Roanoke Times
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: THURSDAY, June 7, 1990 TAG: 9006070480
SECTION: NATIONAL/INTERNATIONAL PAGE: A/2 EDITION: EVENING
SOURCE: Associated Press
DATELINE: LIMON, COLO. LENGTH: Medium
Sirens wailed in Limon for 10 minutes before the twister struck Wednesday night, giving residents time to take shelter, officials and survivors said.
Three guests at the Lariat Hotel piled into their bathtub and pulled a mattress over themselves after the sirens went off.
"We were doing a lot of praying in that bathtub," said David Thomas, 27.
The tornado tore their room apart. "It felt like somebody just reached down and squeezed your whole body. My eardrums were coming out," Thomas said.
The town hall, a bank, a supermarket, a video store and a nightclub also were destroyed along Main Street in this town of 1,800 people 80 miles from Denver.
Most of the businesses were closed at the time; 10 people in the nightclub were saved by taking refuge in the bar's cooler, a witness said.
Residential areas were largely spared. But resident Bernard Goetz said most of the 20 to 25 homes at a trailer park on the edge of town were damaged or destroyed.
"It's a lot of havoc, a lot of destruction, a lot of homes gone out there," Goetz said.
Twelve to 14 people were hurt and the three most seriously injured were taken to a hospital, said Jane It felt like somebody just reached down and squeezed your whole body. My eardrums were coming out. David Thomas Nelson, spokeswoman for Gov. Roy Romer.
The tornado spun out of thunderstorms that swept the plains east of Denver with heavy rain and baseball-size hail. The National Weather Service said eight other tornadoes touched down on the plains. There were no immediate reports of damage from those.
Romer arrived at the shattered town on a National Guard helicopter early today and said he would seek a federal disaster declaration.
"The business district is 50 to 75 percent destroyed," he said. "It's very serious, but fortunately there are very few injuries."
National Guardsmen brought bedding, food and other supplies.
by CNB