Safety houses built in Crittenden after tornado destroys homes

CRITTENDEN, Ky. - Crittenden suffered severe tornado damage one year ago today, and many lost their homes. Now people in the community have rebuilt and are ready for another storm if it heads in their direction.

Regena List lost the home of her dreams on March 2, 2012.

“That was the scariest thing, just knowing that my whole family could have been wiped out, that quick, or any of ‘em, just losing any of ‘em,” List said.

Since the tornado last year, List has been putting the pieces of her life back together, and that included the construction of a new home with safety in mind.

List said that her new home has a tornado room and a little bit of her past. She kept the fireplace from her old house and said that it was her measure of comfort.

The tornado room is a FEMA-rated safe room with 14 gauge steel bolted right into the concrete.

List’s neighbor, Janice Whaley, took her time and built her new home with tornado safety in mind.

“We thought about what we wanted to do differently about this house from our other house that was destroyed by the tornado,” Whaley said.

Just a few short weeks after the List family moved into their new home, they used their new tornado room.

“It was a little after midnight, and on Tyka’s TV it said ‘Tornado Warning,’ in Crittenden. I’m like, ‘Oh no, not again.’”

Below are list of tornado safety tips:

• The first thing you want to do if a tornado is heading your way is to head to the lowest level, whether it be a basement, a laundry room, or your neighbors home.
• If you don’t live in a house that has a basement or tornado safe room, you want to have a plan in place, and that includes staying away from windows.
• If you don’t have time to head to the lowest level, find an inside room such as a bathroom or take cover in a closet.
• If you’re in an apartment that’s a high rise, a stairwell can serve as a safe alternative.
• Whether you’re in the bathroom, closet, a stairwell, or the lowest level, you want to duck down and cover your head to protect from debris. If you happen to have a helmet, you’ll want to use it.

The Storm Shield app is available for Apple and Android devices.