Within 24 hours of the tornado striking Oklahoma on Monday, CUNA Mutual Group said it made direct phone contact with 57 credit unions to assess damages and to ensure that employees were safe.

This included credit unions in Oklahoma, Kansas, Missouri and Iowa that communicated with CUNA Mutual's property and casualty claims disaster team, said Phil Tschudy, media relations manager at CUNA Mutual in Madison, Wis.

Although the disaster team received reports of minor building damage to various credit unions along the widespread storm's path, the only credit union reporting any significant building damage was Tinker Federal Credit Union's branch in Moore, which has been widely reported as being a total loss, Tschudy said.

The $3 billion Tinker FCU based in Oklahoma City, said its branch in hard-hit Moore, Okla., experienced significant damage but employees and members were protected from the deadly tornado by taking cover in the credit union's vault.

"Fortunately, all employees at this branch were unharmed. Our main focus has been on Tinker, and we have had adjusters on site meeting with their staff and assessing damages," Tschudy said.

Other than the major loss at Tinker FCU, CUNA Mutual's disaster team will likely see minor building damage and power outage losses for credit unions in the Moore area, Tschudy added.

In the 29 years Tschudy said he has been at CUNA Mutual, he noted it always impresses and inspires him just how quickly the company's response has been to such catastrophic events.

"Many carriers will wait to be contacted before taking action in an event such as this.  But our P&C claims staff did not wait to be contacted," Tschudy said. "We made contact with Tinker Federal Credit Union within 90 minutes of their branch being struck by Monday's devastating tornado

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Credit Union Management