Nyboy
Garden Master
- Joined
- Oct 2, 2010
- Messages
- 21,365
- Reaction score
- 16,249
- Points
- 437
Bay and Devon Are You ok
- Thread starter Nyboy
- Start date
baymule
Garden Master
We had a tornado-thunderstorm-lightening-flash flood-storm yesterday and evening. My sister and her friend had come for the Canton First Monday, over 400 acres of flea market, and they were stormed on all day. We met them in Lindale to eat at a Mexican restaurant. Our DD and her family were coming too, but because of tornado warnings, they went to the school our DSIL teaches at and hunkered down in a closet. Sirens were going off, the sky was black, the rain was sideways, it got real bad. @Devonviolet was watching the weather and texting me the latest. The manager of the restaurant was watching the weather too and asked everyone to go into the kitchen, which of course we all did. After about 15-20 minutes, it cleared up enough that people went back to their tables, some left to go home.
We were texting and calling our neighbors. One neighbor, Sharon was in the closet of her house. Another neighbor, Jennifer, had her kids in a closet, her husband was at work and he told her to get out of the house. She did, but ran off the road on what @Devonviolet will recognize as the Old Mineola Highway. She and her kids ran to a house in the height of the storm, no one answered the door, neither did the next house, but the 3rd house, the door was unlocked, so her boys opened it and ran in screaming and scared. The very surprised lady was gracious and sheltered them. Jennifer's husband, Jimmy, was frantic, left work, found her, got her car out of the ditch and they got back home safely. That took a couple of hours.
While we were in the restaurant kitchen, Devonviolet texted me to say that it looked like the tornado activity was right on top of our farm. We headed toward home not knowing if we had a home to go home to. But we told my sister, if our house is gone, at least we weren't in it. In the middle of town was an utterly destroyed building, the building next to it was untouched. The first road we tried was blocked. We sat there for about 20 minutes, on the Old Mineola Highway, in a long line of cars. The road is narrow but my husband was able to jockey our truck back and forth to get it turned around. It turned out that our neighbor Jimmy was at the front of that line, there were trees across the road and he was helping to clear the road. His wife and kids were somewhere on the other side of the blockage. We went back to town and went out Farm Road 16. Trees were down all along the way, many blocking a lane. We even drove under a tree that didn't fall all the way down, like an archway, barely clearing the cab of the truck, praying it wouldn't fall on us.
We turned off the Farm Road, onto a county road. The one we normally went home on had water over the road in a couple of places. Another neighbor had made it home ahead of us and he told us to take another road and go around the long way. It had water over it too, but we were able to drive across it.
Home never looked so good! No damage, animals all ok. God is good. We were grateful. Power was off, so we lit the kerosene lamps. I have 56 baby chicks in a brooder on the porch and they were clumped up. I changed shirts to go catch them all, planning to put them in a cardboard box and bring them in the house, when the power came back on.
Thank you to Devonviolet for keeping us informed on what the storm was doing! Haha, that's what we were doing for her and her husband just a few weeks ago! There was a very sweet lady in the restaurant who heard us talking, I read her texts to our group at the table. She was worried about getting home. I told her what Devonviolet's texts said and we figured out that she could leave and go home.
We finally went to bed last night around 11:00. We have adjustable beds, so I propped up in a sitting position to read. Weeeelllllll.........the power went off again! There I was sitting up in a straight chair that was supposed to be my bed.
I tried and tried to go to sleep, I rooted DH over and tried to steal sleeping space from him, I finally gave up and turned around in the bed and stuck my feet up. 
About 1:30 the power came back on, the first thing I did was press FLAT on the bed remote. Then I turned out the light and went to sleep. 
I really need to saddle up Marigold (my tractor) and start digging a storm shelter.......
Yes, Nyboy we are ok and so is Devonviolet. My husband saw our town's tornados mentioned on Fox News! It got scary for awhile, but it all turned out ok.
You would LOVE Canton First Monday!! It is over 400 acres of flea market about 30 minutes from our house. It started years ago and just kept growing. It is on the weekend of the first Monday in the month. My sister and her friend rent an electric cart and ride around all day.
http://www.firstmondaycanton.com/
We were texting and calling our neighbors. One neighbor, Sharon was in the closet of her house. Another neighbor, Jennifer, had her kids in a closet, her husband was at work and he told her to get out of the house. She did, but ran off the road on what @Devonviolet will recognize as the Old Mineola Highway. She and her kids ran to a house in the height of the storm, no one answered the door, neither did the next house, but the 3rd house, the door was unlocked, so her boys opened it and ran in screaming and scared. The very surprised lady was gracious and sheltered them. Jennifer's husband, Jimmy, was frantic, left work, found her, got her car out of the ditch and they got back home safely. That took a couple of hours.
While we were in the restaurant kitchen, Devonviolet texted me to say that it looked like the tornado activity was right on top of our farm. We headed toward home not knowing if we had a home to go home to. But we told my sister, if our house is gone, at least we weren't in it. In the middle of town was an utterly destroyed building, the building next to it was untouched. The first road we tried was blocked. We sat there for about 20 minutes, on the Old Mineola Highway, in a long line of cars. The road is narrow but my husband was able to jockey our truck back and forth to get it turned around. It turned out that our neighbor Jimmy was at the front of that line, there were trees across the road and he was helping to clear the road. His wife and kids were somewhere on the other side of the blockage. We went back to town and went out Farm Road 16. Trees were down all along the way, many blocking a lane. We even drove under a tree that didn't fall all the way down, like an archway, barely clearing the cab of the truck, praying it wouldn't fall on us.
We turned off the Farm Road, onto a county road. The one we normally went home on had water over the road in a couple of places. Another neighbor had made it home ahead of us and he told us to take another road and go around the long way. It had water over it too, but we were able to drive across it.
Home never looked so good! No damage, animals all ok. God is good. We were grateful. Power was off, so we lit the kerosene lamps. I have 56 baby chicks in a brooder on the porch and they were clumped up. I changed shirts to go catch them all, planning to put them in a cardboard box and bring them in the house, when the power came back on.
Thank you to Devonviolet for keeping us informed on what the storm was doing! Haha, that's what we were doing for her and her husband just a few weeks ago! There was a very sweet lady in the restaurant who heard us talking, I read her texts to our group at the table. She was worried about getting home. I told her what Devonviolet's texts said and we figured out that she could leave and go home.
We finally went to bed last night around 11:00. We have adjustable beds, so I propped up in a sitting position to read. Weeeelllllll.........the power went off again! There I was sitting up in a straight chair that was supposed to be my bed.
I tried and tried to go to sleep, I rooted DH over and tried to steal sleeping space from him, I finally gave up and turned around in the bed and stuck my feet up. About 1:30 the power came back on, the first thing I did was press FLAT on the bed remote. Then I turned out the light and went to sleep. I really need to saddle up Marigold (my tractor) and start digging a storm shelter.......
Yes, Nyboy we are ok and so is Devonviolet. My husband saw our town's tornados mentioned on Fox News! It got scary for awhile, but it all turned out ok.
You would LOVE Canton First Monday!! It is over 400 acres of flea market about 30 minutes from our house. It started years ago and just kept growing. It is on the weekend of the first Monday in the month. My sister and her friend rent an electric cart and ride around all day.
http://www.firstmondaycanton.com/
thistlebloom
Garden Master
- Joined
- Dec 1, 2010
- Messages
- 16,473
- Reaction score
- 17,415
- Points
- 457
- Location
- North Idaho 48th parallel
Whew! Glad you guys are alright!
I know Texas is nice, but I don't think I could handle the excitement.
I know Texas is nice, but I don't think I could handle the excitement.
Carol Dee
Garden Master
OMG @baymule and @Devonviolet that was TOO Exciting. I am glad to find @Nyboy started this thread for me. 
I was planning to p.m. and ask but now I know! We have plenty of tornado activity in IA but have not gotten quit that close. Thankfully. Glad you are all o.k.
I was planning to p.m. and ask but now I know! We have plenty of tornado activity in IA but have not gotten quit that close. Thankfully. Glad you are all o.k.
Smart Red
Garden Master
- Joined
- Jan 10, 2012
- Messages
- 11,303
- Reaction score
- 7,406
- Points
- 417
- Location
- South-est, central-est Wisconsin
So glad to hear that you both are well and untouched by the bad weather around you, @baymule and @Devonviolet.
baymule
Garden Master
My sister is back home now and I promised her that we would not throw another tornado party for her!
journey11
Garden Master
I'm glad you guys, your animals and property are safe. How funny the worst part of your day was the bed being stuck sitting up.
I wonder why the fella had the wife and kids leave the house? Is it a trailer or modular home?
We're the only ones on our end of the ridge that have a basement. Neighbors have all been invited to come hide out with us if needed, back door will be unlocked. So far no one has had to, although we do occasionally have tornado warnings. Ours never get as big or run as long as yours out west though. The mountains break them up, I guess.
I wonder why the fella had the wife and kids leave the house? Is it a trailer or modular home?
We're the only ones on our end of the ridge that have a basement. Neighbors have all been invited to come hide out with us if needed, back door will be unlocked. So far no one has had to, although we do occasionally have tornado warnings. Ours never get as big or run as long as yours out west though. The mountains break them up, I guess.
baymule
Garden Master
Yes, it is a doublewide. Our house is too, never lived in a mobile home before. It does make us a little nervous when storms like this come up. The local weather news always says to get out of mobile homes and get to a secure place. Wish we had a basement or storm shelter!
baymule
Garden Master
http://www.wsbtv.com/news/trending-...ing-causes-dramatic-culvert-washout/250469214
This happened on a county road in our neighborhood. Road washouts have happened quite a few times around here since we moved here. But this is the first video I have seen of a washout happening.
This happened on a county road in our neighborhood. Road washouts have happened quite a few times around here since we moved here. But this is the first video I have seen of a washout happening.
