Storm Leaves Ottawa Municipal Airport in Pieces
The storm also left the hangar at the Ottawa Municipal Airport in pieces, damaging about 13 planes, according to airport manager Chuck LeMaster.
"All the sudden, it just got black," said LeMaster. "The rain and hail were blowing horizontally and the wind was blowing 80 to 100 miles per hour."
LeMaster has managed the airport since 1955 and said it was the most damage he has seen at the site, which averages 40 flights per day. Once the storm passed, several owners showed up to see what remained of their planes.
The most amazing sight: a 28-passenger plane that had been picked up and tossed hundreds of yards away.
"We had a DC-3 that blew a half-mile into the bean field. That's just unbelievable," LeMaster said.
The airport will remain closed until power is restored and some of the leaking fuel and debris is cleaned up, according to LeMaster.
Franklin County emergency workers said the storms and damage continued into Anderson, Linn and Bourbon counties. Most of the damage there was from hail hitting crops in fields.
Kansas City Power & Light officials report a total of about 7,000 customers lost power Wednesday afternoon in and around Ottawa. More than half of those customers had service restored by 9:30 p.m. but it could be several days before everyone has electricity. More than 150 above-ground poles were snapped during the storm, and more than 20 large transmission poles were damaged by straight-line winds. Extra crews were sent to Franklin County from Kansas City to assist with repairs.
