Smyrna times., 1952-06-12
STORM DAMAGE
TO POWER LINE
Electric Wires Broken as
Trees Are Blown Down on
Main Street
HOUSES DAMAGED

nv Oo1lAJ
Just before two o'clock on Tues
day afternoon a violent storm
struck Smyrna and the rural area
nearby doing considerable damage,
The twisting wind and lightning
combined to cause havoc with pow
er lines and water supply equip
ment, large trees were uprooted,
tree limbs torn down, resulting in
the temporary closing of three in
dustries here. The same storm al
most completely demolished the
home of Mr.. and Mrs. William
Foard, DUPONT Parkway, near
Blackbird, and caused great dam
age to farm buildings in its path.
The towns electric and street
crews were at work before the
storm was over, restoring the town
to order within few hours. The
center of the freak storm in town
was in one block on South Main
Street, between South and Frazier
Streets, where large trees whipped
by the twisting wind into 2300-
volt electric lines, caused the lines
to break in two, resulting in a
great flash of fire, and the lines
falling to the ground. AS a result
electric power was off for several
hours in the southwest one-quarter
of the town, while repairs were be
ing made. At the same time light
ming struck a pole at the water
plant, burned off a ground wire,
and kicked out two re-closers on
the Clayton road. This put the
water pump out of order, but with
in two hours the electric crew had
repaired the pump and were at
work on the electric lines.
Three Plants Close
The Belber Trunk and Bag Com
pany and the Latex plant were
forced to close down due to the
current being off, and Wilson Re
frigeration, Inc. closed down to
conserve the towns water supply
until the pump was repaired. Trees
were uprooted and tree limbs torn
down in all sections of Smyrna. A
large tree in front of the residence
of DIR. r. F. Corley, Main Street,
was blown across telephone
cable, which supported it, and Kept
it from falling entirely down. The
town presented a busy scene OF
mopping up the damage on all
streets. Electric lines were also
down on North Main Street, near
-Four Corners: The unexpected work
for the electric crew followed a day
and night of repairing water SER
vices. On Monday the men, with
Town Manager S. &c. Marvel, work
ed during the day, and from 1880
pm. to 2:30 am. repairing water
services on East Commerce Street,
where the big project is under way
preceding installation of storm
sewers, and also at the site where
the plumbing contractor cut into
the main to extend four-inch SER
vice to the new elementary school.
Rural Area Damage
Reports from the rural area as
to damage are incomplete at press
time. The earliest stories came
from the section northeast of
Smyrna. On the farm of Charles
Reed, his fourteen-year old son,
Robert, was in brooder house,
when the wind carried the brooder
house with the boy in it across the
garden. The boy suffered scratch
es and bruises but was not injured.
The silo was blown down at the
Reed place and new shutters were
blown off the house. At the home
of Walter Hill two trees were
blown down across the living-room,
and a COW was killed on the farm
of J. Herman Cook. The effects of
the twister can be seen by path
thru the woods with all trees top
ped by the wind. A farmer in the
Walker School area described his
farm as ga shambles." The Tele-
phone Company was at work in the
rural area the next morning in an
attempt to restore service to those
who had been hit.
C0~xrA@w. N Gux-x-