my son and I got hit by a tornado while in the car (edit: added photos in p.2) - Page 3

kathyson · #31 09-24-2018, 12:45 PM

Happy you and your's are ok. Must have been terrifying. The Good news? The odds of that ever happening to you again are nil.

Silly Moustache · #32 09-24-2018, 01:02 PM

Hi, I'm also glad you are both safe! I was wondering what the car looked lie but thought it might be in bad taste to ask for pics. Thanks for posting them - looks horrific. did a tree or something fall on the bonnet?

In October 1998 I was travelling from Nashua NH to concord Ma to do a gig there. The weather was awful and there were tornado warnings - the thing was following us down route 3 (?) They were telling us to stop the car and lay down beside the road. no-one else was doing that and I really didn't fancy the idea so kept going.
Never seen hailstones like that before or since but we got there alright, and did the gig.

We don't really get weather like that here in the UK.

Pura Vida · #33 09-24-2018, 01:03 PM

Yikes! Glad you and your son were unharmed. What a scary thing to experience. Celebrate life and that both of you are ok, but I agree with Nyghthawk to consider some counseling, as PTSD can appear in unexpected ways.

#34 09-24-2018, 01:15 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Silly Moustache

did a tree or something fall on the bonnet?

40 foot trees were flying around us like leaves and being ripped apart and were slamming into the car. Sounded like a giant doing a drum roll on the car with sledge hammers. The car is covered in dents from impact. Interestingly the driver's side in the pics is the best looking of the four. It was the side away from the trees.
I'm pretty sure that one of the large trees lying around the car is what hit the trunk and blew out the back window. It was the loudest bang and a heck of a shock. That was the moment when I really wasn't sure we were going to survive.

DCCougar · #35 09-24-2018, 01:19 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by J-Doug

A couple of photos from the day after.... it gives you the idea.....

Yikes! Man, I can see trying to bury myself in the car's footwell. I'm sure that was one horrifying minute or so. Zow!

Jim Owen · #36 09-24-2018, 04:09 PM

Doug,
Best wishes to you. I can’t imagine.

I’m glad you and your son are okay, but I imagine that the trauma will be tough to manage.

Acousticado · #37 09-24-2018, 04:29 PM

I’d mentioned in an earlier post in this thread that a couple we know who are good friends were hit by the tornado. I don’t have a pic of the house they currently live in, but here’s a pic of the house they lived in prior that’s just a few blocks away. Damage is similar to their current house. In this pic, you can’t really see it, but a large pine in the back yard toppled onto the roof of the main part of the house causing major damage. Other houses nearby even had the second floor entirely ripped off. This kind of damage was extensive over a fairly large area. Scary stuff!

Acousticado · #38 09-24-2018, 05:02 PM

Another pic from the Ottawa area...

Daniel Grenier · #39 09-25-2018, 04:48 AM

Glad you’re all right. The tornado warning was issued for our area but it (the tornado) decided not to touch down till maybe 10minutes as the crows fly. It hit the hamlet of Dunrobin really hard and destroyed many homes and businesses (pictured right above). I count myself lucky as we got nothing but a bunch of branches and leaves on our property and lost power for 2 days. All the best to you in getting back from that nasty experience.

pf400 · #40 09-25-2018, 06:45 AM

We were lucky too, here in Nepean (Ottawa West). Tornado hit my sister's street 2 km away, ripping apart a Tim Horton's restaurant across the street from her but no damage to her house. A niece very close by has neighbours with no roof now, and cement hydro poles snapped in two or just fell over. The Salvation Army is saying that donations they receive for this effort will be multiplied five times by suppliers.

Today it's cold and rainy...just what the volunteers and tradespeople do not need. Latest request is for raingear...can be dropped off at West Carleton High School.

Our house had no power for 55 hours, and driving was and adventure...no traffic lights, not even blinking, in the area of accident-prone intersections.

fitness1 · #41 09-25-2018, 08:16 AM

Thankful you are OK - very scary stuff. Been close to a few, but not that close.

Silly Moustache · #42 09-25-2018, 08:56 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by J-Doug

40 foot trees were flying around us like leaves and being ripped apart and were slamming into the car. Sounded like a giant doing a drum roll on the car with sledge hammers. The car is covered in dents from impact. Interestingly the driver's side in the pics is the best looking of the four. It was the side away from the trees.
I'm pretty sure that one of the large trees lying around the car is what hit the trunk and blew out the back window. It was the loudest bang and a heck of a shock. That was the moment when I really wasn't sure we were going to survive.

Thanks for this Doug, Now that we know that you are both safe, I'm wondering if your car damage/write-off will be covered by your car insurance or will they do the "act-of-god" thing ?

Here in the UK we still talk about the 1987 "hurricane" which was actually defined as a sub-tropical cyclone (Huh?) they recorded windspeeds of about 120 -130 mph and brought much of the UK to a standstill.

The wind facing quarter of my roof (only seven years old) collapsed and the tiles fell in an L-shape in front and beside of my car immediately below.
Miraculously there was not one dent on the car! A friend of mine a few miles away lost his roof which fell on his brick built garage, which collapsed destroying his two cars with it! I was pretty lucky!

I guess 120 mph is peanuts compared to what you went through!

Silly Moustache · #43 09-25-2018, 10:10 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by J-Doug

40 foot trees were flying around us like leaves and being ripped apart and were slamming into the car. Sounded like a giant doing a drum roll on the car with sledge hammers. The car is covered in dents from impact. Interestingly the driver's side in the pics is the best looking of the four. It was the side away from the trees.
I'm pretty sure that one of the large trees lying around the car is what hit the trunk and blew out the back window. It was the loudest bang and a heck of a shock. That was the moment when I really wasn't sure we were going to survive.

Thanks for this Doug, Now that we know that you are both safe, I'm wondering if your car damage/write-off will be covered by your car insurance or will they do the "act-of-god" thing ?

Here in the UK we still talk about the 1987 "hurricane" which was actually defined as a sub-tropical cyclone (Huh?) they recorded windspeeds of about 120 -130 mph and brought much of the UK to a standstill.

The wind facing quarter of my roof (only seven years old) collapsed and the tiles fell in an L-shape in front and beside of my car immediately below.
Miraculously there was not one dent on the car! A friend of mine a few miles away lost his roof which fell on his brick built garage, which collapsed destroying his two cars with it! I was pretty lucky!

I guess 120 mph is peanuts compared to what you went through!

#44 09-25-2018, 11:11 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Silly Moustache

I'm wondering if your car damage/write-off will be covered by your car insurance or will they do the "act-of-god" thing ?

Still working with a couple of adjusters. We'll see.

architype · #45 09-26-2018, 11:45 AM

Sorry to hear of your frightening experience. Glad you and your son made it through alright. A car can be replaced. Wind is a powerful force.

A dear friend lost her home to a tornado almost 2 years ago. She said it happened so fast there wasn't time to be afraid. She looked out the window, saw it coming and made it to the basement just as the wind took everything but 3 walls in less than 5 seconds. Scariest 5 seconds of her life.