NEVADA, Mo. — The maintenance person for Nevada Oaks woke up to a nightmare.
"I woke up to my alarm, and three seconds later, my windows were rattling. It blew me 4 feet up in the air and threw me 6 feet across the room,” said the employee, who preferred not to share his name.
The roof of his studio is gone, just like it is in other apartments on the property.
All his belongings are now exposed to the weather, and tonight, he will sleep at a friend's house.
According to the owner of Nevada Oaks, his employee is the only person who got hurt because of the EF1 tornado that moved through Vernon County.
While dealing with minor injuries, he will have to rebuild his whole world.
“In the blink of an eye, it’s gone. It feels lonely and scary, but I’ve got to start over,” he said.
But he was not the only one to see memories blowing away.
Less than two miles away, brothers Rilen Livengood and Brantley Stroud are also putting the pieces together.
Their family’s storage space was tipped over to the side. That's where they keep cherished memories of late family members, including their dad.
Livengood said they were looking for pictures in the backyard while it was still storming.
“Seeing all those photos out on the ground while it’s raining and all those photo albums, it’s kind of heartbreaking because some of those things we can't replace,” Livengood said.
They woke up to the wind opening their house’s door.
“It’s scary; it knocked me onto the floor. I didn't really know what to do,” Livengood said.
“My heart was racing,” Stroud said. “I was also worried about my family and my neighbors.”
In the rain, they knocked on their neighbor's door to make sure everyone was okay.
“It feels like a tragedy. But also, I'm glad that everyone is okay; that's all that really matters. These houses can be rebuilt, but lives can’t.”
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