State Trooper John Hutchison, who was on duty in the area along Van Buren Road, also saw the twister, noting its dark complexion, as the funnel passed through his community. The tornado is estimated to have raced off to the north-northwest into a wooded area, where it eventually dissipated.
A single report from the previously mentioned Boston Globe article changed the path from north-northwest to north-northeast along Van Buren Road. The twister would have then passed north of Van Buren and into New Brunswick, Canada, before dissipating in a wooded area just across the St. Johns River (U.S./Canada border). Such an abrupt change in path is rare, so perhaps another tornado occurred. Based on actual damage reports in newspapers, we have elected to keep a north-northwesterly track.
Rescuers and police notified of the tornado were having trouble reaching the damaged areas due to power outages and the approaching nighttime hours. Phone services were also suffering in the sparsely populated region of Northern Maine. Amongst the chaos, Mrs. Taylor and Mrs. Cyr were taken to a neighbor’s home using doors as stretchers until medical assistance arrived. Around the same time, Reverend Joseph Carrier of Sacred Heart Church (where Katherine attended) was called to administer the last rites of the church. Jack Lancaster, the Caribou Civil Defense Director, rushed to the scene after being notified of the damage and medical emergencies at hand. Lancaster then hurried the two injured women to the nearest hospital in Caribou. Lancaster and Hutchison reflected on this event, expressing that North Caribou was fortunate that the tornado hit a less densely populated area.
Later at Cary Memorial Hospital in Caribou, Mrs. Katherine Taylor died of her injuries sustained when being lofted 150 feet from her home and being pinned by heavy debris. She was a loving mother and grandmother who was survived by her daughter Alma Cyr, one half-sister, and two grandchildren.
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