Take a whiff of Sista Smiff and you'll come back for more, that's fo sho!

Saturday, April 08, 2006

Tornado Warning

I will tell the whole tale of the day later...we have no internet at home still and my nerves have still not settled down.

Bottom line...tornado came by the Smiff House. Thank goodness we have no damage. It moved on up the road apiece and touched down right by Knox Doss Middle School, where the older two kids go. #1 Son heard it but didn't see it since they corralled all the kids in bathrooms and the other "safe places." The area around the school, from what I hear is trashed. William Lee Golden (Oak Ridge Boys long, bearded guy) lives about 1/4 mile from the middle school and his gorgeous home is destroyed as are a bunch of others close by. Some of my kids classmates are homeless.

I never was able to get the kids from school and thank goodness Tammy and Lisa (mom's of the kids friends) took them home with them. I was sitting in the line of traffic to Gallatin. (Knox Doss and Station Camp schools are technically in Gallatin). #2 Son was finally picked up about 6:15 and he seemed pretty oblivious to the days events. Like it's not unusual to still be at school until 6. I asked him what they did all that time and he said they watched a movie but he got in trouble for bugging some kid and had to go to the office. That's my boy.

Got home at 8 and just as I pulled in, the power came on. Mr. Smiff is on the road and missed the whole ordeal.

I still can't bear the thought of the "what ifs" of yesterday...a few hundred yards more and Knox Doss and Station Camp could've had a direct hit. Scary stuff.

I'll tell more later. I need a drink.

3 comments:

Tony Arnold said...

Really glad for your family's safefty.

Tony

Anonymous said...

Hi Smiff, stumbled upon your blog and wanted to say that my son (13) also attends Knox Doss MS and seeing the aftermath and the destoyed house next door to the school made me count my blessings. We live in Saundersville Station and my son finally made it home at 5pm. That had to be the longest day!

Glad you guys are ok as well!

Sharon Collie said...

Hey Jennifer...we rode down Saundersville Rd today and I was so glad to see your neighborhood (and the surrounding ones) looked to be in good shape.

I don't know about your son, but, my kids seemed extremely sentimental about the little house there right before the Golden's, that had the lights along the fence year round. I was glad to see the house and silo still standing but really shocked at the greenhouse and all the trees down behind the Golden Place. It really looked like a bomb went off there. It was good to see William Lee's tree survived. Kind of a symbolic image, isn't it? The house across the street that had the stone front...I hope those folks were not at home when it hit.

To see these places that are so familiar, that we drive past everyday, gone is just surreal and it gives me chills to see how close it went to both schools.

We are fortunate people for sure.