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OUTPOST 1973 FORT ALUMNI DAVID MARTEL AND SUE BIRD DEALT WITH A TORNADO DURING THEIR HIGH SCHOOL EXPERIENCE. THIS INTERVIEW IS ABOUT THAT TORNADO, THEIR NEW SCHOOL BUILDING, AND EVERYTHING THEY ACHIEVED.. Interview by Amy Nguyen
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n April 5, 1972 in the Vancouver and Northeast Portland area, a tornado swept through the area. The weather was normal with only one difference at 11:00 in the Willamette Valley area, strong showers from the coast were approaching the area. The showers made their way West up to Portland and Vancouver, thunderstorms occurred in Tigard and Tualatin area with strong thunderstorms with high wind that was going 60 or 50 mph. According to the National Weather service “Tornadoes are violently rotating columns of air, extending from a thunderstorm, which are in contact with the ground. Tornadoes develop when wind variations with height support rotation in the updraft.”
How did the tornado impact you mentally? Sue: So, I was talking to David when we were getting here thinking back 50 years, it happened so suddenly students were trying to help each other instead of thinking “oh I might get hurt if i help them”. David: I was in typing or business class facing towards the student parking, the clouds turned an eerie color. We went over to the elementary school and half of it was demolished and students were under desks. We helped them out until the firefighters and ambulance came. The teachers told us to stay back but we had to help them. Sue and I lived across the hill and we were deciding to go back home to see if anything happened at home. Luckily our homes survived. We had an assembly a week later when the governor came down. It was a pretty major thing. It happened our junior year and our next senior year things were calmer.
The first reported touchdown of the tornado occurred in Portland, near Marine drive and NE 33rd Street, it eventually moved up North to Vancouver and its second reported touchdown was on Highway 14, then to the Mcloughlin Heights neighborhood. The tornado headed towards the other side of the Mcloughlin Heights neighborhood towards the old Peter S Ogden elementary school and Fort Vancouver high school which is where Parr Lumber is, leaving 6 dead and 300 hundred injured. 70 of those injured were students of Peter S Ogden elementary school.
You said you were a part of Key Club, swimming, Alki yearbook staff, how did you handle both academics and extracurricular activities? David: I sold all the ads so every year it was the local business that I sold too.My adviser would give them to me and during my free time I asked local businesses and would go up and down main street. The school would send them. If we had enough money we would ask our advisor if our yearbook could be in color. I strictly advertised them and sold many so we could have them in color. They took pictures in
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