Published: May 09, 2008 11:37 am            

Remembering victims of May 3, 1999

Memories of the May 3, 1999, tornado linger for those who lived in Del City at the time.

The tornado was massive in size and carried with it an incredible roar, according to Dick Carter, Ward 1 councilman. In its wake, hundreds of Del City homes were demolished and eight residents were killed.

Those residents and others who were injured will be remembered at 2 p.m. Saturday when Del City will dedicate a memorial to them.

Quinton Hindman, Noah K. Fish Jr., Herbert G.J. Self, Gustin Miller, Loretta M. Richards, Glenda Stanfield, Guadalupe Urice and United States Air Force Staff Sgt. James Day were all victims of that deadly tornado.

The Sooner Road Memorial Monument sits across from Tinker Air Force Base’s Vance Gate, along the walking trail that starts at Southeast 44th and crawls up to Southeast 29th on the west side of Sooner Road.

The monument contains several subtle symbols, according to city employee Ted Rupe. An upside down triangle running from top to bottom represents the tornado. A prominent eagle, Del City High School’s mascot, is supposed to be akin to a phoenix rising from the ashes and represents Del City’s rise from the rubble, Rupe said.

J.D. Marshall worked for the city back when the tornado hit. He drove the backhoe, cleaning debris from the streets.

“It looked like someone raked it (Del City) with a rake,” Marshall said. “We worked from sun up to sun down.”

City Manager Mark Edwards said it was five years ago that the city began to conceptualize and look at possible designs for the project. Physical work on the site began last summer, he said.

Funding for the memorial came from city funds, private donors and companies. The company under contract to clean up the city after the tornado helped pay for the trails after accidentally overcharging the city for its work. A number of community organizations contributed, including a Buddhist group on Southeast 44th who donated trees for the trail.

Edwards said that even though the memorial only includes the names of those who were killed in Del City, it is meant to honor all victims of the 1999 tornado.

        

• Click to discuss this story with other readers on our forums.