‘Oh my gosh. There’s people’: Storm chaser rescues family live on YouTube during Hawley tornado

Erica Garner
·2 min read
8

JONES COUNTY, Texas (KTAB/KRBC) – A family of four was rescued live on social media after a storm chaser followed a tornado right to their home, which had just been destroyed in Hawley.

Freddy McKinney had just chased the tornado-warned storm into Jones County when he was able to get footage of a large tornado dropping down.

HOW TO HELP: Hawley tornado victims in need of supplies

“This is an insane intercept. . . just dropped,” McKinney is heard saying in the video, which was originally live on YouTube but has also been shared on Twitter here.

He continues to drive toward the tornado and soon comes upon an impact site, where there appeared to be at least one home affected.

“I got to make sure it didn’t hit a house – please tell me it did not hit a house here,” McKinney says as he drives closer toward the debris, despite the the fact that the tornado was still on the ground nearby.

Just as McKinney opens his door, his fears are confirmed as he sees a family of four – a mother, father and two young children – running for their lives toward him.

UPDATE: Tornado near Hawley damages homes, injures 2

All four are visibly injured – one child was being carried by the mother as the father limped behind them and the other child was covered in blood.

They get in the car, and the mother is heard asking for McKinney’s phone to call her family as she assesses her son’s injuries.

The video ends as McKinney calls 9-1-1, saying he’s, “a storm chaser here. I’ve got injured people in my car.”

Tornado spins up behind drivers on way out of Jones County

As he turns around to drive toward the hospital, his dash camera video captures one last image of the tornado, which is still on a path of destruction right next to them.

Watch the full video of this incident here.

A friend of the family affected by the tornado shared a picture of them in the hospital, confirming that although their home was completely leveled, they all survived. A fundraising campaign has been launched on GoFundMe to assist with their recovery.

The father affected also posted to social media, saying “all four of us are beat up and battered but we are all alive.”

They are currently out of the hospital and staying with family.

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