THE VIRGINIAN-PILOT
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: Thursday, November 16, 1995 TAG: 9511170416
SECTION: SUFFOLK SUN PAGE: 13 EDITION: FINAL
TYPE: Cover Story
SOURCE: By LINDA McNATT, STAFF WRITER
LENGTH: Medium: 56 lines
AFTER A LATE Saturday afternoon cookout, Henry Stiltner was relaxing with a few friends and employees in his vehicle and equipment garage near Orbit in Isle of Wight County.
About 15 people had taken shelter in the 40-by-80-foot garage when rain started, the 53-year-old owner of Henry Stiltner Trucking Inc. said.
``All of a sudden, we heard this big rumble,'' Stiltner said. ``The whole place started shaking, and we all headed for the door. Stuff was flying everywhere.''
The wind came so suddenly and everything happened so quickly that Stiltner still isn't sure exactly what happened. But he imagines it was a tornadolike storm that destroyed his 3-year-old garage. The building and contents, much of which may not be salvageable, was valued at nearly $150,000.
Once they got outside, after the rumble was heard about 8:45 p.m., Stiltner said he and his friends found themselves on the ground. He is uncertain how the ligaments and tendons of his right knee were severely ripped.
``I don't know whether something hit me . . .,'' Stiltner said. ``But I know I couldn't get up off the ground.''
Among the party guests was an emergency room physician at Southampton Memorial Hospital. Stiltner was taken there by ambulance and was scheduled for surgery Wednesday.
Stiltner's home also suffered some damage, several vehicles were dented from falling limbs and flying debris, and a camper trailer was destroyed.
Jean Thrasher, operations manager at Community Electric Co. in Windsor, said, ``Nobody actually saw a funnel cloud, but the damage (around Orbit) looks like a tornado, with trees twisted off.''
Thrasher said a silo blew over, a parked tractor-trailer was turned over and a couple of buildings collapsed.
The electric company in Windsor - like Virginia Power, which serves the county from Route 10 north - had power outages in a widespread area.
Thrasher said most of Community Electric's outages extended between Capron in Southampton County to an area between Orbit and Smithfield. About 1,500 customers were affected, and most had power restored by noon Sunday.
Virginia Power took over from the Smithfield area and restored power to customers in Morgart's Beach, Burwell's Bay and the Mill Swamp Road area by early Sunday morning.
Trees were uprooted and limbs were down throughout the county, said Sheriff C.W. ``Charlie'' Phelps. A large oak tree fell across business Route 10 near Richmond Cold Storage at the height of the storm and blocked traffic in that area for several hours, Phelps said. MEMO: [For related story, see page 12 of The Sun for this date.]
by CNB