An Ohio mother has revealed the horrific bruises she suffered when a deadly tornado, which also broke her daughter’s ankles, ripped through her home.
Amanda Gear was left with broken facial bones after 150 mph winds blew through her trailer at the Geiger Mobile Home Park in Lakeview.
Her daughter Caylie Short, 15, shattered both ankles after fierce wind gusts blew her 50 feet outside her home.
‘I couldn’t move my legs. We tried to walk, but we couldn’t,” Caylie said WWNYTV from her bed at Nationwide Children’s Hospital in Columbus. “It was scary, I was confused.”
The teenager was huddled under her mattress when her house began to collapse. She heard her mother scream and before she knew it she was thrown onto the road.
An Ohio mother has revealed the horrific bruises she suffered when a deadly tornado ripped through her home
Amanda Gear (left) was left with broken facial bones, while her daughter Caylie Short (right) broke both her ankles
The family was caught in a 155 mph tornado that tore through the Geiger Mobile Home Park in Lakeview
Short, 15, has already undergone two operations and will face a long recovery
Gear is still dealing with severe bruising after being battered by the wind.
“Being thrown around in that and I think that’s exactly what beat me up,” she said. “I remember looking up when I tried to get up, it was like daylight.”
She described her horror after discovering Short’s injuries, which included a broken collarbone.
“She broke the same bone in both ankles, but the left one was sticking out,” Gear described. “I told her we’ll get through this one day at a time.”
Short was rushed to hospital where she underwent two operations and is expected to have a long recovery ahead of her.
“The first thing I did when I got to the hospital was go over to her, hug her and just start crying,” Short’s stepfather Brian Scurlock said. “I told her I’m glad she made it and that I would be there for her.
“I will never take a tornado siren lightly again.” a GoFundMe has now been set up to support their recovery costs.
The family was among the dozens injured when the EF3 tornado ripped through Indian Lake.
Gear and Short’s stepfather Brian Sturrock were among those caught in the EF3 tornado
Three people were killed when a series of tornadoes ripped through Ohio on March 14
Gov. Mike DeWine also activated the Ohio National Guard to assist officials in Logan County, where the fatalities occurred
Damaged docks after severe weather on Orchard Island in Russells Point, Ohio, on Saturday, March 16, 2024
The twister killed three people and injured a total of 27 people. The Logan County Sheriff’s Office identified the victims as 81-year-old Marilyn Snapp of Lakeview, 70-year-old Darla Williams of Lakeview and 69-year-old Neal Longfellow of Orchard Island.
The two communities were among the hardest hit by the severe weather, which spread destruction across parts of Ohio, Kentucky, Indiana and Arkansas and caused dozens of injuries.
At least nine tornadoes and numerous severe thunderstorms hit central Ohio. The most destructive tornado was an EF-3 that started in southern Auglaize County, near Fryburg, and continued through the Lakeview area.
EF-2 tornadoes — which forecasters say could have winds of up to 70 to 140 mph (111 to 235 km per hour) were confirmed in central Union County and in Darke and Miami counties, along with Crawford/Richland counties.
Crews were still clearing fallen trees and other debris Monday, including material from damaged or destroyed homes.
Some areas still had no electricity supply, although many customers have been restored.
A woman searches clothing at Indian Lake High School on Saturday, March 16, 2024 in Indian Lake, Logan County, Ohio
Joe Baker’s damaged home in Valleyview, Ohio, on Saturday, March 16, 2024
A boat lies upside down in a tree on Orchard Island in Russells Point, Ohio, on Saturday, March 16, 2024
Gov. Mike DeWine also activated the Ohio National Guard to assist officials in Logan County, where the fatalities occurred.
In total, DeWine declared a state of emergency in 11 provinces.
Samantha Snipes, 33, said when she first heard the tornado warning, she called her father Joe Baker, who lives seven minutes away, and told him to take cover.
He said he tried to get into the closet of her parents’ home, but then the phone went dead.
She and her husband tried to drive on the main road to get to him, but were unable to do so and had to take the back road after the tornado passed.
“It looked like something out of a movie, like ‘Twister,’” she said. ‘My father’s garage was razed to the ground. The back of his house is gone. As if everything is gone.’
They climbed over everything and shouted for him. When they found him, he was not injured and told them to stop crying, she said.
