When seconds count

Tim and Missi Lynn were awakened December 13 by an app on her phone alerting of impending severe weather.

“I turned on the TV and Michael Armstrong said it was a really intense storm,” Missi said recalling her actions at 5:30 that morning.

“My husband and I discussed if we should wake up the kids,” Missi continued.

Turns out it was a good thing they did wake up their 11 and eight year old children.

It was another blessing for them going straight into their basement and not trying to get to their storm shelter outside the house.

“It was less than a minute after we got to the basement before it happened,” Missi said. “It just lasted about a minute but it seemed like 10. Within a minute of us closing the basement door everything was gone.

“Once we knew we were safe we started calling family to see if anyone else was hit,” she said.

Their house, a shop and two of their three vehicles were destroyed. Missi said Tim’s vehicle hardly had any damage at all.

“We salvaged nothing,” she said. “We are going to try to salvage our dining room table. God put that tornado on my house for a reason. If it had been a half mile back toward town there would have been people killed.

“Only three people that I know of went to the cellar,” Missi said. “Everyone else was just laying in bed and didn’t think it was that bad.

The storm didn’t even damage the power lines that were going to their house.

“Some of our debris was on the power line but the lines were fine,” she said.

A light drizzle followed the tornado.

“It wasn’t a real heavy rain,” Missi said. “The kids are doing pretty good. They don’t like going up there (to their house) and looking at it. But they are pretty remarkable for what they went through.”

For the time being Tim, Missi and the two kids are living with her parents Bob and Fonda Blackwell.

The Lynns are going to set up a rental home near their home and are discussing where to rebuild.

“We’re tossing the idea around,” Missi said. “One reason to rebuild back on the same spot is because of the basement that saved our lives. There was just no time to make it outside to the cellar.”

A GoFundMe account has been set up at First United Bank called “Tim and Missi Lynn and their children.

“We had a ton of clothing and monetary donations,” Missi said. “Food has been dropped off. We live in the best community. I’m convinced of that,” she concluded.