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The town of Picher has gone through so much over the past two decades with a superfund site that forced many from their homes. Now, it seems the tornado may have been the end of what used to be a booming mining town.
It was already on life support because of environmental concerns. Only about eight hundred people remained of the town that used to hold thousands. Many had already moved on and others were being asked to move out through a federal buyout program.
Right now, there are no plans to rebuild. We're told there were 295 homes that were destroyed by Saturday's tornado. We spoke with Picher Housing Authority Director John Sparkman about where Picher stands now in the buyout process.
"This is pretty much the final nail in the coffin," Sparkman said. "There's no way you can bounce back from something like this. This is complete devastation. The town was already on its way to be bought out. Now, we've been wiped out. And, this is pretty much the end."
Some of the houses in Picher were unharmed for the most part. So, what will become of the people who live there?
"Some of the houses are okay, some like mine are still standing with some damage of course. But, the town was in the process of a buyout, so it's eventually all going to be gone at some point in the future. Now it's gone for good. You have people who wanted to say goodbye in their own way as far as walking out of their home for the last time or having a last holiday, but that's over with. A lot of devastation and lives have changed drastically right now. It's one thing to go out and look for a home through the buyout. And, if you have trouble finding a home you can request an extension saying I need more time to find a house. There are no more extensions now. It's all over with."
Sparkman says the next step is to try and get as much assistance as possible to the affected residents. The Red Cross is assisting with shelter at the Picher Community Center. Sparkman says he is also conducting a survey with other housing authorities in the tri-state area to see what housing is available for those who have lost everything.
"It's going to take time," Sparkman says. "And, people need to be patient. Let the elected officials do their job. There's a lot of unanswered questions. We'll get the answers to those questions, but just be patient and we'll work as fast as we can."
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