Disaster in Kentucky
Gone with the wind: Memorabilia reappear 200 kilometers away after a tornado
Destroyed homes in Mayfield, Kentucky: The city was hit particularly hard by the tornadoes
© Scott Olson / Getty Images / AFP
Photos, certificates, even boats: the tornadoes in several US states last weekend not only killed people and destroyed buildings, but also tore memorabilia with them. But not all of them were gone forever.
Last weekend, tornadoes in Kentucky and other US states claimed dozens of lives and wreaked havoc. Many people lost everything in the storms, including important memorabilia such as photographs, greeting cards or Bibles. However, some of these objects have since surfaced again – some of them more than 200 kilometers away.
Facebook group helps tornado victims
Michaela Copeland is one of those who got back missing pictures, as reported by the BBC. She had kept her wedding photos at her in-laws’ house in Mayfield, one of the cities hardest hit by the disaster. The house had been badly damaged and, among many other things, the wedding photos had also disappeared, Copeland told the British broadcaster. “The photos mean a lot to me because they show one of the most beautiful days of my life.”
A few days after the disaster, Copeland was mentioned in several Facebook comments from people sharing the pictures in the group Quad State Tornado Found Items (Quad State Tornado Findings). The expression Quad State stands for the storm-hit states of Arkansas, Missouri, Tennessee and Kentucky and the Facebook group was founded to bring victims back together with missing items. It was only through the comments that Copeland learned that her photos had been found in three different locations – one even in Breckinridge County, about 225 kilometers from Mayfield.
“When I found out and got tagged on every photo found, it ran down my spine and I thought how bizarre this is. Finding one is one thing, but finding three is crazy,” Copeland told the BBC.
“One of the worst tornado series in our history”: Pictures of Devastation
11 images
According to the report, Pamela Compton from Breckinridge County posted the wedding picture after her husband found it on her farm. “My husband was driving the four-wheel drive to make sure our cattle are safe. He said the photo was face down with the side panels of houses and heavy metal parts that were blown by the tornado Compton told the BBC.
Her husband took the photo home and she published it on the Facebook group to find the owner. “I never expected to find the young woman in the photo,” said Compton. “I knew her heart had to be so heavy from the sadness and pain of the devastation. I never gave up trying to find her.”
Disaster in Kentucky brings back memories
Kim Tyler, of Alabama, is the manager of Quad State Tornado Found Items, according to the report. She founded the group after the Kentucky disaster brought back memories of an April 2011 tornado in her own state, she told the BBC. “I saw the news and remembered how 2011 pictures and memorabilia were found several miles from the original location.” Given the strength of the tornado, she thought the same could have happened in Kentucky.
In the meantime, not only photos, but also animals, trophies and even boats have been returned to their owners through the publications. “Everything from pictures, basketballs, memorial pillows, marriage certificates, quilts and so on,” said Tyler happily. “It is heartwarming to know that so many families find their belongings again.”
Sources: BBC, Quad State Tornado Found Items, “Washington Post” (Payment content)