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Eclectic Observer The
WEDNESDAY • JANUARY 30, 2019
TheWetumpkaHerald.com
Vol. 30, No. 5
Town agrees on new fire department policy By DONALD CAMPBELL Staff Writer
The Eclectic Town Council on Jan. 22 gave the fire department approval to prepare a new policy on handling fire safety code violations. After recent incidents at a local business where doors were found to be locked shut using chains and padlocks,
the council discussed a review of ordinances from other municipalities on the subjects of fire safety and fire prevention. “It should probably be put in writing, the things that will be enforced,” councilmember Carmen Winslett said. The council believes there are ways to avoid serious problems with code enforcement, especially if local business
ing fire chief Josh Dorminey with the added title of fire code officer. Work to repave Middle Road from Mt. Hebron Road to Central Road and Madix Drive could begin within the next couple of months after the town council approved a memorandum of understanding with the Elmore County Commission. Under this agreement, See POLICY • Page 2
owners are educated on the matter. After listening to Andrew Woods with the fire department, councilmembers said they want to see a general guideline on how the department would enforce the code. Woods said the department would have it ready within the next 90 days, although he hopes it will be ready within 30 days. The council also approved reappoint-
Commission names Braswell to water board Panel approves work on roadways By DONALD CAMPBELL Staff Writer
A vacancy on the Central Elmore Water and Sewer Authority board was filled after the Elmore County Commission took action during Monday night’s meeting. The commission moved to appoint Fred Braswell to the board, filling a vacancy created upon the death of one of the board’s members, and also discussed a pair of board members who have applied for reappointment. William “Bill” Newton and Charles R. “Ronnie” Bazzell have submitted their application for reappointment to the board, and commissioners reminded everyone applications for the pair of positions will be accepted until Feb. 25. “I’ve known (Bazzell) for many years,” commissioner Bart Mercer said. “We are fortunate he is making himself available for reappointment.” Chief engineer and operations officer Richie Beyer brought information regarding a handful of roadway projects before the commission. During the work session, he briefly touched on a proposal to widen, resurface and stripe Coosada Parkway from the Alabama River Parkway north to Alabama Highway 14. Beyer added several See COMMISSION • Page 7
Today’s
Weather
46 24 High
Low
THURS: HIGH 49 LOW 32
Ron Colquitt / For The Observer
Pictured are the remains of a burned house in Eclectic where a man was pulled to safety by Tyler McLeod and Joshua Donahey on Saturday.
Men rescue neighbor from burning house: Eclectic Fire Department said the pair saved man’s life
By RON COLQUITT For The Observer
T
yler McLeod and his friend Joshua Donahey saved the life of a neighbor Saturday by dragging the man from a smoke-filled, burning home in the Eclectic area, authorities said. “I’m not a hero,” McLeod said Monday. “I did what I thought anybody would do in that situation.” Donahey could not be reached for com-
Wetumpka tornado survivor Sharon Watson sits on the steps of her Tuskeema Street home. Watson, a big fan of ‘The Wizard of Oz,’ had special ‘Oz’ collectibles in her home, which were unscathed. Jimmy Wigfield / The Observer
ment Monday on the incident. The fire at the home in the 11000 block of Georgia Road was reported about 3:30 a.m. Saturday, according to Lt. Andrew Wood of the Eclectic Fire Department. Authorities have declined to release the victim’s name. Wood said in a news release he was taken by helicopter to the UAB Medical Center, where he was in critical condition Monday. The cause of the fire has not been determined, Wood said in the release. “Without the actions of these two neigh-
Woman survives tornado as roof comes off house, ‘Oz’ collectibles stay intact By JIMMY WIGFIELD Managing Editor
With black skies cascading to the ground and a tornado threatening to suck the life out of her, Sharon Watson did the only thing she could do — she stretched out on her bedroom floor with her Chihuahua, Spook, pressed against her back as shattered glass hissed through the air like shrapnel. “I laid down on the floor next to the bed and didn’t know if I would live,” she said. “I felt glass hitting
me. It was like knives being thrown at me.” She wondered about her “The Wizard of Oz” collectibles in another room of the house and if she would turn out like Dorothy, whose house was flung into another world by a Kansas tornado in the classic movie. “All I thought about lying on the floor before I blacked out was the house spinning in the tornado, like it did in ‘The Wizard of Oz,’” Watson said. “I could feel the house and the floor moving and I wondered if I See TORNADO • Page 3
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bors, it is almost certain that the occupant would not have escaped the structure and would have succumbed to his injuries,” Wood said. David Ingram, Eclectic’s assistant fire chief and a paramedic, said Monday there is no doubt McLeod, 27, and Donahey, 26, are heroes by any standard. Ingram said the house was engulfed in flames and filled with smoke when the two men responded. “For an untrained person to willfully See RESCUE • Page 5
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