So I Lived Through An EF4 Tornado

Hi again ATS.

In my years on ATS I have been fairly transparent about my identity. Many of you likely know that my name is John and that I lived in the suburbs of Atlanta, Georgia for the better part of the past thirty or so years.

Fewer know that last August I moved to a tiny town in the Mississippi Delta. The birthplace of Muddy Waters actually. A couple of thousand people, maybe a square mile of civilization and then nothing but farms and swamps for about an hour in any direction.

Well...

About two and a half weeks ago I was sitting in the unofficial ATS Discord server, BSing and laughing with the folks there.

The weather was getting bad and there were storm warnings - but I've lived in the south for a long time and storm warnings are not at all uncommon. In fact they are common enough that after awhile you stop really paying attention to them...

Even when, as was this case on this night, March 24th, said warnings not only make your phone beep - but a female AI voice comes out of the untouched phone to inform you that there is an extreme weather warning and to get underground immediately.

I did not get underground.

Instead I walked out onto my porch, phone in hand, to make a video of the crazy lightning that was popping off.

This video:



I casually and laughingly filmed the above, walked back into my house, walked upstairs and into my bedroom and was reaching for my USB cord so that I could transfer the video to my PC and then share it on Discord.

Except at that moment my window air conditioning unit seemed to break and started making a hellacious noise - so I reached over and turned it off.

But the sound did not stop. In fact over the course of a couple of seconds the sound went from somewhat loud to deafening.

In that moment I began to understand.

It would take me two weeks to fully comprehend it all. But that was the moment when my mind connected the dots and I knew it was a tornado and that it had arrived.

I scrambled to get downstairs as wind pelted my body and the sounds of exploding things were everywhere.

By the time I made it down from the upper floor it was over.

Thirty to forty five seconds had passed but it might as well have been years. It was surreal and time had no meaning.



That picture is from the same spot I'd recorded the video in mere minutes earlier. There was no light and the multiple downed old growth oak trees in my yard blocked most of the view anyway.

There was a thick sort of silence as I walked out of the door. No background electrical hum. No dull roar of tires on streets out of view. Only screaming. A lot of screaming.

I did not yet know the toll - but my new home, this tiny town. It was gone. Wiped away. The majority of the businesses, houses and buildings now just piles of rubble laying on exposed foundation.

Cars, trucks and tractor trailers had been lifted into the sky and dropped. Everywhere.



This was a red mini van parked just outside of my front door.

I'm told 24 souls were lost in our town that night.

Honestly it's a miracle the number is that low.

Here is one of many news articles that show the destruction.

The reason I am posting this tonight, some eighteen days after the fact is that tonight is the first time I have had electricity since the tornado.

I am also struggling fairly hard with survivors guilt if I'm being wholly honest. My house is battered but standing. In fact it's on the very edge of what remains and what is simply gone. I walk out one door and the world appears as it always has. I walk out of the other side of the house and it's the apocalypse.

I am OK. My dog and two cats are OK. My household are all OK. We were blessed.

It's my hope that those of you with faith will include my neighbors in your prayers because many of them were not so fortunate.

I have quite a few more pictures and videos that I will add to this thread over the coming days. Right now I'm just too tired to attempt to do it all at once. I just want to lay down, with a light on for a change, and watch some TV.

Thanks for reading ATS.

Wow!


Im glad you are ok. Im sorry about the people in the area that lost their lives or homes. Next time, if there is one, heed the warning and go underground. You were spared. Those days without power must have been bad too. We dont have tornados here, just earthquakes. Hopefully your pantry was well stocked

Glad you’re ok.

a reply to: Hefficide
Hey a fellow tornado survivor, glad your ok man. I had an EF2 go right over my car while me and my ex were in it.

a reply to: Hefficide


I am so, so heartbroken and sorry for what you and the other townspeople went through. I can't imagine what it would have been like at nighttime. My heart really goes out to everyone, I actually can't stop thinking about it and I don't even live there. Always tell your story if you need to, it really does help.

a reply to: Hefficide

Just a short extra message, I myself have survived a tornado, April 21, 2002. It was almost an F4 but not quite once they determined the wind speed to be a tiny bit less than required for the F4.

Long story short, it came out of nowhere, we had seconds to react to what was happening, my daughter and I got trapped and had to be helped out. So many ways I should have died that day, I guess that is why now even if I start to lose faith - I can't because so many miracles happened that day. Only one person died in our storm, but the shock is the same everywhere. When over, it is like being in a war zone, and it takes a while to fully comprehend what just happened. Thank God the one I went through happened in the day time at least.

For miles in a straight line it came right towards us, destroying everything on the way. But right across the (narrow) street was a small, inexpensive metal mailbox - left standing like nothing even happened. And my wallet was returned by the police two weeks later from 15 miles away in another town, yet my purse was still in the kitchen area.

Believe me when I say...if it would have been your time to go...you would have died. God/Mother nature don't play around.

About 2-3 days later I think...this was me with the neck brace and my brother was trying to see if there was anything to salvage. Found a couple things.

a reply to: Hefficide

Heff, it's been a while since I last read something from you.

Really glad to know that you, and yours, are well, despite what Mother Nature sent your way.

I understand your reference to survivor's guilt. And I want you to accept that you, do, indeed, deserve to have been spared.

That said, please acknowledge, for your own well-being, that you have lived through a very traumatic experience. And having followed your posts for a few years now, I recognize that this is not your first such encounter.

Take care of yourself; PTS isn't limited to military and first responders.

Be well!

a reply to: Hefficide

Wow. Glad you're okay.

May the victims of the storm rest in peace.

I went through a big one as a kid, but it hit a street or two away from our house. They're terrifying events.

Cheers

Well...

Heff glad you are alive. Nice to see you posting again. Sorry about Natures Toll on you and your Family & Neighbors.

It's a wild wicked world and we just so happen to live on it for some ungodly reason.

Stay Blessed, Friend.

a reply to: Hefficide

Tornadoes be a bitch.
I've had to be witness and victim ti a few.
Glad you made it out.

Thank you for sharing your experience with us and I am so glad to hear you and yours are all OK, albeit traumatised by your experience.
What you are emotionally experiencing, survivors guilt, is a 'technically' a form of reactive depression. I saw a lot of it with the survivors of the Grenfell Tower fire here in the UK. I so wish I could send you and yours a 'sniffy stick' (nasal inhaler) with essential oils that will help you all. I'm betting your circadian rhythms are out of whack too.
It is difficult to find the strength or make any logical sense of anything when faced with a situation like this. There is a 'silver lining' here, it's called humanity and community. The mere fact you are posting your experience here shows that you are 'coming out the other side'.
Sunny Rainbows after the storm,
Jane

a reply to: TruthJava
OMG, is that your home, on its' side?


Heff, As I said before, So happy you and yours are all ok. Of course your whole town has been in my thoughts, and I have been wondering if you all have gotten any more "immediate" help, since his visit?

a reply to: Hefficide

I found you were in trouble through Discord by chance that ATS is/was under construction.

I was happy that you were ok, and seemingly dealing with a crazy lady or 2. Your sense of humor throughout this ordeal has been good spirited, made me chuckle quite a bit with the random daily doings.

I was most impressed with your abilities to maintain a WiFi/Tower signal without power.

Thanks for keeping us up to date.

S&F

Oh wow! that`s pretty rough weather there , good thing you and family okey .


So dangerous, lost lifes ....

a reply to: Hefficide

Wow. We are from your area...about 35 miles or so north. Long gone now, but we went through many "by the skin of your teeth" episodes. We always believed the height of the levee saved us. After all the trials you've been through and shared with us, you must now know that you are here for a reason. Stay strong!

a reply to: Hefficide

Glad you are safe and sound and won’t take the warning for granted!

I too have been through a f4 in the Deep South, and two lesser but equally scary ones in the Midwest.
I remember the train sound, the green sky, I remember how the electricity flicked on and off. I remember the sound of our battery operated radio.

Somehow every tree fell the opposite direction of my house. I remember seeing the aftermath. I will never forget what it looks like when Mother Nature plucks an ancient tree out, along with the sidewalk on top of it’s root, as if it was a child’s toy.

I will also say being on a boat when a tornado hits might me one of the scariest things a human can experience!

a reply to: Hefficide


Ummm...Dayam Heff...I'm glad you made it through the other side...You'd have left an unfillable hole at ATS had what thankfully didn't happen...happened...

Prayers...and be thankful for every day...





YouSir

Wow!! Just …. Wow …..My heart is reaching out to you and your community . Survivors guilt is a real hard emotional issue to shake , but please know you are here for a reason , And chosen to be here .we are are all thankful you are here ! Hug your loved ones and your pets … they need you , and you need them .

I live on Cudjoe key Florida. In 2017 hurricane Irma came through and made us ground Zero . It looked like a war zone . So much destruction ..so much debris …. One of the keys above us lost 208 people in a massive storm Surge . Local news media and Fema kept that quiet . Because most lost were homeless and couldn’t be identified . So they didn’t count … Sad…….Our house was badly damaged ,couldn’t live in it , and it took A year and a half to rebuild . For a year and a half ,I only had a black trash bag with minimal clothing and the same shoes ( flip flops ) and hardly any makeup . (Which is pretty hard for a woman ) … it sucked .

But no matter what I’ve been though , it’s still not the same as what you’re going though….. so my heart reaches out to you and your community ….what kept me sane during Irma’s aftermath , was just reminding myself that all the visual chaos I was seeing was only temporary . The town will rebuild , and debris will eventually get hauled away . … That was a big problem here , with people freaking out over the debris , because they couldn’t separate their mind from their sight and focus … I just kept reminding myself and focusing in what really counts .

I hope that helps just a little bit …. And please know I am sending hugs to everyone and prayers … especially to those who lost loved ones .

originally posted by: chiefsmom
a reply to: TruthJava
OMG, is that your home, on its' side?

Yes, it is. It was a mobile home that we had custom made with house-quality wood and had lived there just a little over 3 years. The tornado picked us up and flipped it over on it's side. If it weren't for the well-built structure, a strategically placed tree, a clothesline pole, and God's will I presume...we would have rolled again and I wouldn't be here to answer this!

a reply to: Hefficide

Oh my God! That doesn't even begin to convey how I feel for you right now. Words cannot express.

That has to be devastating.

I am so thankful you came through it. I grew up in Kansas. You don't play with 'naders. And I can't imagine having to deal with being at ground zero of an event like that. My dad might have some idea (he sold the OKC fertilizer to Nichols), but I don't.

Stay strong, get back on your feet, but most importantly - get some help if you need it. That kind of thing can be sneaky in your head.