Heflin resident Jack Coefield and his daughter Dixie sat in their yard under the shade of a small tree Monday and watched as the family home of 52 years was taken down to make way for construction of a new one.And while the Coefields got some relief in the shade during the 90-plus degree day, Jack says he will never have another tree around his house now that he is keenly aware of what one can do under the influence of an F-1 tornado.
Portions of a big oak tree came into the back of the house as well as part of a large cedar tree when his home on Tumlin Mill Road was hit by the Mother's Day tornado.
In addition to blowing trees and limbs into the home, the windows were blown out and his wife Bobbie was blown out of bed.
"I was in the bathroom washing my face and brushing my teeth. I walked into the kitchen and heard a roar. I sat down in a chair and the wind picked me up and spun me 'round and 'round. I'm 72 years old and I've never witnessed anything like this.It blew my wife out of bed," said Coefield.
No one was injured and Coefield credits "the good Lord" with that.
A third tree, a large magnolia, had to be cut before they could get out of their partially destroyed home.
Now, watching his home being finished off by large equipment, Coefield said thanks to Allstate Insurance he should have a new home in five or six months.
Dixie said the original home was a Jim Walter type in which it was completed to a certain stage and the family finished it out.
Coefield figures it cost him around $15,000 and he paid it off in six years selling hogs.
"I paid $52 per month payments and I sold 100 head of hogs and paid it off," he said.
The new home, he estimates, will cost around $110,000.
"The community has been real good to us but there will not ever be another tree around my home," he added.
Meanwhile cleanup and repairs continue in other areas hit by the tornado.
Earlene Cantrell went before the Cleburne County Commission Monday afternoon and voiced her feelings about the cleanup.
Cantrell told commissioners that she was angry after seeing a copy of an agreement between the county and city in which the county sought to recoup the cost of labor if they assisted.
Cleburne County Executive Officer Steve Swafford explained that the county offered their services with a pay schedule of 30, 90 or 180 days but were turned down by the City of Heflin in favor of utilizing a crew from Jefferson County.
Cleburne County Commission Ex-Officio Chairman Ryan Robertson said the county did not receive a call for emergency aid and Heflin Fire Chief Rudy Rooks directed the incident command for the city.
"We had no request for mutual aid," said Swafford who is also the director of the Cleburne County Emergency Managment Agency.
Robertson said county crews were also busy in the areas of the county hit by the storm.
"We have to have an invitation to help. We did offer help. We have six county roads in Heflin that we maintain. Bonner Lake Road was one. A lot of trees were down but on one was hurt. We're not allowed to come on private property. We have to stay on the right-of-way. We also don't have a cleanup program. We don't have a system (for tree disposal).' he said while pointing out that in the event of storms out in the county, there is no pickup of downed trees or debris unless it is actually blocking a road.
Robertson said that all county-to-city or county department-to-department contracts contain "a labor additive." in which the county at least recoups the labor, cost of wages, insurance and employment taxes.
