Yellville, Arkansas resident Aaron Hurst sits with a Red Cross volunteer at the Multi-Agency Resource Center (MARC) at the Marion County Fairgrounds after his home was destroyed by a late May tornado.
By: Zach Brown, American Red Cross
Aaron Hurst got an unexpected and frightening jolt out of bed when a tornado sent his mobile home tumbling. It happened when tornadoes moved through Arkansas and on into Missouri in recent weeks.
“The hail woke me up,” Aaron said, “I saw and felt the house lift and come back down, then it just lifted and started rolling.”
Aaron’s home in Yellville, Arkansas wound up nearly 150 yards from its original spot, and he was inside it until it came to a rest. A few days later, he found the back door some 400 yards away in a tree.
“It laid me out on my grass,” he said. “My phone never went off, and neither did my brother’s.”
Aaron’s dog also was inside and miraculously survived with only a minor laceration on its stomach. Aaron sustained some injuries and was taken to the hospital but later released.
“Nothing major really,” he said pointing to his cuts and bruises.
Aaron and his brother Justin live on their family's property and Justin was at his parents' home and made it to the basement.
“I made it just in time,” Justin said.
Aaron Hurst, a survivor of the Yellville, Arkansas tornado gathers emergency supplies from the Red Cross at the Multi-Agency Resource Center (MARC) following his homes destruction in a tornado that struck the area.
The brothers and their parents all experienced severe damage and came to the Multi-Agency Resource Center (MARC) in Yellville to receive assistance. The families received help and guidance from Red Cross and partner organizations in addition to FEMA, Red Cross was pleased to offer both assistance and emergency supplies including rakes, bins, and clean up kits to help with their recovery.
Surviving inside a tumbling mobile home and escaping with only minor injuries was by no means a typical outcome in a tornado.
“I’m lucky,” Aaron said. “Thank you all so much for your help.”
Aaron Hurst, a survivor of the Yellville, Arkansas tornado gathers emergency supplies from the Red Cross at the Multi-Agency Resource Center (MARC) following his homes destruction in a tornado that struck the area.
Aaron and Justin Hurst work with Red Cross volunteers outside the Yellville, Arkansas Multi-Agency Resource Center (MARC) set up to help residents affected by a tornado that struck the area in May.
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