Married couple, substitute teacher were victims killed in violent Brunswick County tornado

BRUNSWICK COUNTY, NC (WWAY) — We are learning more about the three victims who died during the EF-3 tornado that hit Brunswick County late Monday night.

Neighbors and family members are remembering Phyllis and Rich O’Connor who lived in the Ocean Ridge Plantation in Ocean Isle Beach. The married couple was killed in the tornado.

Phyllis’ niece, Beth Kelsey, says they will never be forgotten. 

“She was the one who would help plan,” Kelsey said. “And she would be the one to just help everyone else out through some of these things. And now its somebody else’s turn to step up and help out.”

Kelsey says her aunt married Rich several years ago, falling in love late in life.

“He was a great dad,” Kelsey said. “One of their sons had some issues along the way. He never gave up. Yeah, he’s a really really good man. A great friend.”

Early Tuesday morning, Kelsey got a call from Brunswick County. A tornado had ripped through Rich and Phyllis’ house. Richard had been taken to the hospital, but they couldn’t find Phyllis. Waiting up all through the night, the next morning she finally received another call, but not with the new she wanted.

They’d found Phyllis’s body.

Kelsey got more bad news. Rich didn’t make it. He died in the hospital from his injuries.

“You want to hear that they never woke up, and that they got clunked on the head like the Wizard of Oz. You know what I mean? You want to think that it’s easy, and they never woke up, and it’s fine.”

The third tornado victim, Barry Glick, was a retired engineer. Glick served as a substitute teacher for Brunswick County Schools for almost 14 years. During that time, he served at least nine schools and made lots of memories with our students and staff.

Barry Glick (Photo: BCS)