Nolan Clay and Andrew Knittle, reporting for The Oklahoman, on a tragic case from the May 31st tornadoes that struck El Reno, Oklahoma. The story revolves around a Guatemalan immigrant named Miguel Chicoj and his family:
Driving west on I-40, Chicoj pulled over for about 10 minutes in Yukon because of the approaching storm. He said he decided to keep driving after seeing other vehicles still going west.
He pulled over again near El Reno as the storm worsened.
His wife unbuckled her seat belt to try to comfort their baby who had begun crying, he said.
Chicoj said he saw the tornado approach. He described it Tuesday as “coming from all different directions.” He said he thought about backing up or turning around, but it was too late.
The wind started blowing the car, spinning it slowly twice in circles on the interstate, Chicoj said. “And, then all of a sudden, the wind picked it up.”
Chicoj said the last thing his wife said to him was, “My love, we’re going to die.”
What a heart-wrenching story. The next time you are tempted to say, “Considering that the tornado was an EF-5 and reached 2.6 miles in width, 20 fatalities isn’t that bad”, just stop - because this is as bad as it gets.
(via: Brad Barrett)