The town’s brick school, built in the early 1900s, suffered about $12 million in damage, and farming areas outside the town also were hit hard, he said.
Most of those who lost their homes rented motel rooms or are staying with relatives, Griffin said.
After all the motels in Atoka filled up, people began checking in at motels 30 miles away in Durant, he said.
“Our community is working on a tight budget,” Griffin said, “but people are not going without food.”
Donations of food have poured in from the Salvation Army, churches, the Red Cross and the Choctaw Nation, he said.
“Choctaw Nation sent a chef from one of the casinos to cook for us,” he said.
In his 26 years as mayor, Griffin said, he has never seen anything like the April 14 tornado. The tornado cut a swath four miles wide and 15 miles long.
The White House has approved Gov. Mary Fallin’s request for federal disaster assistance for Atoka County.
The announcement means individuals and business owners affected by the April 14 tornado in Tushka may now qualify for assistance with housing repairs or temporary housing.
The declaration makes U.S. Small Business Administration low-interest loans available for individuals and businesses to repair or replace damaged property. The loans also can be used for disaster unemployment assistance or as grants for serious needs or necessary disaster expenses not met by other programs..
Michaelann Ooten, spokeswoman for the state Emergency Management Department, said people who want to help can donate to the Red Cross or to a tornado relief fund established at the First Bank of Tushka and Ameristate Bank.
“It’s been a little over a week now, and people are trying to put their lives back together,” Ooten said. “There is a great unmet financial need represented there. We know they are hurting.”
Information from: The Oklahoman
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