Driving through it that night looking at the houses and small shops, I didn't realize that soon the town would be forever changed.

A mere 30 minutes after I had meandered through town in my pick-up headed south to my farm in the country, the weather suddenly changed. Lightning started flashing and the radio reported a tornado had touched down near Solomon and was headed toward Chapman. The town's three sirens sounded and Chapman's law enforcement officers used their patrol cars' public-address systems to tell residents to take shelter.

At 10:20 p.m. an EF3 tornado some half a mile wide worked its way east along Smoky Hill River before suddenly turning north and heading through town. Paul Pickering watched the house across the street get shaken violently before he dived for cover. Pieces from his neighbor's house crashed around him before his own roof was suddenly ripped off as the tornado chewed its way along. At 10:22 p.m. power went out across town.

On June 11, 2008 a half-mile wide tornado destroyed 60% of the small town of Chapman, Kan. In the days that followed the American Legion and many volunteers pitched in to help the victims. (Photo: David M. Fortier)

Nothing Could Stop It

He never even made it out of the parking lot, though, as his truck was caught and pummeled by the tornado. Although Leon survived, he lost both an arm and an eye to the storm, which demolished the high school before heading through town. Anything that stood in its path, including churches, schools, stores, the funeral home and dozens of houses, were smashed like children's toys in the fierce wind.

One resident heard what sounded like a freight train and ran to her cellar door. However, she was unable to open it due to the air pressure, and so she turned and ran for a closet. Hiding inside, she listened terrified as her house was torn apart around her. When the tornado moved on her house was almost entirely gone, save for a wall and her hiding place.

Everyone was not so lucky though. One young mother was killed as she tried to make it from her car to her home to reach her child.
When the winds finally subsided approximately 60% of the small Kansas town was destroyed. When it was over people staggered dazed from their homes to stand outside and stare in awe at the damage wrought on their community. People embraced each other, looked around and thanked the Lord God for being merciful.

Rescue crews immediately began combing through the wreckage looking for injured. Their job was made all the more difficult by smashed trees and crushed vehicles littering the streets, sidewalks and yards.

Time for Action

Living outside of town, my home was unscathed by the storm. I was actually unaware of what had happened until the next morning when my friend and neighbor Sergeant Major Ken Ricker (Ret.) pulled up in his 1-ton Ford and told me he was headed into town to help. We loaded chainsaws, generators and assorted supplies into his Ford and headed the 3 miles into Chapman.

02. A little girl, still dressed in her nightshirt, surveys the damage wrought around her house. (Photo: David M. Fortier)

In a previous life Ken commanded Abrams tanks in combat. Although recently retired, he is still very much a sergeant major. It's simply who he is. Like many veterans, he's a member of the American Legion and his wife Lisa runs the local American Legion Hall.

So he quickly set about turning the American Legion Hall into a command center for the disaster relief effort. Generators were set-up to provide power and the hall was readied to provide free food and drinks to the victims of the storm.

Effort Expands

From initial meals of hot dogs and hamburgers, the effort would evolve over the following weeks to feed hundreds of people daily. Even the National Guard asked for the troops manning the roadblocks to be fed. When the American Red Cross arrived and needed a suitable place to work from, the American Legion opened up part of their hall for them. Lisa also organized donations for people who had lost everything. Residents could come to the American Legion Hall and pick up food, water, health care items, clothes, diapers, baby items and more.

While Lisa organized and ran the Legion Hall, Ken organized groups of volunteers to help in the clean-up effort. Many volunteers were active duty Army from nearby Fort Riley. I worked with members of Cav units, MPs and members of the 1st UD Band who all came down on their off time to help. Volunteers cut up the numerous downed trees and moved the wood for removal. During these days Ken was constantly behind a chainsaw or doing whatever he could to help.

During a break after cutting up a tree that had gone through an elderly lady's roof, we chatted while we rehydrated. "Many people don't know anything about the American Legion," Ken began between hauls off a bottle of water. Wiping his brow, he continued, "They think it's just a place for men to gather and have a beer. While the American Legion Hall is a place where vets can get together like that, it's much more than that.

We are all veterans, and in times like this we are ready and willing to stand up once again for our community. As veterans, service to our country is not something new to us. The American Legion is here to make a difference in the community and its members are ready to answer the call when our community needs us."

Nearly 3 Million Strong

For those of you unfamiliar with it, the American Legion is an organization of veterans of the United States Armed Forces who served during wartime. It was founded in 1919 by veterans returning from Europe after the First World War. With nearly 3 million members, the American Legion is headquartered at the Indiana War Memorial Plaza in Indianapolis, but has approximately 14,900 posts in towns and cities across the country.

03. A National Guard unit patrols the streets of Chapman to prevent any possible looting. The town was completely sealed by the National Guard shortly after the tornado struck. (Photo: David M. Fortier)

Although the small Kansas town of Chapman was devastated by the tornado, life goes on here. Rather than waiting for the federal government to come in with handouts, the local residents quickly began cleaning up. Like rural people all over this great country, people here in the Midwest are a sturdy lot. In a surprisingly short amount of time the streets were cleared and debris began to be hauled off. Work began to repair the houses and buildings which could be fixed, and those which can't are being demolished.

As I write this, the worst is past for this small town in Kansas. Although the face of Chapman was forever changed that June night, the town will rebuild. The people here are a hardy lot. What the town will look like down the road I cannot say, but it will be different.

One thing I do know is that residents won't soon forget how in their time of need, members of the American Legion stepped forward to help. In retrospect, would you really expect anything less from our veterans who have already given so much?

For more on the American Legion, click here.

Columnist David M. Fortier is a professional writer who specializes in post-1886 military small arms. He's penned over 600 articles, contributed to six books and written extensively on the latest Chinese and Russian small-arms developments. A Master level NRA High Power competitor, he's instructed US Army soldiers during marksmanship training. In July 2007 he embedded with the 3rd Squadron, 7th US Cavalry in Iraq.

The opinions contained in this column are those of the author and not necessarily those of TacticalGunFan or its staff.

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