Shelter Skelter

It has been one month since three tornados raked over two counties stretched out across two adjacent valleys separated by a wide mesa here. A lakeside community was where the worst of the three did its dirty work. That community is still cleaning up from the hit, debris scattered and an edge of a small mesquite forest directly across the road twisted into shreds. The worst part of it–the death of one and at least six people injured by the raging tornados.

The old hand-dug cellar here is 130 years old, a little tricky for aged folks to quickly get into.

Its steel-clad door is heavy and difficult to lift and it is hinged in a way that makes it a hazard. So before storm systems whirled up this weekend, FamilySAFE installed one of their above-ground models in a location much easier to access without having to deal with a heavy door.

This parcel has never been struck by tornado since it was settled in the late 1800s. The new shelter may never be tested for real here, but it has proven its value elsewhere without a single instance of failure against EF0 through EF5 rated tornados, helping me live on at ease.