This is going to be a long post, and I don’t blame you if you want to take it in 3 or 4 parts, with breaks in between….😁From what I saw today left me breathless. It made me nauseated as we went house to house, seeing the damage and helplessness of the people we came across. The sounds of chainsaws, skid-steers, back-up alarms of MODOT trucks and the sounds of communities coming together helping one another were ringing through the air. The ominous yet sweet smell of fresh cut cedar and pine filled the air. I went house to house with our Director of Emergency Management Mark and our new intern Tiffany, meeting the families of those cleaning their yards. Everyone was so inviting, telling us the stories of the sound of a freight train and heads about to ready to pop as the pressure changes came so suddenly. They shared with us videos of them hiding under their mobile homes, cursing and praying for safety and their well-being. They shook our hands, gave us hugs, shared their information like we have know each other for years. One gentleman told us as he scrambled into the basement of his small modular home, he became “excited” as he felt that he would be able to be with his wife of 46 years again in heaven, as she passed away this year. His modular was hollow, as the outer east and west walls were gone. His 20’x24′ shop was literally gone. His STEEL BEAM concreted carport was completely unattached from his home, with the roof and sides across the field. Take a look at a couple of pictures below:
We spoke with one family with a 100 year old tree that fell into their house, adding a new “sky-light” into their bathroom;
The stories were countless through out the day. Hundreds of pictures and 10’s of stories of their trials. We were treated so kindly, as Snyder’s Corner offered us free lunch for doing what we were doing……our job. MODOT employees made special attempts to get us where the damage was, as they knew the importance of getting to the families and to get as much information as we could. Then we met Heather. Just an incredible woman who happens to be a big fan of Subby’s Weather Talk! She greeted me with a hug, as she shows us literally 15 large 50 year old trees in her front yard uprooted, and tossed. She told the harrowing story of what her and her husband heard and seen last night. She told us she felt as if her head was about to explode and ears popping as the tornado came closer to their property. Their newer RV parked in front of the garage had all the drawers sucked open and contents strung about all over, yet stood still. Heather works at the Benton County Health Center in Warsaw, but lives in Henry County. We took a photo together;
A smile on her face yet we were staring at her front yard that looked like this;
This day took a toll on me both physically and emotionally. The shear damage was overwhelming. We spent hours out in the field, taking down names and addresses, contacting American Red Cross to get these people some help. Some lost their homes completely, some with minor damage waiting on electricity to come back on, which could be days or weeks. We tried to up their spirits out there today, but we were hurting inside ourselves. Our goal is to get our area deemed a Declaration of Disaster, so that Federal monies can be allocated to these families to help them rebuild and re-plant. The craziest thing about this entire long day, was that everything I have just talked about; the pictures, the stories, the people we have met…………..were all in the first 8 miles of our starting zone. Day 2 begins tomorrow. Subby
