'Somebody’s trailer frame hit the house': Perryton man was caught in tornado

Within seconds of receiving a tornado alert Thursday evening on his phone, Lynn Pattison, a Navy veteran, was besieged by an EF-3 Tornado that ripped through his home west of downtown Perryton within a mile of the storm’s point of origin.

He said he was watching television when he noticed some wind rotation in the distance, moving away from his location, followed by a phone alert about impending severe weather.

“I sat back down and I got a message saying 'seek shelter now,' and as I walked to the door, that’s when the other side of the house got blown out and somebody’s trailer frame hit the house,” Pattison said. “I went straight into the kitchen as fast as I ever moved. I watched my shed then fly over, with the carport now gone, with my Ford truck then flying straight up in the air.”

He said that he was thrown further into the kitchen with the ceiling and other debris falling on top of him, with his shoes even being pulled off by the wind. Feeling that he might not make it, he called his wife while still pinned below the wreckage from the tornado.

“I called to tell you bye and I love you,” he said to his wife as his phone disconnected.

His wife Peggy was at the Radio Shack store on Main Street when she received the call from her husband. She said she stood there stunned for a few moments as the call disconnected, and seconds later, the tornado hit the Radio Shack she worked at, collapsing the roof of the building. She was fortunate that she was in her office area, where she got under her desk.

“I never had enough time to totally evaluate what my husband told me, because soon after, we lost power and the tornado hit the store,” Peggy Pattison said. “I really did not know if I would see him again.”

Lynn Pattison was able to get in contact with the pastor of his church, who then came to help free him from the fallen debris. He said his first concern was to find his two dogs, both of which were more than 15 years old. One of his dogs, Shadow, had to be put down due to suffering from cancer, and Bruiser was missing for a couple of days after the storm. Bruiser was found by a local resident who posted the dog’s picture on Facebook.

While his home has a storm cellar, Pattison said that he did not have enough time to reach it with the immediacy of the tornado hitting his house. Pattison, who is being treated for lung cancer, said that he would not rebuild on the site, having suffered a total loss of his home and vehicle. He said that he was thankful for the volunteers who have been out and about, making sure that food is made available.

Pattison, who has five sons who all pitched in to help him recover items, is now staying with one of his sons who lives just outside of Perryton.

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“We are salvaging a lot of our items, many of which were soaked from the rain,” Pattison said. “I am just fortunate that the island in the house kept a lot of debris from falling on me. I am thankful that I have family that has helped me get through this disastrous situation, because it could have been much worse.”

This article originally appeared on Amarillo Globe-News: Perryton man pinned by tornado debris thought he wouldn't survive