Woodview Shelters Tornado Victims

EAST PEORIA — Washington, IL mayor Gary Manier said earlier today that he estimated the EF-4 tornado that struck his city yesterday had displaced at least 200 residents. Here at Illinois Central College, Woodview Commons has stepped up to give some of those victims a warm place to stay at no charge.

Chad Dillon, the general manager of Woodview Commons, attempted to offer his assistance immediately after the tornado struck yesterday around 11:00 a.m. When he was unable to connect with relief efforts via telephone, Dillon drove down to the Red Cross staging area to let them know in person.

At about 1 p.m., Dillon offered up the commons’ open rooms to displaced persons again, this time via an interview on local radio network WMBD, which was then broadcasting on numerous local frequencies.

When Sunday night came, two Washington families came to stay at Woodview. Then two more families came today – one of which is that of an ICC staff member. So far, this amounts to 17 people that Woodview is housing.

One of the groups that came in today was three members of the Bachman family, Alecia Bachman, her daughter Alexandra, and Alexandra’s daughter Audriana. The three of them had been living at Georgetown Commons in Washington since moving back to the area from Hawaii in April. Yesterday, their home was torn apart while Alecia was inside.

“When all the sirens started going off on our phones, me and the neighbors were all out on the balconies going ‘Well, what should we do? There’s no place really to go.’” said Alecia. “And then I saw the neighbor across from me pointing behind my house and going ‘There it is! There it is right there!’ and then everything just got weird.”

“I opened the door and crawled in the kitchen and then the house started ripping apart. The roof all fell on me and then our glass doors just blew in. Everything was sucked into the house. It was weird. Our stuff isn’t on the lawn. Our stuff is all against the walls of the house. Then all the neighbors that I was talking to before it hit came and dug me and my neighbor out.”

Alexandra, a team leader at Sam’s Club, was at work in Peoria at the time, and she didn’t know about the tornado hitting Washington until she received a call from Alecia.

“She called me freaking out,” said Alexandra. “Then I just thought of my daughter and I dropped to my knees. She was with my grandma and grandpa, and their phones went straight to voicemail. I finally called my friend who lives in Sunnyland because Audriana was at a church in Sunnyland, and he said ‘It’s fine, Sunnyland’s fine.’ Then I could breath again.”

Now, they are grateful to have a place to stay. They said that they were going stay with Alecia’s sister in Washington, but the Bachmans were unable to reach her house when the city limits of Washington were closed.

As Alexandra pulled 5-year-old Audriana from a fresh bath, the family’s spirits were surprisingly high in their temporary home. They said that they just hoped they would find Sprinkles Pumpkin, Alecia’s black and white pet cat who hasn’t been seen since the tornado.

Dillon said that he and Campus Living Villages, the company that manages Woodview, will continue to give beds to those who need them as long as they are available. He said that there are still 12 beds unoccupied at Woodview, and displaced ICC students, staff, and faculty have first rights to the spaces.

“Campus Living Villages is proud to support ICC and the community,” said Dillon. “We’re definitely happy to help out in any way that we can.”