[Congressional Record (Bound Edition), Volume 158 (2012), Part 2]
[House]
[Page 2983]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]




                  DEVASTATION ACROSS SOUTHERN INDIANA

  (Mr. PENCE asked and was given permission to address the House for 1 
minute and to revise and extend his remarks.)
  Mr. PENCE. We are told to mourn with those who mourn and grieve with 
those who grieve.
  Mr. Speaker, I rise to do so today. Across southern Indiana, in small 
towns like Henryville, Marysville, Pekin, and others, Hoosier families 
and communities are picking up the pieces after one of the most 
devastating tornados in my lifetime swept through our State.
  I come to the House floor today to pay tribute to the lost, and to 
those who lost their homes and their businesses, and pay tribute to the 
first responders and to the countless thousands of Hoosiers who have 
come alongside their neighbors in this grievous hour.
  As millions of Americans have witnessed on television, these violent 
storms left utter destruction in their wake across a three-State area. 
Schools, businesses, and homes were reduced to piles of rubble. Cars 
were flipped and thrown about as if they were toys. Some communities, 
as one local official said it, were ``completely gone.''
  In the Hoosier State we lost 13 lives, including an entire family 
from Pekin, Indiana. Yet in this dark hour, for so many families, as is 
always the case in the Hoosier State, we hear stories of communities 
coming together to rebuild. Despite the snow and cold that followed the 
storms, we see generosity, community spirit in full display.
  Over the coming days, weeks and months the wounds will heal, debris 
will be cleared, homes and businesses and barns will be rebuilt. And as 
the Federal Government makes its assessment today about Federal 
support, we look forward to supporting all Federal assistance.
  But I rise today to commend Governor Daniels, the Indiana National 
Guard, the Indiana State Police, all of our first responders and 
Homeland Security and community leaders for their decisive leadership 
in this moment.
  But I also rise today to commend all of those who stepped forward to 
provide a helping hand, either with time or talent or treasure, 
volunteers donating food and clothing and labor. It is profoundly 
inspiring and humbling, and makes me proud to be a Hoosier.
  May God comfort the families of the lost, and give strength and 
courage to those who will rebuild in the wake of these storms.

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