Last night was the first time I have been through a tornado. Oh sure, we have had the sirens go off and I have rushed to many a basement in my life as a Nebraskan, but last night was the first time that a tornado ripped through my neighborhood. I am still in a bit of shock. I don’t think I have completely reconciled myself to the fact that we came that close to disaster.
The sirens blew at 4:22. My girls, as well as the boys I babysit, were already in the basement playing house. We had been in a tornado watch for a couple of hours so I thought it was just precautionary. I picked up Caleb and my phone and headed downstairs with the dog slinking in fear behind me. That should have been my first clue. Dogs know when the weather is scary.
I gathered all the kids around the laptop with the intention of pulling up Netflix so they could watch a cartoon to calm their nerves. Then we lost power and the siren stopped blowing. I put in a movie and headed upstairs to check it out, Jared as a natural Nebraska man, was outside checking out the storm. Then we got a call from a friend saying that a tornado was on the ground in town. I headed back downstairs even though it looked fine outside to me. I was bouncing Caleb on my lap when I heard the back door slam and Jared run down the stairs. He ran into the room and hollered at everyone to get away from the windows. That probably should have been my second clue.
The noise and wind lasted less than 30 seconds. It was intense but just seemed like wind to me. We can’t really see much from the basement windows so once it was over, Jared went upstairs to check it out. I followed a bit later to see tree branches and fence all over our yard. No major damage so I still hadn’t realized. Our neighbor pulled up to check on us and told us that houses were off their foundations. I walked back into my living room and looked out our front window and could see a house that we can’t normally see. It had been shoved off of its basement and was sitting in the back yard.
The gal who lives here was found in her living room, safe. Had she been in her basement, that may not be true.
Jared immediately started clearing trees while I calmed down a very scared 5 year old. The power was going to be out for a while so we called Jareds parents to come get the kids so they could get supper. I am still in awe of how well all 5 kids handled it. Molly got scared and weepy but the others all took it in stride. Jared was checking on the neighbors who had a branch fall on their house when another large one fell right next to him. Fortunately, no one was home when their house was hit.
My in-laws were able to get into town to pick up the kids for us. They headed off to town and Jared and I set out to see what we could do to help. We drove a couple of blocks and the immensity of the damage started to sink in.
This is one block from my house. One block. Not a town over, not a mile away; one block. This family lost a garage and a bunch of windows but they are okay. There were no major injuries. That is what I consider a miracle. There were dozens of people helping with the clean up and by the time Jared and I were able to get out to help, most of the homes had been patched up for the night. Southern Power worked hard to get our electricity back up for the night.
This morning, at dawn, men and tractors and trucks were already hard at work clearing away the mess. After lunch today, a group of men with chainsaws showed up in my yard to clear our the large branches that had broken in our back yard. The streets are cleared and they are moving out the tree debris. It’s amazing being from a small town that bands together like this. Lunch was being served at the church as well as the firestation and supper is being provided by Pinnacle bank. A neighbor with 5 young children lost their home. While they were in it. I can’t imagine what that poor mom must be going through. Before bedtime, someone had already started a fundraising page for them.
My family was so, incredibly fortunate. It is both amazing and terrifying to think that we escaped the damage by a block. One block, people. Let that sink in.
http://www.gofundme.com/txq6e9s9s
If you feel compelled to donate to a family in need, here is the link.
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