Family Matters the Most

Surviving the Unexpected

Tornado warnings are fairly common in the West Texas area. When the Reed family, along with several others in the Howard County community, received a weather alert on May 22, 2016, they ignored it as many often do.

Nobody was expecting anything to result from that warning, much less an actual tornado. On that day, the warning was one not to be ignored; disaster struck when an EF3 tornado hit the outskirts of Big Spring causing damage to multiple homes and properties.

“There was a weather alert (Tornado Warning) earlier in the day, but we didn't think much of it because it was a perfect day,” Ava Reed, a resident of one of the houses that was destroyed, said.

The Reed family had no idea that their seemingly normal day was about to turn upside down. When the first alert went off Amber Reed, Ava's mom, had the kids go to the bathroom and get in the tub just as a precaution.

“The first one went off and we made them (the kids - Logan and Ava) stay in the bathroom for 10 minutes,” Amber Reed, a resident of one of the houses that was destroyed, said.

After about 10 minutes of hunkering down in the bathroom, Mrs. Reed and her husband, Chanz, stepped out of the bathroom to look around the house. As the Reeds surveyed the house and yard, they realized that their huge cedar tree had been uprooted. As they were taking in the damage to the tree, the unexpected happened; the quiet skies and peaceful winds turned ugly.

“As I was walking away the kitchen doors flew open. We were trying to keep the doors closed but got blown back. We then took the kids to the bathroom and Chanz hulked the queen sized mattress from Ava's bed, and we stayed underneath it … the longest half hour ever,” Mrs. Reed said

At 6:13 p.m. according to data collected by the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, the storm moved across Howard County and formed a tornado just south of Texas State Highway 176, approximately 10 miles from Big Spring. The tornado traveled throughout the outskirts of Big Spring, causing damage to four houses and $75,000 worth of property damage. The tornado was 4.01 miles long and 500 ft wide.

“Large sections of the roof were removed, but with the walls still standing,” Mrs. Reed said.

According to the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration website data, one of the houses was completely destroyed from top to bottom, leaving the family without a house. The house belonging to the Reed Family had the roof torn off. The indicator shows that the second house took the worst of the storm, however, according to the news report it was also the strongest structure. The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration stated the damage indicator suggests an EF-3 intensity with wind speeds estimated at 140-160 mph.

The damage from the tornado resulted in some of the Reed's family's belongings - decorations and old photos - ruined by water and flying debris, but there were still items that they were able to salvage. According to Reed, even with the roof of the house being ripped off and the loss of some of their personal items, the most important asset was kept safe.

“I didn't know that the roof had come off until we came out of the bathroom because the bathroom roof was still on,” Mrs. Reed said.

The Reed family was displaced for a year and a half due to the damage caused from the tornado. The family was able to stay with extended family members as they worked on rebuilding their home.

“We didn't know that we got hit twice because it felt like one solid storm that never let up,” Mrs. Reed said.

Mrs. Reed said that people always said that a tornado sounded like a train going through your house and it did.

Having been through the worst of it Ava and her mother still struggle eight years later, with PTSD (Post Traumatic Stress Disorder). Reed received help through therapy, however, she still gets flashbacks when things get bad during storms. Mrs. Reed said that she doesn't know if someone can ever fully get over something like that, emotionally or mentally.

“I went to therapy once a week for six months and that helped me a lot,” Reed said.

As the tornado swept through, the main focus was keeping the family safe, everything else could be assessed after the storm had passed.

“I wasn't sure that I could keep both kids safe,” Mrs. Reed said. “My thought was will I be able to hold onto my child if we go airborne and is Chance going to hold onto Logan so I can hold onto Ava.”

As the Reed family reflected on the experience, one thing was certain - through it all, they may have lost belongings, but they kept the most valuable thing: family. The family survived the unexpected events and in the end that's what really matters.