Laura Specie and Donald Armstrong inside the American Red Cross shelter at the Selmer Civic Center.
Written by Paige Katrinchak
“Like I have told many people here when they ask, the house is gone but luckily, we were able to walk out.”
Donald Arnold and Laura Specie were inside their rental home in Selmer, TN when an EF-3 tornado hit in the early morning hours of April 3. Laura had been on the phone with her grandson, a weather watcher in Maine, who told her she needed to get somewhere safe.
“So, I’m pacing back and forth, and I don’t know what to do, where to go,” Laura said. “Finally, I could hear it, and I put myself behind the bathroom door and I heard the roar.”
She recalls staying in place as she was hit with glass and debris and could feel the house shift beneath her. One of the doors in the house blew off its hinges and almost hit her.
Laura Specie speaks with Red Cross volunteer Heather McIntosh inside the shelter.
“It seemed like it was going to last forever,” Laura recalled. “Finally, it had stopped, but if it had continued any longer, we wouldn’t be here to talk about it.”
Meanwhile, Donald had dozed off on the couch while watching TV. He said he could feel the house shake, heard windows breaking and heard the dishes falling out of the cabinets. Once things settled down, he said he could tell the house shifted off its foundation and saw cracked walls.
Laura and Donald put a battery-operated candle in their front window, hoping to signal to others that they were trapped inside. The local fire department saw it and came to check on them, eventually helping them get out.
“I explained to him that all exits were jammed, and would he please kick the front door in,” Donald said. “It took a couple of hard kicks, but he did.”
The two were eventually taken to the Selmer Civic Center, where an American Red Cross shelter was preparing to open. They couldn’t take very much with them, but Laura says she was able to save a box full of pictures her sister had made for her.
“I told the firemen, if I don’t get anything else, I’ve got to have that,” Laura said.
Laura and Donald were two of the first people to enter the Red Cross shelter. They are eager to go back to their rental home and see what they can salvage, as well as get updates on their neighbors. As they wait to figure out what’s next, they are glad to be somewhere safe.
“We appreciate the work that the Red Cross has been doing,” Donald said.
The Red Cross team is continuing to work with local officials and community partners to provide aid, support and shelter to those needing assistance. To stay informed on shelter locations or other assistance, you can call 1-800- RED CROSS, visit redcross.org/shelters or download the free Red Cross Emergency App.
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