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Flattened by tornado, Taopi refuses to stay down
Town Clerk Jim Kiefer says the council feared everyone would leave the community of 61 residents, but when one family decided to rebuild, the rest followed.
TAOPI, Minn. — Sometimes a community doesn’t find out what it’s made of until adversity hits… hard.
The small southern Minnesota city of Taopi received what could have been a knockout punch on April 12, 2022, when an EF2 tornado roared through under cover of darkness. Daylight revealed complete destruction, with only three buildings in the entire community spared damage.
“Half the town is gone,” City Clerk Jim Kiefer shared the day after the tornado. He told reporters of Taopi’s 22 homes, at least 10 were beyond repair with entire roofs and walls missing.
Anniversaries are a time of reflection, and twelve months after that terrible day residents see a community that refused to stay down, a place that is looking ahead rather than in the rear-view mirror.
“We’re in pretty good shape,” Kiefer reflected in a conversation with KARE 11 on the one-year anniversary of the tornado. “Come a long way in the past year.”
The comeback story started almost immediately when the city council started holding daily meetings with most of Taopi’s 61 residents for the first two weeks, keeping them in the loop on donations, rescue funds, contractor availability and just about every other topic. Decisions were made in the light, with transparency.
Kiefer says local builders dropped less pressing jobs to repair damaged homes in Taopi, and homeowners agreed that those whose structures were hardest hit and unliveable received priority.
Money can be a wedge in times of trouble, and yet Kiefer says there were no squabbles when it came to allocating $270,000 in donations Taopi received from generous Minnesotans and other benefactors. The money was split into three tiers: those whose homes were unliveable, those badly damaged but habitable, and residents whose homes and businesses were less impacted.
Twelve months after the tornado, Taopi’s city clerk figures the population is down to 45 from the 61 registered in the census, but says that’s partially due to two or three families that were displaced whose new homes are just being completed. That’s pretty good, Kiefer figured… as the council originally feared everyone would leave. That changed when one resident announced they would be rebuilding, and others followed suit.
Four or five lots in town remain empty, the homes that once stood in them a distant memory. A new Taopi Town Hall, just remodeled when the tornado flattened it, is still in the planning stages and Kiefer says council meetings are currently held in the kitchen of Mayor Mary Huntley (who just happens to be his sister).
It is also true that from times of darkness can come the unexpected light of humanity. Taopi is rising again, mainly powered by the goodwill of small-town neighbors who decided to get closer instead of letting a moment of disaster pry them apart.
“Before the tornado, everyone lived their own life,” Kiefer reflected. “After the tornado, you saw everybody every day, and now I really know them.”
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According to the report, the BPPD said Andre Lane has been missing since 11 a.m. this morning.
BROOKLYN PARK, Minn. — The Brooklyn Park Police Department is asking for the public to help find a missing man who has Alzheimer’s.
According to the alert, the BPPD said 57-year-old Andre Lane has been missing since 2 p.m. this afternoon.
He stands at 5’9″ and weighs roughly 250 pounds. Lane suffers from Alzheimer’s and dementia and may not be able to take care of himself, said the BPPD.
Lane was last seen wearing grayish-blue Levi’s jacket, black hat, black sweatpants, a gray long sleeve t-shirt and black Jordan shoes, according to the report.
Officials believe Lane left his residence, near the 6600 block of Tessman Terrace, on foot. The BPPD is asking people who live near Tessman Farm Road/85th Avenue North to check yards and properties.
Anyone who sees Lane is asked to contact the Brooklyn Park Police Department at 763-493-8222.
This is a developing story and will be updated as more information becomes available.
The driver in the vehicle involved is reportedly cooperating with police and the investigation remains open and active.
ST. LOUIS PARK, Minn. — A woman has died after being struck by a vehicle in the parking lot of St. Louis Park’s Knollwood Mall.
A city spokesperson told KARE the incident happened Friday afternoon in the parking lot of The Shoppes at Knollwood. The city said despite life-saving efforts by emergency responders and paramedics, the woman was pronounced dead at the scene.
The driver in the vehicle involved is reportedly cooperating with police and the investigation remains open and active.
The victim, an adult woman, has not yet been identified.
Known as “Jeff the Giant,” Jeff Pangburn is well-known around Oak Harbor, Washington.
OAK HARBOR, Wash. — Jeff Pangburn has lived on Whidbey Island for 43 years. It’s his home, even if he doesn’t technically have one.
“I stay out in the woods,” Pangburn said. “It’s my time with God.”
For the past 15 years, Pangburn has lived in the woods of Oak Harbor. He’s a friendly face known all around town. People honk and wave to him as they drive by.
“I’m a popular guy, I guess,” Pangburn said.
But a recent tragedy has cast a shadow on Pangburn’s spirit.
“I’ve been bawling my head off like crazy,” Pangburn said. “I was sobbing tears, you know?”
Pangburn was bedded down for the night in a gazebo on Dec. 2 when 15-year-old Grace Horn’s car came crashing just 4 feet away. She failed to negotiate the curve at the intersection of state Route 20 and Libbey Road. Horn was reportedly delivering food to make money for Christmas presents.
Pangburn said he immediately called 911 and tried to pull Horn from the car as it burned, but the flames were too much. A power pole was also burning. Pangburn feared he might be electrocuted if the wires came down, so he ran into the woods.
Pangburn said he was heartbroken he could not do more.
“I couldn’t get in,” Pangburn said. “I couldn’t get in the vehicle and then the fire. I couldn’t do any more than what I did. If you know me you know that must really hurt for me not being able to do anything.”
Pangburn returned to the scene and spoke with authorities about what he saw. He freely admits he was in and out of jail for two decades, but said he has been on the straight and narrow for 15 years.
“I was a lousy criminal,” Pangburn said.
He now makes his home among the trees where he is most comfortable. By day he pulls his overloaded cart to Spin Café, which helps people in need on the island.
“This situation has been very hard on him,” said Valerie Roseberry, a case manager at the café.
At 6-foot-10, Pangburn is known as a “gentle giant” with a heart to match.
In recent weeks he has been offering extra blankets to those who might need them at the café. No one is surprised Pangburn would try to help someone in a desperate, dangerous situation like the one Horn found herself in.
“Of course, Jeff would do that,” Roseberry said. “Of course, he would. Honestly, as a mom, I am so grateful he was there so that she had somebody.”
Community members established an online fundraiser for Pangburn.
Pangburn said he does not want to profit from the misery of others but would like to use any donations to buy an RV and move out of the woods.
People can also donate size 17 shoes, socks, 2XL sweatpants, 4XL-sized hoodies, coats, hand warmers, beanies and gift cards at DK Market in Oak Harbor.
The Washington State Patrol said there have been at least 23 crashes at the intersection where Horn died over the past five years.
Pangburn believes the best way to honor her and him is to demand safety improvements be made.
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