Our First Tornado April 7, 2006 -- Gallatin, TN Tornado Video It may take a few minutes to load. You can read my blog while it loads. I have always wanted to see a tornado in person. I often dream of seeing a tornado, only to wake up and realize that I still haven’t seen a tornado. As many of you know, Tom and I went to Gallatin this past weekend to celebrate his mother’s birthday. We made it all the way Nashville with no rain. As we hit the Goodlettsville/Hendersonville area we saw the storm clouds. The lightening was quite entertaining since we both love to watch it. At one point, as I looked over at the storm cloud, I though to my self that it looked like a storm that would produce a tornado. I then told myself, “April it is not. You just want to see a tornado, so you just want to make it look like tornado clouds. Just turn around and look ahead.” So, that’s what I did. A few minutes later, I turned to give that cloud one more look. When I did, I saw a tornado. My first thought was, “I’M NOT ASLEEP!!!!” I then blinked to make sure It was really a tornado I was seeing. I then told Tom there was a tornado behind us. Since it was far enough away, we did not panic right away. Tom made up his mind to outrun it, and I reached in the back seat for the digital camera. There I was – April, Storm Chaser. A few minutes later we would realize we were the ones being chased. At first I just thought the tornado was on a path parallel to us, and I gave no thought to a survival plan. I was as happy as could be just to see a tornado. I soon realized that the tornado’s path was not parallel to us – it was headed our way. I begged Tom to pull into Vol State Community College. I worked there for a while, so it was a “safe place” to me. Tom knew better. He was in a tornado drill at VSCC once, and he remembered how unsafe he felt. As with most schools, the entrance doors were not only made of glass, but they were also surrounded by glass panels. Also, these glass entryways are everywhere. There is not really a safe hall in most buildings. I didn’t take the time in the car to think about all that. I just knew I did not want to be in a car. Those buildings looked pretty good to me at that time. As we drove past VSCC, I lost sight of the tornado because it was behind the buildings and the trees. This is when the true panic set in. After viewing the video, Tom and I have realized what actually happened. We were still in danger’s way, but it was not as bad as we initially thought. When you see the video, look to the right of the main tornado. You will see the low clouds dipping down. It looks as if another tornado is trying to form. You will also briefly see a long thin piece descending vertically. Tom and I think this was another tornado trying to form. When I lost sight of the main tornado, this other tornado was forming. The next time I saw a tornado, it was this new, weaker one. However, we thought it was the main one. After we passed VSCC I saw the tornado again. This was the new tornado, but we thought it was the main one. It was right behind us. I thought Wal-Mart was the next big building to head for, but then I saw the new Lowe’s in Gallatin. I told Tom to pull in there fast. As we pulled in the parking lot, we looked out our right windows to see the new tornado. It was just on the other side of the parking lot. I looked up and saw two vortexes spinning around. At this point we both though we were not going to make it. Luckily, it was headed behind Lowe’s and not toward us. Tom parked in the emergency lane and we ran for the door. As we were running in, we looked up and saw this new tornado right in front of us. We thought it was the big one, but at this time the big one was hitting the car lots across from VSCC. Even though this new tornado was not as strong, it did have debris in it. As I was running, I looked up and saw a board circling in the air. This was probably part of the debris the main tornado had sucked up from VSCC. I have never felt as much relief as I felt when we got inside Lowe’s. In my mind, it was over and we were safe. My two seconds of relief came to an abrupt end when I noticed the employees directing everyone to the bathrooms. I then realized it was not over. Well, all the women were running into the lady’s bathroom, and the men were running into the men’s bathroom. I decided I wanted to be with my husband, so here I go in the men’s room. We waited in there a few minutes. I looked up at one point and said, “Hey guys. I’m sorry, but I wanted to be with my husband.” They all laughed and said it was ok. I think we were all happy to be alive. Truth be told, I really had to go to the bathroom then. I had not gone since Jackson, and we even stopped for lunch. Tom and I left Lowe’s and got in our car to head for his parent’s home. As we were driving in the parking lot, I looked out the window to see another tornado. This one was in the distance headed away from us. I’m sure it was the one that went over us 15 minutes ago. Tom and I realized we better stay put and give it time to get away. We actually stayed at Lowe’s for almost an hour. We kept hearing about another tornado headed our way. I’m not sure if it was an actual tornado, or if it was just another storm that could produce a tornado. Since every one was still in panic mode, you could not trust anything you heard. When it was safe, we left and headed for Tom’s parent’s home. Tom and I now have a whole new respect for storms. That is the last time we will drive halfway across the state on a day the weather service is predicting severe weather! I just want to take time to give a big thanks to all the Lowe’s employees. We were very grateful to have a place to just hang out and wait. The employees allowed us to use the store phones to try to reach relatives, and the manager even provided us with bottled water to drink. I have always been a “Lowe’s girl”, and I am one now more than ever. My prayers are with the families who lost loved ones.