Friday, April 29, 2011

Unbelievable

Last week my three roommates and I were huddled together in our bathroom with blankets.  For the first time in my four years at Ohio Northern University (ONU), a tornado alarm sounded.  The alarm is horrific, and went off from just after midnight until about 1in the morning.  Thankfully, our night ended peacefully back in our beds. A tornado did not rip through our Ohio campus...the same cannot be said for the states of Alabama or Mississippi. Both states suffered severe tornadoes, killing hundreds of innocent residents. 

     Below are pictures of the ruins, they are hard to believe.  The damage is both disturbing and sad.  Many lost loved ones, and even more lost their homes, possessions and sense of security.  My heart goes out to those affected. I know how I felt when I was huddled in my bathroom.  This had to be an absolute nightmare.
   
Alabama tornado picture: Birmingham-area home destroyed by tornado that made Alabama news headlines
Source: National Georgraphic

Souce: TIME Magazine
The aftermath of overnight tornadoes show destroyed ...
Source: Yahoo! News
The aftermath of overnight tornadoes that left ...
Source: Yahoo! News
   Click here to donate to Alabama Disaster Relief.  Storms are unpredictable, you never know when and where they will hit next.  On another note, I do not feel ONU adequately responded to tornado warnings last week.  Many apartment buildings do not have basements, and those on the second and third floors do not have anywhere to go. Students did not even receive an emergency text message. ONU protocol needs to change, and fast.

1 comment:

  1. I have been afraid of thunderstorms ever since I was a little girl, and my heart still races when the severe storm or tornado alarm goes off. The night they went off at ONU, my roommate and I were also huddled in our bathroom, watching the radar on her laptop. We were actually at Lil Mex and I was about to walk home before the rain started and luckily she told me she would drive or I would have been stuck in the downpour!

    I can't believe the damage the tornados caused in the southern states. It also breaks my heart to see the devastation in the pictures. I'm glad you found the link to donate money to the Alabama Disaster Relief.

    Hopefully the weather gets better in May and we won't have to worry about anymore bad storms!

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