Tornado Levels Home Leaving Father and Daughters Sorting Through Rubble
By: Josh Berry
Updated: December 20, 2012
People in Grant County are cleaning up from an EF1 tornado.
The twister touched down early Thursday morning just outside of Sheridan damaging homes, toppling trees and leveling carports.
Several residents described the weather as if "a bomb went off."
Folks in Grant County say they got out fortunate as only one person was considered injured in the aftermath of last nights storm damage.
That person lives in a place where authorities say received the most significant damage and where the tornado actually touched down.
Gerald Winston is just thankful he's still around to clean up the mess.
"I'm glad I'm still alive," he laughed.
Winston woke up early Thursday morning with the world seeming to come down around him.
"Just like a bomb went off, I mean everything just blew up and [was] gone."
He found himself standing in the middle of the kitchen wearing nothing but what he went to bed in.
When he found himself surrounded by destruction with cuts and bumps all over he didn't give up.
"Just seeing my dad standing in the middle of the house okay just gave me a sense of relief," said his daughter, Rachel Hillman after giving her father a big hug.
Family and friends showed up to help sort through the debris trying to keep the stuff that matters like photographs.
The daughters however say they were looking for more simple items.
"We lost our mom to cancer a couple of years back," Hillman started to explain.
With evidence of a hunter and a handyman all over only a few things remained that reminded them of their mother.
"We wanted to find some memories today of her."
Simply enough, they found a bowl she used to make mashed potatoes in.
Hillman added, "It was a relief just to find one thing."
Besides of course her father standing in the middle of the rubble.
"The good lord must have woke him up this morning because he was standing in the middle of the kitchen, Hillman explained. "When he should have been in bed."
Surprised at what has happened to him, Winston said, "I've seen a lot of pictures on tv of stuff like this ... never thought it would happen to me but it did."
The Red Cross has reached out to Winston offering him a place to stay for a couple of nights and money for food and clothes. Winston had no insurance for something like this.
Related Stories:
Storms Knock Out Power to More than 40,000 in Arkansas
EF1 Tornado Touches Down Overnight in Sheridan, Other Arkansas Storm Damage
The twister touched down early Thursday morning just outside of Sheridan damaging homes, toppling trees and leveling carports.
Several residents described the weather as if "a bomb went off."
Folks in Grant County say they got out fortunate as only one person was considered injured in the aftermath of last nights storm damage.
That person lives in a place where authorities say received the most significant damage and where the tornado actually touched down.
Gerald Winston is just thankful he's still around to clean up the mess.
"I'm glad I'm still alive," he laughed.
Winston woke up early Thursday morning with the world seeming to come down around him.
"Just like a bomb went off, I mean everything just blew up and [was] gone."
He found himself standing in the middle of the kitchen wearing nothing but what he went to bed in.
When he found himself surrounded by destruction with cuts and bumps all over he didn't give up.
"Just seeing my dad standing in the middle of the house okay just gave me a sense of relief," said his daughter, Rachel Hillman after giving her father a big hug.
Family and friends showed up to help sort through the debris trying to keep the stuff that matters like photographs.
The daughters however say they were looking for more simple items.
"We lost our mom to cancer a couple of years back," Hillman started to explain.
With evidence of a hunter and a handyman all over only a few things remained that reminded them of their mother.
"We wanted to find some memories today of her."
Simply enough, they found a bowl she used to make mashed potatoes in.
Hillman added, "It was a relief just to find one thing."
Besides of course her father standing in the middle of the rubble.
"The good lord must have woke him up this morning because he was standing in the middle of the kitchen, Hillman explained. "When he should have been in bed."
Surprised at what has happened to him, Winston said, "I've seen a lot of pictures on tv of stuff like this ... never thought it would happen to me but it did."
The Red Cross has reached out to Winston offering him a place to stay for a couple of nights and money for food and clothes. Winston had no insurance for something like this.
Related Stories:
Storms Knock Out Power to More than 40,000 in Arkansas
EF1 Tornado Touches Down Overnight in Sheridan, Other Arkansas Storm Damage
