"Roped Out"

My heart is broken for the people of Moore tonight.  Trained as a first responder, although not at the scene today, I could see the overwhelming devastation and shock on the faces that wandered through the debris after the storm had finally roped out.  I felt a connection to the people in the disaster and the location which is so familiar to me.  I lived with my dad in the same neighborhood during ninth grade and I also have friends who currently live in the area.  Thankfully, they are all accounted for and safe tonight.

On Thursday night, while at work at the airport, they were already talking about severe weather that was being forecast for the weekend and through the coming week, not unusual for this time of year.  When I got off work at midnight, I drove back to Edmond, 25 miles north, but I kept feeling restless and I didn't want to go home.  I decided to drive for a while but I didn't know where I wanted to go exactly.

Then my daughter called me as I was driving toward the direction of her house and she said she would go with me on a drive.  We decided to drive to Moore to check on a friend there.  The airport is near Moore and I had just come from there, but I felt like we should go back.  Her friend was staying at a home near S.W. 149th and Santa Fe in Moore.

 After we got there and saw everything was alright, we decided to stop for a few minutes on the corner of the intersection at 149th and Santa Fe where we parked at the Walgreen's and got out of the car for a few minutes.  My daughter wanted to have a smoke break, and I still felt restless.  As we drove up 149th, a bird flew in front of my car, which was odd for 2am, and as we sat and talked, I mentioned to her that the birds were being unusually noisy for so late at night.  All the businesses were closed except for a 7-11 (which is no longer there after the storm today).  It was very quiet except for the birds, who seemed restless and I noticed it because I felt it too.

Seeing what happened here today, I wondered if the birds might have sensed something was going to happen.  Since I was near the area while at work, I wondered if maybe I sensed something too, because I don't usually feel so restless that I don't want to go home when I get off work that late.

After a few minutes we drove back to Edmond, and I was finally ready to sleep.  I found out today the corner we stopped at was only one block from the Briarwood Elementary School, which took a direct hit during the tornado today.  Thankfully, there were no fatalities at this location.  However, the Plaza Towers Elementary School has had many fatalities so far, where the search and rescue are still underway.

The story of teachers who protected and covered their students even with their own bodies to protect them from the flying debris and falling structures is so incredible.  One teacher saved the lives of six students by shielding them from a wall of cinder blocks that was falling on them.  They are my heroes, as well as those who have helped the rescue efforts in any way. 

at Briarwood Elementary, Moore, OK
 Here's a TV news report: http://goo.gl/RpgLQ

- me in 5th grade -