Two Nebraska brothers manage to survive as a tornado takes them and their house away.
A twister was found close by his residence in an Elkhorn neighborhood, and he had to seek shelter, his friend asserted through the phone.
Roger turned his car around and dashed towards the dwelling he shared with wife Lindy and brother, Royce. Lindy was at work, but Roger warned his sibling to fetch the dogs and seek shelter in the basement.
Roger arrived in the driveway and dashed inside, but neither of them got to the basement. Around a minute later, a twister of at least 136 mph level came to their house and demolished it to fragments.
"I've never witnessed such wind power before," Roger told CNN. "I could never have imagined something like this happening."
The tornado that ruined the Slatten household was one of many that ravaged the Plains from Thursday to Sunday. The Slattens and their dogs were fortunate enough to survive that ordeal, but at least five people - four in Oklahoma and one in Iowa - sadly lost their lives.
Basements or the deepest, most central rooms of a building are the safest place during a twister. However, when this one hit their house, the brothers were headed for an upper floor to search for their Yorkiepoo, Nico. They couldn't locate him, and it was too late to reach the basement - the tornado had arrived, and the building began to crumble around them.
"We could sense the floor detaching from the foundation," Roger recalled. "As soon as the wind got beneath it, it just evaporated the higher end of the house."
The brothers exchanged a glance before they got ejected from their home.
"We tried to go down the stairs, and we stared at each other, and I was certain that it was the last time I would ever see my brother. The house tore off," Roger mentioned.
Roger stayed conscious during his flight, experiencing "head over heels cartwheels" while being bombarded with debris before crashing onto the ground, where he was weighed down by wreckage.
"I landed facedown on the ground and buried underneath the debris - which luckily defended me from getting injured by any glass - but my legs and one arm were pinned," he said.
Royce Slatten could only remember fleeting recollections of his flight through the air.
"I remember being pulled out backward after the house was lifted. I recall hitting the ground and recovering afterward and just sensing that the entire house is tearing into my back," Royce remembered.
"It was the most intense sensation I have ever experienced," Royce affirmed.
Royce ended up in the backyard.
In contrast, Roger was unable to free himself and call 911. First responders showed up afterward and extricated Roger, but Royce was still missing until another neighbor could be located.
The siblings' reunion provided comfort.
Royce is part of the National Guard and was dispatched overseas last year, but Roger claimed he "was happier to see him after being separated for 20 minutes than during the entire year he was away."
Not long after their joyful reaction, pet Nico was retrieved from the rubble. Exhausted, pet Rogan was rescued by the Humane Society just behind where their former dwelling had been. Both dogs appear fine.
Royce sustained significant injuries and required 22 stitches. Additionally, he experienced pain from walking since his feet had been bare when the twister hit.
Roger didn't fare well. He got multiple bone bruises from falling debris, was pierced by a nail, and garnished various cut marks on his face.
The entirety of their abode was ruined, consigned to the basement foundation. The bulk of their possessions were annihilated. The brothers stated the basement they should have sought shelter in collapsed and was destroyed by a tree rooted in a neighboring yard.
The devastation of their house is a shared burden by their entire neighborhood. However, they are finding solace in the support from the community rallying in their time of need.
"A lot of individuals have questioned if it's the scariest element or the worst thing that has occurred, but honestly, the good part has somehow surpassed the bad," Roger said. "It seems so unbelievable, like it was written. ... You know, I'm still alive and we're all healthy. It could have been a lot worse, and we're here. So, I'm just so thankful for the support and so thankful for the people around us."
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Source: edition.cnn.com
