The Finger of God

Have you ever seen the movie Twister? Released in 1996 and starring Helen Hunt and Bill Paxton, the movie followed a group of storm chasers as they got caught up in a harrowing day of following and escaping tornadoes. It was considered cutting edge for the way it depicted the funnel clouds and the scientists who do this everyday. Little did I know how, 24 years later, my work would bring me to a place in Middle Tennessee where real life imitated art, and my latest clients would be grateful to have escaped with their lives. Their story in just a moment.

First, I would be remiss if I did not mention the passing of an old friend recently. Kent "WiFi Guy " Pingel worked with me at Belfor, a job he affectionately called "The Dirty Gig". We crossed paths many times at various disaster zones all over the country, and his blog Ping WiFi chronicled his journeys, always looking for a good story and a WiFi connection. He was a brilliant writer and better friend, who always gave me an "O-H" whenever we spoke, to which I replied "Guns Up", honoring each others love for our college football teams. He encouraged me to start this blog in 2010, and often would message to let me know how much he enjoyed reading. That was a huge honor for me.

Kent lost his battle with cancer on January 20th. But what a courageous fight it was, never slowing down until he had to go into hospice two days before he passed.

Godspeed D. Kent "WiFi Guy" Pingel. Thank you for introducing me to the blogger world.

Now back to my clients.

In that movie, Twister, there was a scene where they were all in Aunt May's kitchen having breakfast and talking. Melissa, a newcomer to the group, was asking about the different levels of Tornado, which range from EF0 to EF5. She asked what an EF5 Tornado would be like, to which someone said it was like "The Finger of God".

After what I saw last week, I have to say I agree.

In the wee small hours of Tuesday, March 3rd, massive storms spread across the State of Tennessee. At least 8 Tornadoes touched down, with one staying on the ground for 60 miles and another, the strongest of them, an EF4-EF5. That twister claimed 18 lives in the town of Cookeville and surrounding area, and ran directly through the home of Lauren, Brandon, and their family.

The call to respond to a project in Tennessee is not out of the ordinary. After all, the adjuster on this claim has trusted us to help his insureds for years, a trust we do not take lightly. We hold him in high regard because he is in this industry for the same reasons we are - he genuinely wants to help people. So when he called on Thursday morning to ask if we could help, I volunteered to go myself. And I am so glad I did.

When you have been in my industry as long as I have, you start to think maybe you have seen in all. Warehouses tossed like paper in Chile after an earthquake. A shopping mall arson fire in California. And even a sewage treatment plant overflow in Clarksville Tennessee. And while I never grow tired of the work, sometimes it is nice to be reminded of why I started doing this in the first place.

Lauren, Brandon, and their family (names used with permission) lived in a house on a quiet street in a suburban neighborhood in Cookeville. Their driveway was the last one at the top of the hill before you went around the curve. What I cannot tell you is whether the house was blue, yellow, gray, brick, sided, log cabin..............literally no frame of reference. Because when I saw their home on Friday morning, it was a concrete garage slab and a crawl space.

Like most everyone else, they were asleep in the early hours of March 3rd. They went to bed with the knowledge that there would be a severe weather threat that night. Not uncommon for the area of Tennessee they live in. The also heard the buzzing of the Tornado Warning alert on their phones, but they half ignored it and felt no urgency to take cover. Many of us, including myself, have had the same reaction to those alarms in the past. Not going to hit here, right?

But it did.

It hit right there.

In their neighborhood.

In their yard.

Through their house

It was on them before they got out of bed. Lauren ran to her 15 year old daughter's room. Ella Jane is hearing impaired and did not have her hearing aids in. As Lauren screamed her name, Ella Jane kept sleeping. Finally, she sat up and said "WHAT MOM". As soon as that happened, the door hit Lauren in the face and started to push her down. Young Ella was sucked from the house and flown through the air roughly 75 feet into the neighbor's swimming pool. At the same time, Brandon was hit in the back of the head by a 2X4, which knocked him down the stairs. The house was moving off the foundation and coming apart around them. A few seconds later the house stopped moving as it hit something. They would later discover that the structure wrapped around a tree Lauren had planted 15 years ago when she first bought the house, and that tree prevented them from being blown even further out into a field where they found another neighbor's home the next day. When it was over Brandon found Lauren, who had landed on top of the debris pile with one of their 3 dogs firmly in her arms.

The slab in front of the truck is what was left of their home

The couple went about looking for Ella Jane, who was floating on a piece of wood in that pool. A few cuts and scrapes, but all of them were alive. It was a bittersweet moment as they looked at the mess around them. One of their dogs perished from injuries he sustained in the rubble. Their home was gone. 3 of their neighbors homes were also no where to be seen. Many other homes were knocked off of their foundations, and still others with major damage but still standing. But they had somehow survived. They walked on rubble out of the area. It was like they had just witnessed the Finger of God.

The pool where Ella Jane was found

When I met Lauren and Brandon on Thursday evening, I was prepared to hold their hands as I have so many other clients as they deal with such a life changing moment. But what I found was a family who were grateful that they were all still there, especially considering all of the families who could not say the same thing. And they have an amazing support system around them.

I got the chance to walk the neighborhood with them Friday afternoon. They were happy to see the neighbors who were there going through the rubble, and worried about the ones they did not see. They told us stories about the neighbors and what they had gone through, and who the neighbors were. As we walked they talked about the experience and even cracked a smile or two. I was able to take a picture, which you see below, of this remarkable family in front of Lauren's tree, which firefighter Brandon attached his flag to. They were not ready to talk about what was next. They just wanted to savor that moment, together.

One additional detail. Brandon had the chance a few years back to buy his dream car. A 2017 50th Anniversary Chevy Camaro 2SS. During the tornado, it was beaten, battered, picked up, and slammed down. It, along with a ton of other cars in the neighborhood, was totaled. But when the insurance company came to pick it up, this happened:

I am so glad that I had to privilege to help Lauren, Brandon, and their family through no doubt one of the worst stories of their lives. But it occurs to me, I hear other people who do what I do for a living talk about making things like they never happened. And that's all well and good. But the fact is that it did happen. It happened to these people. And they will carry it with them long after the house is rebuilt, a new dream car is bought, and the time since 3-3-2020 gets longer and longer. So as for me, I would prefer to be a bright spot during their worst story. That is what I do what I do. And I am very lucky to meet people like Lauren and Brandon along the way who remind me of that. Thank you both for allowing me and my team to help you all.

Below are more pictures from this past week. As you scroll, remind yourself how blessed you are. Because Lauren and Brandon will. And they are the ones who lived through this harrowing ordeal.

God is great, all the time.