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THE MEDINA-GAZETTEMEDINA, OHIO

TTTTTTTTHE MEDINA-G-G- AZETTEG ETTEZAGMEDINMEDINMEDINA, OHIO

GazetteonlineMichelle Manthey Kish on Tuesday’s Gazette Facebook story about Medina City Councilapproving $1.1 million as its share of a major road renovation project on North Court Street andPearl Road: “That would be awesome. Pain while doing the roads, but well worth it after.”

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Since 1832TTHHEE GGAAZZEETTTTEETHE GAZETTEToday’s weather

n n n

BROWNS: Haden agrees to contract extension, B1

Storm clobbers countyIT WAS A NIGHT OF FLOODING, RESCUES AND HEROES

On Tuesday, fans were run-

ning to try to air out slick

muddy floors from where

water rushed inside the first

floor when it had nowhere else

to go.

“There was about three feetof standing water on CenterRoad in front of the station, sowe knew it would get to ourdoorstep,” police spokesmanNick Solar said.

Ammunition, the city’sweight room, and a recordsroom underneath City Hall allwere affected by the flashfloodwaters that came in with a

storm Monday night.Interim City Manager Carl

DeForest said he estimates thedamage is between $25,000and $30,000, but said the city isstill assessing the damage.

Solar said no one was seri-ously injured, but police andfire crews rescued peopletrapped in vehicles in rushingwater late into Monday night.

Officials are working to pos-sibly get a state of emergencydeclared that could allow themto get money for cleanup work.

In Brunswick’s Ward 2,Councilman Vince Carl said heand other neighbors workedtogether to clear clogged catchbasins that resulted in waist-high water along Van Buren,Tyler and Eisenhower drives off

South Carpenter Road.“I spent the evening with my

neighbors, which was nice, but Idon’t like to have to see them insituations like this,” Carl said.

He said the rushing waterpushed leaves and branchesinto culverts, making them slowto drain, and the fast-fallingrain began to accumulate along

Loren Genson ❙ The Gazette

A s Brunswick city police officers darted all overthe city Monday night rescuing trappedmotorists and closing water-covered road-

ways, the basement at the Brunswick police stationwas flooded with about 20 inches of water.

DAVID KNOX / GAZETTE PHOTOS

ABOVE: Tyler Kitson, 21, of Medina Township, waits for help after climbing a tree at Interstate 71 and state Route 3 in Medina Townshipto escape floodwaters that had swamped his car Monday night. He was rescued by firefighters who extended a fire truck ladderhorizontally more than 100 feet. The ladder couldn’t reach the tree until an 8-foot-long regular ladder was added. BELOW LEFT: Fox 8meteorologist Dick Goddard finds more than 2 inches of water in a rain gauge outside his Montville Township home on Tuesday morning.Goddard was rescued from his car, which was swamped by floodwaters at the Interstate 71 exit ramp to state Route 3, during Mondaynight’s torrential rain.

David Knox ❙ The Gazette

For more than 50 years, Dick God-dard has talked about theweather. On Monday night, the

weather almost got the last word.The Cleveland television meteorologist and

author was one of two people rescued fromfloodwaters that swamped their cars at theInterstate 71 southbound exit to state Route 3 inMedina Township.

“I’m thinking ‘I’m going to buy the farm —what a way to go’ — because the water was up tomy neck,” Goddard said in an interview withThe Gazette on Tuesday.

Goddard was trapped for about 45 minutesbefore firefighters in a rubber boat reached hiscar, broke the window and pulled Goddard out.

He was taken to Medina Hospital, where hewas treated for hypothermia.

The ordeal did nothing to dampen his senseof humor.

“I’m 83 — which is only 28 Celsius,” he said.Goddard gave a vivid description of his

encounter with nature’s fury.He had left work about 10:30 p.m. at the WJW-

Fox 8 studio in Cleveland, where, of course, “Iwas on the air talking about all the rain —4½ inches in Brunswick Hills.”

Despite the storm, he had no problems travel-ing down Interstate 71.

But coming down the southbound exit rampto Weymouth Road (state Route 3), he saw thecar ahead of him slam into what looked like araging river.

“There isn’t a river there, but there was lastnight, and it was really flowing fast,” he said.

Goddard’s car also was trapped by the rapidly

He’s aherotimes 2

Nick GluntThe Gazette

HINCKLEY TWP. — An octoge-narian Parma couple was rescuedfrom their flooding vehicle duringMonday evening’s torrential down-pours.

And the good Samaritan whohelped them has done it before.

Jim Melillo, of Medina Township,was driving through HinckleyTownship headed to his friend’shome in North Royalton when hefound there was no safe waythrough. Deciding to turn back,the 60-year-old Melillo cameacross Paul and Donna Supanstuck in their vehicle.

“When I was about to make aturn to get onto Route 3, I noticeda couple headlights under water,”Melillo said. “And that’s when I sawan old man crying for help.”

Melillo, a contractor who runsDependable Maintenance LLC,stopped his company van andjumped from the driver’s seat.

“By this point, the water isbetween your waist and breast,” hesaid. “And it’s just pouring downrain.”

He said he waded through thewater to the vehicle, where he toldthe couple one by one to take himby the neck so he could get them tohis van. Once he got one across, hewent back for the other.

“The water just kept gettingdeeper and deeper,” he said. “Itwas so high — it was up to the car’swindows.”

If not for his quick thinking,Melillo said the Supans may havefaced hypothermia or possiblydrowning if the water continued torise.

Once the couple was safe insidehis van, he took them to his homeand wrapped them in blanketswhile they waited for their familyto get them.

It wasn’t the first time Melillowas in the right place at the righttime, either. In 2009, he was hon-ored with several awards after hesaved a woman’s life by pulling aburning car off the woman’s vehi-cle with his truck in Medina Town-ship.

The two men in the burningvehicle were suspected to havebeen drinking and were pro-nounced dead at the crash scene.

Melillo said he came across the

Goddard among rescued

“I’m thinking ‘I’m going to buy the farm — what a way to go’ —because the water was up to my neck.”

Meteorologist Dick Goddard

Vehicles swept up in fast-moving water

See STORM, A8

See HERO, A8

See RESCUED, A8

A8 Wednesday, May 14, 2014 The Gazette

ObituariesJohn Jeskey,

94, beloved hus-band and best

friend of Elda Custerand the late AliceJeskey, father of Jeffrey(Vauida) and the lateJohn, Jr., passed fromus Saturday, May 10,2014.

John was employed withUnited Airlines flight opera-tions for 35 years, retiring 32years ago. He proudly servedin the United States NavyRDM 1st C from 1940-1946 andwas a survivor of the USSQuincy CA39 that sunkAugust 9, 1942, in the battle ofSavo Island, Guadalcanal.

In retirement, his passionwas playing 1st base with theHuff-n-Puffers for 18 years,traveling to Navy reunionseach May and September,having lunches with the OhioBuckeyes, retiree group ofUnited Airlines, and his muchloved garden with Rutgertomatoes.

Needless to say, he will besadly missed by all who knewhim.

He was the stepdad ofRobert Custer (Lori), Patricia

Pietrasz (Rick) andSharon Campbell (Bob);Grandpa John to VickieHatch (Kevin), SusieUrzycki (Steve), RickyPietrasz, DanielleCampbell and BobbyCampbell; brother ofFrank Jeskey (Barb),Wanda Borkowski,

Mary Bishop and LucySitarski and the late JuliusJeskey, Eddie Jeskey andJean; stepbrother-in-law toLois Walter, Donna McDonaldand Gail Wright (Eddie); uncleto many nieces and nephewsand many, many friends.

Funeral service will takeplace at 10 A.M, Friday, May16, 2014, at Sunset Chapel, 6245Columbia Rd, N. Olmsted. In-terment will follow in SunsetMemorial Park. Johns familywill receive friends at theChapel Thursday, May 15,2014, from 3 until 8 P.M.

Donations may be made, inJohn’s memory, to HospiceServices of Southwest Gen-teral, 18697 Bagley Rd., Middle-burg Hts. OH 44130-3497.

Dostal Bokas FuneralServices, North Olmsted.

John Jeskey

JESKEY

Myrtle A. Schuehrer,90, of Drummond Is-land, Michigan, diedFriday, May 9, 2014, atthe Hospice House ofthe E.U.P. in Sault Ste.Marie, Michigan. Shewas born January 1,1924, in Elyria in Lo-rain County, to Emiland Cassie (Worcester) Smith.

Myrtle grew up in Ohioalong with her 14 siblings.She graduated from EatonHigh School and attendedElyria Business College. Shemarried John Schuehrer onFebruary 9, 1944 at Fort Dix,New Jersey. They made theirhome in Ohio until 1962,when they moved to Drum-mond Island. They built andMyrtle operated the resort,Birch Tree Cabins for 15years. She also enjoyed work-ing on the Election Board formany years.

Myrtle attended the Light-house Christian Church. Shewas an avid reader who readthe newspaper daily and wasalways knowledgeable aboutcurrent events. Myrtle also en-joyed gardening, both flowersand vegetables. She loved tomake tomato juice from herhome grown tomatoes, can-ning other vegetables andmaking jelly.

Myrtle is survived by twosons, Daryl (Darla) Schuehrerand David Lee (fiancée RuthWise) Schuehrer, both ofDrummond Island; threedaughters, Sandra Allen of

Myrtle A. Schuehrer

SCHUEHRER

Holt, Michigan, June(Jim) McHenry ofFranklin, Tennesseeand Barbara (JohnEasthope) Warner ofHarrison Township, Mi-chigan; 13 grandchil-dren, Dawn, John,Heather, Wendy, Wayne,Lisa, Charlie, Sarah,

Jacob, Jessica, Jacqueline,Justin and Carl; 13 great-grandchildren, Eddie, Tommy,Joe, Cody, Anthony, Smith,Devin, Jeremy, Hans, Morgan,Lauren, Lily, and Meade andfour great-great-grandchil-dren, Damien, Chase, Daphneand Delilah.

Myrtle was preceded indeath by her husband, JohnSchuehrer and son-in-law,Jim Allen.

Services will be heldWednesday, May 14, 2014, atLighthouse Christian Churchon Drummond Island. Visi-tation will be held from 12Noon until 1 P.M., with theFuneral Service to begin at 1P.M. Burial will follow theservice in Drummond IslandCemetery.

Memorials may be made tothe Hospice of the E.U.P., 308W. 12th Avenue, Sault Ste.Marie, MI 49783.

Reamer Galer FuneralHome, 24549 S. M-129 inPickford, Michigan is servingthe family. Condolences maybe sent to the family at

www.reamergalerfuneralhome.com

On Saturday, May 10,2014, Mary (Gentithes)Paidas, 90, died sur-rounded by family atthe Western ReserveMasonic Community inMedina.

Mary’s family, rootedin the small mountainvillage of Egrigoros onthe island of Chios, Greece,was both the source andbeneficiary of Mary’s selflessdevotion to her faith, herloved ones, her friends andabout any animal that waslucky enough to wander intoher life.

Mary, like her grandfather,a priest in the village, wasblessed with a beautiful sing-ing voice. She considered pur-suing a career in music, butthe family’s need for weath-ering the depression causedMary and her sisters to chooseto stay in Warren after gradu-ating high school and keep thefamily laundry businessafloat. She shortly thereaftermet Peter, whom she marriedin a triple wedding (officiatedby then Archbishop Athena-gora of the Greek OrthodoxChurch of North America,who later became that faith’sworld-wide Patriarch) alongwith her brother and a sister.Pete and Mary were marriedfor 58 years, before he pre-ceded her in death in Marchof 2004.

Parents, Sevasmia (Michal-akis) and Harry Gentithes;brother, George Gentithesand nephew, George Bour-damis also preceded her indeath.

Surviving are her sisters,Evelyn Zumas of Bethlehem,Pennsylvania and Irene Bour-damis of Edina, Minnesota,their families and the familiesof her late brother, George;son, George of Medina, son,Harry and daughter-in-lawKathe of Alliance; grand-daughters, Stephanie, Shan-non, Emily and their mother,Patricia; son-in-law, Matthewand great-granddaughter andsource of enormous joy, Julia(Emily); grandsons Peter,Steven and Matthew; alongwith her church, St.DemetriosGreek Orthodox Church inWarren, these loved ones andtheir families and the family’smany pets were pillars ofMary’s joy throughout herlife.

Mary was born July 13,1923 in Trumbull MemorialHospital in Warren and lived

her entire life in thecommunity that sheloved. A graduate ofWarren Harding HighSchool, she supportednumerous communitycauses and was wellknown for rewardinggood deeds with boxesof koulourakia. Her

love of scrapbooking willallow the history of herfamily and beloved Greekcommunity to live on.

Since September of 2011,Mary lived in the WesternReserve Masonic Communityin Medina. The staff becamea second family for her,enveloping her with the lovethat made those years anadded blessing for her andfor those who experiencedher smile and wit every day.Mary’s family is deeplyindebted to those caregiverswho so enriched her life.

Mary could never be pinneddown to a “favorite” anything.“I don’t have any favorites,”was one of her most memor-able and frequent quotes. Andshe didn’t. She had a re-markable knack for seeing thegood in everyone and every-thing and modeled forgivenessand compassion throughouther life.

She did not merely loveChristianity; she lived it. Herpresence is sorely missed.Her impact still shines like abeacon for those she touched.

Calling hours at the funeralhome are from 6 to 8 P.M.,Thursday, May 15, 2014 with a6 P.M. Trisagion Service andFriday, May, 16, 2014 from 10 to10:30 A.M. Funeral Serviceswill be held at St. DemetriosGreek Orthodox Church, 429High St., Warren, Friday, May16, 2014 at 11 A.M., withFather Constantine Valantasisofficiating. Burial will followat Oakwood Cemetery.

Memorial contributions maybe made to St. DemetriosGreek Orthodox Church inWarren or Western ReserveMasonic Community inMedina.

Arrangements are by PeterRossi Memorial Chapel, 1884North Road, NE, Warren, Ohio.

Family and friends mayvisit

www.peterrossiandsonfh.comto view this obituary,

sign the guest book and sendcondolences to the

Paidas family.

Mary (Gentithes) Paidas

PAIDAS

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NICK GLUNT / GAZETTE

Jim Melillo, shown with his dog, Wiley, outside hisMedina Township home, became a hero for the secondtime Monday evening when he saved an elderly couplefrom their flooded vehicle during torrential downpoursin Hinckley Township.

STORM DAMAGE HELPThe city of Brunswick offered the followingannouncements and advice for residents dealing with theaftermath of Monday’s storms.■ For homeowners, the first step is to contact theirinsurance company to report any damage to home andcontents. Widespread basement flooding was experiencedin Brunswick and most communities in the surroundingarea.■ Owners may be entitled to a one-time credit on propertytaxes. Visit the Medina County auditor’s website tocomplete a form concerning destroyed or damagedproperty. More information is available by visitingwww.medinacountyauditor.org.■ Brunswick is asking residents to assist service crewswith keeping drainage ditches, culverts and storm drainsfree of debris around their property. While the crews areout performing this task, residents’ assistance in areasaround their yard can help protect their home and theirneighbor’s as well.■ For residents with Monday or Tuesday refuse collection,a special additional refuse collection will be scheduled intheir neighborhood on Saturday to help dispose of anyitems damaged by flooding. Crews will try their best tocomplete two days of collections on Saturday. Should theynot complete the routes, residents may save the refuseuntil their normal day or deposit it in one of the specialdumpsters highlighted below.■ Dumpsters will be available in all four wards ofBrunswick today to also assist with the disposal of itemsshould residents not be able to complete storm cleanupbefore their trash day. The dumpsters will be located atNeura Park, 4637 Center Road; North Park, 3595 GraftonRoad; Hopkins Park, 3089 Laurel Road; Fire Station 2,Grafton and North Carpenter roads.■ Clean-up kits are available to residents at BrunswickCity Hall, and the Brunswick Police Department. The kitsinclude buckets, mops and cleaning supplies that arebeing provided through the American Red Cross, SalvationArmy and numerous local retailers.■ Branch chipping service in Brunswick has beencancelled for this week and will be rescheduled at a latertime.■ Residents who reported that they did not receive stormwarning weather updates, including the severethunderstorm, flooding or tornado warning, should take afew moments to be sure they have opted to receive thesecalls from CodeRed. While emergency messagesgenerated by the city go out to all residents who have notopted out of the program entirely, the weather alerts areissued by CodeRed and only are provided to residentswho opt in to receive those calls. Please click on theCodeRed icon on the title bar of the city’s homepage atwww.brunswick.oh.us to register for both services.■ If you experienced a backup of sewage into your home,contact the Medina County Sanitary Engineer’s Office tofile a report at (330) 225-3113.

SOURCE: City of Brunswick

city streets. He said councilmembers around the citycame outside to pitch in withrescue and clean-up efforts intheir neighborhoods.

Carl said his basement, likemany in the city, was flooded.

“I know it doesn’t seem likeit now, if you’re cleaning outyour basement, but we werereally lucky as a community.There were no major acci-dents or injuries,” he said.“We just had to roll up oursleeves and deal with it.”

According to the NationalWeather Service, 4 inches ofrain fell in the Brunswick areain a matter of hours. Otherparts of the county sawbetween a half-inch and2 inches of rain.

In Hinckley Township,floodwaters caused at least$25,000 in damage to thebasement at the PoliceDepartment and the FireDepartment also sustained

some flooding damage.Swollen waterways moved

fast during the evening hours,tearing down trees and washingout roadways and walkways.

At the Hinckley Reserva-tion, floodwaters poured overthe dam at Hinckley Lake.Picnic tables 20 to 30 feetfrom the banks of the RockyRiver’s east branch were cov-ered with sticks and debrisTuesday morning. A highwater mark along the grassshowed most of the lowerpark along Bellus Road wasunder water after the heavyrains.

Crews worked to clearpedestrian walkways aroundthe park Tuesday morning asparkgoers milled about to seethe receding floodwaters pourover the dam.

Thunderstorms remain inthe forecast today and Thurs-day, and a chance of showersis forecast for Friday and Sat-urday.

Contact reporter Loren Genson at(330) 721-4603 or atlgenson@medina-gazette.com.Follow her on Twitter @LorenGenson.

STORMFrom A1

scene and opted to help whilerescue workers were en route.Once they arrived, he left anddidn’t think anything of it.

Despite helping to rescue atleast three people in five

years, Melillo remained hum-ble.

“I just think I’m just lucky tobe in the right place at theright time,” he said. “I do whatI can. That’s it.”

Contact reporter Nick Glunt at(330) 721-4048 or nglunt@medina-gazette.com. Follow himon Twitter @ngfalcon.

rising water.He watched the driver of

the car ahead get out of hisvehicle and try unsuccess-fully to help Goddard.

“The water was comingup; I couldn’t open the win-dow — the doors werelocked and electronics weregone,” he said.

Goddard said he was prob-ably better off staying in thecar.

“If I had gotten out of thecar, it would have carried mewho knows where,” he said.

He called 911, whichalerted the Medina post ofthe Ohio Highway Patrol at11:17 p.m., according to Lt.William Haymaker, thepost’s commander.

“Five fire departmentsshowed up,” Goddard said.

Minutes ticked by as thewater in the car steadilyrose.

“By the time they got tome, the water was up to mychin,” Goddard said. “Theycame out on a life raft andknocked out the glass andpulled me out.

Goddard remembers“shaking like mad — fromtop to bottom” when he wasput on a gurney for the tripto Medina Hospital.

“I was in the water forabout 45 minutes and I hadhypothermia setting in,” hesaid. “I came within, I wouldsay, a half-hour of going tothat great theme park in thesky.

“They really saved mylife.”

In addition to MedinaTownship’s Fire Department,five other departmentsresponded, from the cities ofMedina and Brunswick andthe townships of Hinckley,Sharon and Granger, MedinaTownship Fire Lt. BrianDraiss said.

The crew that got Goddardout of his car was from Med-ina Township.

“We sent a team out with aboat and were able toretrieve him,” Draiss said.

The rescue of the otherdriver, who had climbed thetree, took more time.

Tyler Kitson, 21, of MedinaTownship, said that after try-ing to open Goddard’s cardoor, the current swept himunderwater.

“When I came up, I saw atree and tried to angle myselftoward it,” he said. “The firsttree branch that I grabbed, itsnapped on me, and I wentback under.

“When I came up, I wentto the other tree that Iclimbed into.”

Kitson said firefighters inthe rubber boat firstapproached him, but hewaved them off.

“I told them to go to thecar,” he said.

But by the time Goddardwas safe, Draiss said the rub-ber boat could not be usedbecause of the rapidly rais-ing water and rapid current.

Instead, firefightersturned to Medina city’s largeladder truck.

The plan was to extend theladder horizontally across

the water, like a bridge, Med-ina Fire Chief Bob Paintersaid. The problem was the105-foot-long ladder fellabout six feet short of thetree.

“We used a regular ladder— what we call a roof ladder— to extend that out anothereight feet to get the guy,”Painter said.

Kitson gingerly scrambledacross the ladder to the roofof the fire truck.

That’s when the situationtook an unusual turn.

“Tyler, you’ve got to comedown,” a firefighter said.

“Do not touch me,” Tylershouted several times. “Idon’t feel safe with himtouching me.”

When the firefightersinsisted, Kitson respondedwith profanity and threats ofa lawsuit.

Pressed to comply, Kitsonwas taken into police cus-tody before being trans-ported to Medina Hospitalfor evaluation. He wasreleased after the hospitalcheck.

Kitson said he was gratefulto the firefighters who res-cued him and blamed hisoutburst on the emotionalstrain of the ordeal.

“I’m afraid of heights, andI was soaking wet,” he said inan interview Tuesday. ““I wasscared. I went under thewater a couple times.”

He said firefighters whospeculated he might bedrunk or high were wrong.

“I was not drinking — nodrugs — nothing,” he said. “Iwas stuck in a tree shivering.I had nothing to drink, I washungry and cold.”

Asked if Kitson might becharged, Medina TownshipPolice Chief David Arbogastsaid a citation for disorderlyconduct was a possibility,but a final decision hadn’tbeen made.

“The report is not done,”the chief said.

At the hospital, Goddardpaid Kitson a visit.

“I met him to thank himfor trying to save me,” God-dard said. “He actually triedto help me; he got out of hiscar — knowing I was in trou-ble — I didn’t know him andhe didn’t know me.”

Goddard added that if Kit-son is charged with any-thing, he would pay Kitson’sfine.

Kitson said a firefightertold him the man he hadtried to help was Goddard.

“I didn’t believe it,” hesaid. “I thought the guy wasscrewing around with me. Ihad no idea until I was at thehospital and he came inthere to see me and saythank you.”

After being checked out atthe hospital, Goddard calleda friend and returned to lookfor his car.

“When I went back, the carwas still there, but the waterwas gone,” he said. “That’show fast these things hap-pen.”

Contact reporter David Knoxat (330) 721-4065or dknox@medina-gazette.com.

RESCUEDFrom A1

HEROFrom A1