Storm Damage

On May 25, 2011 a tornado touched down in Greensburg.  Luckily, I decided to leave work a few minutes early that day, and I just missed the storm.  I was glad I didn't heed my boss's warnings to stay put until after the storm because it actually turned out to be a tornado....my biggest fear in life!  Luckily, the office and our new house sustained no damage.  Many others, though, were not so fortunate.  While the damage in Greensburg was really nothing compared to that of Tuscaloosa or Joplin, there are a few people that are without a home today.  Our city park and golf course will be out of service for a while, and the home we almost bought, as well as several others in the Country Club Estates area, is without a roof and several windows.    I drove around the following day before I headed to work and took some pictures of the devastation:

Utility poles snapped in half.  Some are still without power today.

You can see the damage the tornado did, but if you look closely,

you can also see that the hail riddled the siding with holes. 

MANY people who had vinyl siding sustained holes like this due to hail damage. 

Hail damage to the back of my co-worker's car

 Fallen bricks in historic downtown Greensburg

 What was left of this building's roof (which wasn't much) had slid over, off the top.

 The city park.  My best friend and I had eaten lunch in this exact spot earlier that day.

 A collapsed shelter at the city park

 Golf course

 More of the golf course



Many stores advertised their tarps and generators (and live bait, too!)

This was the sky as I left work the following day. 

Greensburg got even more rain the day following the storm, resulting in

a lot of water damage or those who had lost or sustained damage to their roof.

Thankfully, no one suffered any major injuries.  I heard there were some minor injuries due to the hail, but most of the damage came in the form of property damage.  There are already many agencies in Greensburg serving meals and providing temporary shelters.  I'm sure it won't be long before the town is back on its proverbial feet.

As a side note, you may be glad to know that THE tree survived the storm:

Please pray for the people of Greensburg who are dealing with the aftermath of this storm.