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Mountainburg Residents Recall Moments Tornado Damaged Their Homes

MOUNTAINBURG (KFSM) — Mountainburg residents are still picking up the pieces three days after a tornado tore through their town. The EF-2 tornado damaged ...

MOUNTAINBURG (KFSM) -- Mountainburg residents are still picking up the pieces three days after a tornado tore through their town.

The EF-2 tornado damaged several homes on John Street. Many of the residents were inside their houses and had to take cover.

“All we did was pray, at that point we knew we were getting hit," Tammie Heister said.

Heister said she was unaware it was going to storm until she received a notification about a tornado warning.

“So I looked outside and I could see it over that mountain there and you could see it was on its side and it was coming right for us," she said.

She said once they took cover in the bathroom, the sounds they were hearing were terrifying. She was shocked to open the bathroom door and see that the house was still standing.

“You could hear the trees falling, you could hear the wind, you could hear the buildings falling. You know we really didn’t expect to see a house when we came out," she said.

Roger Friddle lives just down the road and said he and several family members were sitting on the front porch. He said it sounded like a train coming right at them.

“I even asked my cousin is that a train...you just heard the rush in the sky and I was like no that’s a tornado. We all rushed inside and got in the closet," he said.

He said he told everyone he loved them when he heard the porch collapse.

“It was terrifying. I knew this was it you know and when it passed and it came through pretty fast, we were very relieved," he said.

Mountainburg police said they have received a lot of supplies and are now trying to get the items to people who need it. If you would like to help out, there is a Mountainburg Recovery Fund at Citizens Bank.

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