TOO CLOSE

Forgive me if you have already seen this, this is more for my records than for others to see. Wednesday, April 27, 2011 at around 8:30pm we received a phone call from our friend and neighbor Shauna. She wanted to make sure we were'nt upstairs packing (which we were) because there was a Tornado warning. So we went downstairs. Honestly, I didn't think much of it. Ohio has had several warnings and nothing ever came of it. And I cannot ever remember which is worse, warnings or watch....Regardless, we went downstairs and started to pack their instead.

And then we heard it.

The wind picked up. The thunder wasn't loud but it just kept going and going. And then I heard the thunderous scream of the Tornado. I will never forget that sound. It sounds like a train braking coming into a station. I have never seen Jacob's eyes so wide in my life. " Get in the bathroom!" he yelled. We dove in the bathroom and grabbed the dogs. And then the power went out. We could hear things hitting our house. It didn't last very long, and when it did we opened our front door to see leaves and branches all over the road. "Wow, something hit really close." is what my thought was.

We called family and those we visit and home taught and everyone was ok. We still had a Tornado watch until 2am so we stayed downstairs and tried to sleep in the mugginess of it all. at 12:30am my sister in law called me to tell me that no one could get a hold of a certain family in our ward, and I offered to go check it out. I woke Jacob and we headed outside just as our friends and neighbors walked out. Their husband and Jacob went to go check it out and we stayed.

Shauna was on the phone with her mom purporting all the damages in Alabama. It was quite a night.

The boys got back with wide unbelievable eyes, describing powerlines and buildings, houses demolished. There were more families to check on so we girls jumped in the car with Jacob and went to go check. There was already police blocking off any route to downtown Ringgold. But not even a mile from our house the Grovery store, Ace Hardware, the china Restaurant, Dominos ( where we had JUST been getting boxes for our move and picking up a pizza at 7:30pm) all very badly damaged. The Shell station was shredded. ( thankfully it was out of business) We saw power POLES snapped in half dangling, powerlines down EVERYWHERE, and places we even had to drive underlines hanging low. i saw a tree that had been ripped out of the ground and was hanging upside down in the power lines. Houses, just wiped off their foundations.

Unbelievable. I just can't believe it still. To little old Ringgold.

We came back home and prayed in gratitude again for our safety. It took awhile to sleep that night.

The next morning our power was still out. Our hearts longed to go help, but they had too many volunteers and no power tools. I went in to work to get to some internet and charge my phone. That is when I got on facebook and saw all the pictures of Ringgold pictured below. My boss came in for 45 minutes. And then we both went home.

Jacob went into work and didn't get home until nearly 11:00pm because everyone wanted to donated blood since they could not do anything else. Someone todl him a story of a family who heard of the storm too late and the father grabbed a mattress to protect his family and got on top of them. He was blown away in the Tornado. And then his entire family was too. In the end they ALL found each other and everyone was ok. WOW. He said he saw some really amazing pictures.

Some people in our ward own some rental duplexes that have just been completely wiped off the map and a tenant is missing.

My neice and her husband were in the MIDDLE of it. They live downtown Ringgold. I am so grateful that they and there house are ok. I cannot even imagine what their experience was like.

I went home from work and tried to find ice to keep my fridge cool so my food would'nt ruin. No ice .. anywhere. I came home and gratefully my neighbor has a friend that brought over a generator. And I get the news. We aren't allowed to drink the water, the treatment plant has been hit. And that our power will not be on for at least 5 days. And school is out for 2 weeks. ( which is huge because they arleady had to take 2 weeks for the huge snowstorm we had in January)

So now th generator is hooked up to our fridge, and two neighbors. Last night we had cereal for dinner, and I packed our boxes by candle and emergency lights. Downtown Ringgold will be blocked for quite sometime.

This morning I woke up, Jacob took a cold shower. I had showered while the water was warm the day before and decided I could go one day surely without a shower. I plugged my straitener in the generator plug and did my hair. Then I plugged in a crock pot and started some soup for dinner, and then went to work.

We plan on coming home every night and packing until dark, and then going 30 minutes away to my in laws to sleep, shower, do laundry, and have a hot meal. At least through the weekend.

On a side note President Monson flew in yesterday to Atlanta for the Atlanta Temple Dedication. Our stake is the first to perform on BYU TV tonight for the prophet in celebration for the temple. Everything is going to continue as planned. We will got to the church for the dedication.

That is all for now. We are safe and grateful and aching to help.

Here are some pictures, I didnt take most of them. Most of them were from a news website that people put up their pictures on, and a professional photographer, and some facebook. Thanks to all for posting pictures.

Signing off - Thankful.

(My cell pic - Siding in the wires)

Ringgold High School - a wing totally gone.

(My Cell Pic - the Gas Station near our house)

The Ringgold, GA Tornado

Downtown Ringgold

The McDonalds near my house - I had just picked up moving boxes from them.

Houses - just gone.

My cell pic - a house not to far away from us

This is the most shocking to me.

WOW

A hotel - not sure which one it was.

Cherokee Valley Road where someone in our ward owned Duplex's

This is Actually of Atlanta the night of the storm.

They redirected me and I tried to go home a different way....the whole street was blocked. can you see the line hanging down? And the trees fallen blocking the end of the road? (My cell pic)

Downtown Ringgold

A tree up in the wires.

Like I said - Signing off - Thankful.