DEVASTATION IN THE SOUTH

Two days ago, on April 27, the Southeast experienced catastropic weather that had not been seen in 40 years.  Tornado after tornado destroyed homes, property, and lives.  So far, the human loss of life stands at 290, with the majority of deaths occuring in Alabama. Areas in and around Tuscaloosa & Birmingham have been completely destroyed, wiped away as if they never existed. 

With cleanup & relief efforts underway to restore life to normal, I can only think of those who lost loved ones in the catastrophe. For those individuals, life will be hard as they remember how quickly & brutally their lives changed in an instant.  I pray that God give them the peace & understanding and helps to lift them up when they are at their lowest point and think that they can't go on.

Even we were not spared in the lastest round of Mother Nature's Fury. At 12 am EDT 4/28, we were struck by the tail end of a tornado. Fortunately, we didn't suffer any loss of life. My camper started rocking really bad & as I rushed to get out of it, I saw sparks fly as power lines came crashing down. It was a sobering moment as I realized that if I had parked a 100 feet away from where I was at, it could have been disastrous.

Here are some photos of those lines:

I generally park in behind the the camel ride(the red trailer) but this time I was parked far away because the groundskeeper told us the ground flooded in that area if it rained.  I know in my heart that God was watching out for me from the time we arrived due to him telling us that. 

                                           This is one of the side poles for the tent. The photo
                                           below shows how hard it impacted the truck.

I thank God it was a truck that caught it & not a person.  We also had severe damage to the tent that was repaired the next day.  Here are some photos of the work taking place:

The aftermath from the storms was also a moment of reflection on this morning's drive.  I saw trees snapped as if they were toothpicks.  In one location, a tree had fallen & completely destroyed a house. I pray that nobody was inside when it happened.

I am grateful that we survived this devastating attack, for the most part, intact. It could have been a lot worse.  The scenario of what if... keeps playing in my head.  I am also thankful for my friend in Arizona, Beth Janelle.  She kept me informed on where the storms were at & if we were under any more danger from further outbreaks.  She stayed up until the threat had passed to make sure we were kept safe.  She truly is a caring & thoughtful lady. 

All of those affected by this devastation are in my thoughts & prayers.  I truly hope that, in time, all of your lives will be healed and the bitter memories fade.

Until later, God Bless us everyone, see you down the road.