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PAGE 10B - THE COMMERCE (GA) NEWS. WEDNESDAY. MARCH 19. 2007
Group Caught In Atlanta Tornado Would Have
Normally Been At The Hard-Hit Westin Hotel
Sometimes a little procrastina
tion works out for the best.
But for some tardiness in mak
ing reservations, Dr. Joe Clark
and his staff would have been in
the Westin, the downtown Atlanta
hotel at the epicenter of Friday
night’s $150 million tornado.
Clark, Cindel Eavenson,
Michelle Wood, Donna Greene
and Gerie Ann Akin saw enough
of the storm as it was. Their dinner
at Ted’s Montana Grill on Luckie
Street was, unluckily, interrupted
by the storm when suddenly the
windows blew in.
They were in town for the
Hinman Dental Meeting, a con
vention offering a trade show and
continuing education opportuni
ties at the World Trade Center.
“We had ordered and were eat
ing our appetizers when it hit,’’
Eavenson recalled. “We heard a
loud burst of wind, kind of a roar
mixed with a whistle. It got really
dark, and we could hear it tap
ping against the window. Then, all
of a sudden a window blew in, hit
the tables near us, then ping, ping,
all of the windows crashed in.’’
They didn’t wait for their sal
ads.
The wait staff yelled for every
one to run, so they all headed for
the kitchen where they hunkered
The aftermath: The Commerce group had
been sitting at the table in the back right part of
the photo when the tornado blew the window in
on an adjacent table at Montana Ted’s Grill on
Luckie Street.
down, “just a couple of minutes,’’
until the storm was over.
“Tables were turned over, debris
was everywhere and food was
everywhere,’’ Eavenson recalled.
“You couldn’t see the floor for the
glass. Everyone pulled out their
Cindel Eavenson, Michelle Wood, Gerie Ann Akin and Donna
Greene were at enjoying their appetizers at Montana Ted’s Grill
on Peachtree Street Friday night when a tornado interrupted their
meal. Then, they went back to their hotel, took to the basement
in another storm warning and on the following day returned to
Commerce — where they found still more threatening weather.
Staff-Produced News Photos Available
MainStreet Newspapers Inc. offers staff-produced photos from its
five newspapers available for the ordering of prints online at its web
site, mainstreetnews.com. Based in Jefferson, the company owns The
Commerce News, The Jackson Herald, The Madison County Journal, The
Braselton News and The Banks County News.
Access to the photos catalogue is available from a button on the
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cell phones and started taking
pictures.’’
Miraculously, aside from a few
minor cuts from flying glass, no
one in Montana Ted’s was hurt.
“It was so sudden,’’ Greene
pointed out. “We looked outside
and it’s raining. It was raining
on the left side of the street and
raining on the right side, but not
raining in the middle. All of the
sudden, you could hear the debris
hitting the glass. About the time
they were trying to get us into
the kitchen, the glass broke. You
didn’t realize what had happened
until it was over. It probably didn’t
last for 10 seconds, but it seemed
longer.’’
“It was the scariest thing I’ve
ever experienced,’’ said Wood. “I
really didn’t know what it was, if
it was a tornado. But we knew we
had to get up and run.’’
The group left the restaurant
and made its way back to their
hotel — the Ellis on Peachtree
— which was not damaged. The
streets were covered with glass,
virtually all car windows were
broken out and there was debris
everywhere. They decided it was
time to go home; they never got
the chance.
Their rooms were on the top
floor of the Ellis — located at the
scene of the infamous Winecoft
Hotel.
“Two of the girls went down to
check out,’’ said Eavenson. “They
called us and told us to run down
stairs, then they rushed us into
the basement because another
one was coming.’’
Eavenson and Wood ran down
15 flights of stairs and stayed in
the hotel basement for an hour,
ultimately concluding that they’d
be better off to stay in their intact
hotel than to try to get out of town
through debris-filled streets.
“I was just glad we weren’t in
the Westin,’’ commented Wood,
who is the reason they were not
at the Westin. “We always stay
in the Westin, I don’t know why
I waited until the last minute to
book. We’ve always been on the
top of the side that got hit.’’
Not Over Yet
The group was released from the
hotel basement around midnight,
and left early the next morning
for Commerce — only to land
in the middle of more tornado
warnings and a freak and fierce
hailstorm.
Greene, who lives on Sunny
Lane, says she and her family
went back and forth to a neigh
bor’s house where there was a
basement much of the afternoon
as Commerce’s warning sirens
went off five times.
Eavenson, who lives in the
Millwood Station subdivision,
said she spent most of the day
in the basement. She reported
“quarter-sized’’ hail in her neigh
borhood .
Jackson Now
Has 'Mission'
And 'Vision'
By Angela Gary
Jackson County leaders
believe their county is in the
“center of opportunity.’’
After three hours
Tuesday morning discuss
ing the county’s strengths
and weaknesses, the
Jackson County Board of
Commissioners agreed on
the following vision state
ment: “Jackson County, the
center of opportunity, is
committed to creating and
sustaining a quality of life
that promotes family, busi
ness and leisure living.’’
The BOC decided the
“vision statement’’ would be
used to guide how all coun
ty business is conducted. It
will be posted in all county
offices and will be used to
promote the county.
“’Jackson County, the center
of opportunity’ that is fabu
lous to me,’’ commissioner
Bruce Yates said. “... I think
we’ve got some tremendous
things today. I’m excited
about it. I think it is great.’’
The commissioners also
established a mission state
ment. It reads: “We strive to
provide innovative, progres
sive and quality services to the
people of Jackson County. We
are committed to providing
efficient, effective, respon
sive and ethical service. We
are open and accountable to
those we serve.’’
The BOC also discussed
ways to use the vision and
mission statements to pro
mote the county.
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