(Editor’s note: This is part two of a two-day series.)
Mother Nature’s wrath and its consequences topped the list of the top stories of 2009, as voted on by the staff of the Richmond Register.
Other top stories included an assault at a local high school that sent one student to the hospital and the city of Richmond’s ongoing budget crisis.
The top 10 stories and an honorable mention were selected through a vote by the members of the Register’s news staff and publisher Nick Lewis.
No. 1 — Tornado kills two, levels homes
A typical Friday afternoon turned tragic May 8 when an EF3 tornado ripped across the county, flattening houses in Kirksville and Waco and killing two people.
Glenda Charbonnel, 42, and Shawn Michael Yarber, 35, were killed when the trailer they were in was thrown into a pond by the storm as it passed through Kirksville.
The storm devastated a subdivision near Kirksville Elementary School, caused substantial damage to Richmond Fire Station No. 5, knocked down electrical lines to the city of Berea and destroyed homes in the Waco area as it crossed the county.
The tornado entered Madison County shortly after 5 p.m., and by 8 p.m., both the city of Richmond and the county government had declared states of emergency.
Madison County sheriff’s deputies were deployed alongside the National Guard to set up checkpoints around the Kirksville area to cut down on looting and vandalism in the days after the storm.
The devastation caused by the storm led to President Barack Obama including Madison County in a disaster declaration that covered 22 counties affected by the same storm, which caused an estimated $52 million in damage statewide.
No. 2 — Ice storm blankets county, causes outages
A late January ice storm darkened large portions of Madison County as trees and power lines collapsed.
The Jan. 27 storm was expected to bring snow, but instead coated the area with a thick sheet of ice that wreaked havoc on electrical service, plunging thousands into darkness.
Most of the city of Berea lost power for more than a day following the storm, as Kentucky Utilities worked to restore transmission lines to Berea Municipal Utilities as well as the city of Richmond.
The outage forced hospitals and other emergency services to operate on generator power, and police officers in Richmond and Berea were forced to direct traffic on the slick roads because traffic lights were out of service.
Despite the outages, the All “A” Classic continued at Eastern Kentucky University’s Alumni Coliseum through the storm, and Madison District Court went ahead as scheduled Jan. 28 despite the Madison Hall of Justice not having electricity.
The damage caused by the storm and the cost of cleaning up the tons of debris left by fallen trees exceeded $1 million county-wide, and the city of Richmond took out a $600,000 loan in March to pay for the cleanup, despite commissioners not voting to approve the loan until October.
No. 3 — ‘A City in Crisis’
The city of Richmond’s struggle to cope with budget shortfalls began over the summer when commissioners Rita Smart and Mike Brewer began asking questions about the city’s financial health.
An in-depth analysis of the city’s budget showed Richmond had been operating on a deficit for the past three years, and income projections for items like the city’s 8 percent insurance tax, the Paradise Cove aquatic center and the Adventure Falls miniature golf course were far out of line with actual collections.
Commissioners have spent the past three months considering ways to cut expenses and raise additional income to deal with the shortfall, including changes to the city’s overtime and vacation policies, increasing fees for recreational facilities and changing work schedules for city employees.
State Auditor Crit Luallen said in October that her office is looking closely at the city’s audit as a result of the shortfall, particularly in light of the city being forced to spend almost $9 million from its investment accounts to pay for deficits in recent years.
“Whenever you have to spend down those investments, it points to a longer-term problem,” Luallen told the Register.
No. 4 — Student stabbed in MCHS fight
An early October fight in a culinary laboratory at Madison Central High School sent one student to the University of Kentucky Medical Center in Lexington with a collapsed lung after he was stabbed in the chest with a knife.
Stevie Christopher Caldwell, 17, was hospitalized for a week after the Oct. 8 stabbing, which forced administrators and Richmond police to lock the building down for several hours while investigators examined the scene.
Caldwell’s assailant, identified only as a 17-year-old male student, was charged as a juvenile with first-degree assault following the altercation.
The knife came within millimeters of puncturing Caldwell’s heart, according to his mother, Jaime. “If it had hit his heart, we wouldn’t have him right now,” she said in October.
Jaime Caldwell filed a lawsuit Dec. 10 against Central principal Gina Lakes, teacher Patti Etherington and teacher’s aide Rose Mansfield, alleging that the three were deficient in their responsibility to enforce school policies regarding students possessing knives and negligent in supervising the students when the stabbing occurred.
No. 5 — Richmond police officers accused in sexual assault
A group of three Richmond Police Department officers are suspended and facing administrative charges in connection with an Oct. 27 incident in which a woman initially reported the men had sexually assaulted her.
The non-criminal charges were filed after an internal investigation by Detective Brian Lafferty into the circumstances surrounding the incident.
The incident was first reported to the Madison County Sheriff’s Office on Oct. 27 when the alleged victim’s neighbor contacted authorities out of concern for her neighbor’s safety, said Sheriff Nelson O’Donnell. The woman appeared to have a bruised neck and a split lip, he said.
Investigators spoke to the woman on multiple occasions about the incident, including at Pattie A. Clay Regional Medical Center, where she refused a rape examination kit.
The woman later recanted the assault claim, and no criminal charges have been filed.
An attorney for the officers, Scott Crosbie of Lexington, issued a statement Dec. 28 that maintained their innocence and expressed concern that O’Donnell’s statements about the case may have violated his clients’ constitutional rights.
O’Donnell responded to Crosbie’s concerns by stating that his office acted appropriately in investigating the case.
Brian Smith may be reached at bsmith@richmondregister.com or at 624-6694.
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Nancy Taggart
Deadly tornado named top story of 2009
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Friday at library : Lecturer to portray founder of Berea
John G. Fee, abolitionist and founder of both Berea and Berea College, will be portrayed Friday night by performer Obadiah Ewing-Roush as part of Kentucky Humanities Council Chautauqua performance series at the Madison County Public Library. There is no charge to attend the 7 p.m. event.
As the son of a slave-holding father, Fee witnessed firsthand the benefits of having slaves and the profits that could be made from their labor. When he graduated from college and enrolled in Lane Theological Seminary, he began to understand the inherent wrong and destructiveness of slavery. -
Berea woman dies Tuesday in Laurel County crash
A Berea woman, Tommie Johnson, 60, died Tuesday evening in a Laurel County crash, according to the the Laurel Sheriff’s Office.
The accident took place about 7 p.m. at the junction of Maple Grove Road and KY 363 south of London, as Johnson was attempting to turn onto the state highway.
Laurel County Chief Deputy Eddy Sizemore said Johnson’s Chevrolet Cavalier pulled out in front of a Dodge Durango driven by Charles Joseph, 19, that was traveling south on KY 363.
After being extricated from her vehicle, Johnson was transported to St. Joseph-London hospital, where she was pronounced dead.
Joseph also was transported to the hospital, where he was treated for minor injuries, according to the accident report. -
Finally February
Ian Rosser, an Eastern Kentucky University student from Lexington, clears snow from his car parked on campus Wednesday
morning after about an inch of snow fell in Richmond. Temperatures are forcast to be in the upper 40s today. Kentucky has seen a lot of rain in the past few months, as was predicted by the Farmer's Almanac, but very little snow has fallen. -
Volunteers needed for equine therapy
The Appalachian Foothills Therapeutic Equestrian Center will be hosting two, one-day volunteer training workshops for those interested in helping others with special needs.
The volunteer orientation days will be Friday and Saturday from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m., but only one day of training is required, according to Mark Martin who co-owns Appalachian Foothills Therapeutic Equestrian Center (AFTEC) with his wife Cheryl.
The all-volunteer organization, which is based in Jackson County, uses horses to help humans deal with physical and emotional challenges. -
Man accused of holding samurai sword to girlfriend’s throat
A Madison grand jury will hear the case of a man accused of threatening to cut his girlfriend’s head off, and attacking her father with a samurai sword.
Russell M. Masters, 42, of Richmond, is charged with two counts of first-degree wanton endangerment, which is a Class D felony, and fourth-degree assault (domestic violence with minor injury) and resisting arrest, which both are Class A misdemeanors. Masters could receive one to five years in prison on each wanton endangerment charge, and the misdemeanors both carry a maximum sentence of one year in jail.
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Friday at library : Lecturer to portray founder of Berea
- Sports
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Central senior wrestlers Ryan Mosher and Darrell Wooton pose for a picture Wednesday in Richmond.
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Seniors Wooton and Mosher have played key role in building the wrestling program at Madison Central
Asked to describe what it was like to be a member of Madison Central’s first-ever wrestling team, Ryan Mosher had a short, simple answer.
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OVC HOOPS: Transfer point guards have made big impact this year for Colonels
The point of attack on the basketball court at Eastern Kentucky University begins with a pair of junior transfers.
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KIAC HOOPS: Berea tops Asbury
Berea College picked up a narrow victory on the road Tuesday night,, beating Asbury University 73-71.
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Seniors Wooton and Mosher have played key role in building the wrestling program at Madison Central
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Is MSG (monosodium glutamate) harmful?
Monsodium gluatamate (MSG) is a flavor enhancer often added to Chinese food, soups, processed meats and canned vegetables. The use of MSG remains controversial despite a Food and Drug Administration (FDA) statement that it is safe. Because of this, the FDA requires that whenever MSG is added, that it be listed on the label.
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Education a focus in Senate this week
FRANKFORT — The Senate passed several bills this week. Of these bills, three education bills are of particular importance.
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