This week, we’re remembering the Xenia tornado of 1974, the furious sound and the silence that came afterwards. Many looked up afterwards to no roof, only sky, and then they began to climb out from under debris to see what had happened. Hundreds of homes were in piles and phone lines had been destroyed. Louise Crawley knew what to do. Her husband was a firefighter with the Fairborn Fire Department, and they both were ham radio operators. Here is some of her oral history interview with the Greene County Public Library.
Louise Crawey was interviewed by Sharon Benedict of the Greene County Public Library. Alan Staiger produced our series.
Today, April 3rd, there will be a gathering at the Tornado Memorial, at the corner of N. Detroit Street and E. Market Street, in Xenia -at 4:15pm to commemorate the victims of the 1974 tornado. A reception will immediately follow at the Xenia Community Library. More information is available here.
For more on the Greene County Public Library's Voices of Greene County series, click here.