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VOLUME CVII — NUMBER V
Great Flood Of Feb. 16, 1990 -- One Year Later
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RESIDENTS STAND IN FLOODED PARK AVENUE DURING EVACUATION
Emotional Scars Remain From Chattooga Disaster
By TOMMY TOLES
Editor
Most of Trion was still
asleep when the foaming dirty
waters of the Chattooga River
filled the narrow gulch behind
the ancient concrete dam west
of the community. The ragin
torrent tumbled over the ineé
Trion Schools Emerge From Floodwaters United
By BUDDY ROBERTS
Associate News Editor
Bill Kinzy looks con
siderably more relaxed these
days than he did last February.
Sitting in his office, he leafed
through Trion City Schools’
emergency disaster plan and
outlined its main ob{'(ectives.
“I'm not looking to
demonstrate this again,”’ he
said. ““We may not be as lucky
next time.” ; .
Kinzy, the superintendent
of Trion schools, referred to at
least two occasions last year
when some form of a disaster
plan was demonstrated when it
appeared that the Chattooga
2
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[ Jimmy Wilkerson [B]2so] 7o Is[6[oo]2]lo6]3] 24 [ll] 18
Complete Election Results In Sheriff’s Race
The { mmerville News
fectual confines of the dam and
sped toward the town below.
Unlike the Johnston, Penn.
flood of 1889, the dam at Trion
held. But a foot or more of rain
dumped on the ridges between
Trion and LaFayette on the
afternoon and night of Feb. 15
and during the early morning
hours of Feb. 16, 1990, was
more than the banks of the
river could hold. :
When the mountain of
water dropped into the
River might rise from its banks
as it did during a flash flood
that ravaged the schools last
Feb. 15 and 16, causing more
than $1.26 million in damages.
(See related stories for details
about the disaster plan and
damages).
More than 10 inches of rain
fell in Chattooga County bet
ween the afternoon of Feb. 15
and the morning of Feb. 16.
The Chattooga River crested at
a record 22.6 feet, and flood
damages were reported in all
parts of the county. The Town
of Trion and its schools were
hit hardest.
As much as five feet of
water stood in the schools’
classrooms and corridors. Vir
tually all equipment, tex
tbooks, and some furniture
were destroyed. Severe struc
SUMMERVILLE, CHATTOOGA COUNTY, GEORGIA — THURSDAY, FEBRUARY 14, 1991
relativelK flat, low—lyin% plain
on which a iiant textile mill
and village had arisen since
1845, it spread out and began
rising.
Before darkness fell on that
chilly day almost one year ago,
millions of dollars in damage
had been caused, hundreds of
geople, many of them poor, had
een forced from their homes,
Trion’s schools had been near
ly destroyed, and innumerable
public facilities and buildings
tural damage, now hidden by
renovations, was sustained in
the elementary and high school
buildings, andy in Kinzy's office.
The schools were closed for
five days while students,
teachers, and community
members volunteered to clean
the buildings and their con
tents. Administrators took in
ventory of damaged school
records, teachers worked to
prepare their lesson plans, and
to obtain textbooks to replace
those damaged by flooding.
Kinzy recalled the week as
a bleak time for the school
system. ‘‘We were down
morale-wise,”” he said.
‘ ‘Shocked’ might be a better
description. But nobody was
shocked so stroxlljly that they
didn't help to f, us out.”
Kinzy had high praise for
© Copyright 1991 By Espy Publishing Co., Inc. — All Rights Reserved
Trion's teachers and ad
ministrative staff. “‘I don't
think anybody on our staff
quit. They kept digging out
way out, and without that at
titude, we wouldn’'t be where
we are today.”
Officials from the federal
Department of Education
made assessments of the
schools’ situation as part of the
?rocess of issuing disaster aid
unds to the system. The
a%:ants were impressed that
schools were closed for only six
days.
*Closing schools (indefinite
ly) was never discussed,” Kin
zy said. ‘‘Our teachers basical
ly made the decision to go back
when we did.”
* ... It never crossed our
minds that we wouldn't come
out, because we were supposed
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had been severely damaged
YEAR LATER
One year later, few physical
scars of the destruction can be
seen. The hidden, emotional
scars may never be healed.
Trion residents confess to look
ing waril{‘ at the skies and the
river banks each time a heavy
shower passes overhead.
But in some ways, it may
have been Chattooga County's
finest hour. ‘*Chattooga Coun-
to,”” said Cheri Parker, a
teacher at Trion Elementary.
The schools were also cited
by Werner Rogers, superinten
dent of Georgia schools, who
visited Trion in November. Sue
Hayes, system curriculum
Kellett To Face Kellett
In March 5 Runoff Vote
By BUDDY ROBERTS
Associate News Editor
*
Slightg' more than 50 per
cent of Chattooga County’s
voters turned out for Tues
day’s special election for
sheriff. Candidates Larry
Kellett and Ralph Kellett
garnered the most votes, and
gvill face off in a run-off March
Larry Kellett received
1,547, or 32 percent, of the
total 4,761 votes cast. He
resigned as a sergeant in
vestigator and drug task force
memlggr with the Chattooga
‘Sheriff's Department to seek
the post. Ralph Kellett, service
manager for the local Ford
automobile dealership, receiv
-ed 1,462 votes, or 30 percent of
the total cast.
F{‘ve other candidates
sought the county sheriff's
WATER RECEDES, BUT TRION APARTMENTS STILL SHOW SIGNS OF WATER
ty showed its true colors dur
ing the flood,” recalled then-
Sheriff Gary McConnell. “We
all pulled together. We may
fight and bicker among
ourselves from time to time but
when our folks are hurting and
need help, we all pull together.”
McConnell was appointed
in January to head the Eoeorgia
Emergency Management
Agency (GEMA), which was
responsible for helping funnel
more than a million dollars in
Turnout Swells To More Than 51 Percent
director, presented a video
made of the flood during
Rogers’ visit.
“You have to watch
something like that before you
can really appreciate the
flood,” Kinzy said. ‘‘And the
post vacated by Gary McCon
nell, now the director of the
Georgia Emergency Manage
ment Agency (GEMA). Ron
Turner serves as interim sheriff
until the new official is elected.
TURNOUT HIGH
Jon Payne, Chattooga pro
bate judge and election
superintendent, predicted a
“medium”’ voter turnout Tues
day, while between 3,500 and
4,000 votes were expected to be
cast. Fifty-one percent of Chat
tooga's voters took part in the
election. A total of 9,272 voters
was registered for the election.
Jerry Davenport, who
resigneX as road patrol lieute
nant in the sheriff's depart
ment, finished a distant third
in the race, receiving 709 votes,
and 14 percent. Wilburn
Ragland, gead of the county
school system'’s transportation
department, garnered 492
;/ottaels. and 10 percent of the
otal.
David Hartline, author,
aid to reeling schools, govern
ments and individuals affected
by the flood. He was in Sum
merville again late last week to
inform local officials about
more than $700,000 in addi
tional federal matching funds
that may be used to help pre
vent such severe flood damage
in the future (see related story).
ALL COUNTY HIT
It wasn't just Trion that
was hit by the flooding. Almost
state school superintendent
was pleased that we'd come as
far as we did.”
Trion received authoriza
tion from Rogers to be exempt
from state standardized
testing last year. The schools’
Vietnam veteran, and former
police chief in Cedar Bluff,
Ala., received six percent of the
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LARRY KELLETT
every county road suffered
some damage. Several bridges
were washed out or damaged.
The sewage treatment plants
at Trion and Summerville were
flooded and damaged. City
streets and bridges in Summer
ville received heavy damage.
Several isolated moi;ile homes
and standard residences in low
lying county areas were
flooded.
But the most people af
see EMOTIONAL, page 7-A
testing materials were damag
ed by the flood, which occurred
shortly before the annual
testi;llfi dates.
“The state Department of
Education cooperated with
see TRION SCHOOLS, page 8-A
vote. Magistrate Jimmy
Wilkerson received three per
see KELLETT, page 15-A
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RALPH KELLETT
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