Tornado Survivors And Huntsville Residents Gathered For Moment Of Silence (November 15, 2009)
HUNTSVILLE, AL -
The F-4 tornado that hit Huntsville on November 15th, 1989 left behind a trail of memories and scars that will last forever for everyone who was affected by that storm. It's the same storm that left Kathleen Sharp paralyzed, but she still managed to make it to Sunday's moment of silence ceremony.
"It broke my back completely," Sharp said. "I had nine broken ribs and a collapsed lung."
Sharp said 20 years ago, she lived on the second floor of Waterford Square Apartments off of Balmoral Drive near South Memorial Parkway.
"A lot of cars were coming through the building in the apartment off the Parkway," she said.
When the tornado hit, Sharp was sucked out of her bathroom into the open air. She said she was hit by a car while being tossed in the air.
James Johnson said he remembers the tornado tossing his truck off of South Memorial Parkway into a tree.
"They found me in the truck and my late wife she was found along the Parkway laying in mud, and the tornado had removed all of her clothing," said Johnson.
At the hospital, doctors told Johnson what he faced.
"T-12 in my spine column exploded in the tornado and the doctors had given me a 50-50 chance of ever walking again."
Johnson walked again, but without his wife by his side. She died from her injuries during the storm.
Fay Orlich survived the storm. She was at the [what was then] BP gas station at the corner of Airport and Whitesburg 20 years ago.
"Very scary, I'm even like right now I feel like I'm on the verge of a panic attack just standing here thinking about it," said Orlich.
Right across the street, her life changed.
"I had stopped at the gas station on the corner and had just got out to put gas in my car and the power went out."
"When I got out of the car I was facing the grocery store on the other side of the parking lot."
Orlich lived to tell her story but knows others didn't make it, which is one of the major reasons why she went to the memorial on Sunday.
"Things happen for a reason and you have to be thankful for the time that you did have with them," said Orlich.
"It broke my back completely," Sharp said. "I had nine broken ribs and a collapsed lung."
Sharp said 20 years ago, she lived on the second floor of Waterford Square Apartments off of Balmoral Drive near South Memorial Parkway.
"A lot of cars were coming through the building in the apartment off the Parkway," she said.
When the tornado hit, Sharp was sucked out of her bathroom into the open air. She said she was hit by a car while being tossed in the air.
James Johnson said he remembers the tornado tossing his truck off of South Memorial Parkway into a tree.
"They found me in the truck and my late wife she was found along the Parkway laying in mud, and the tornado had removed all of her clothing," said Johnson.
At the hospital, doctors told Johnson what he faced.
"T-12 in my spine column exploded in the tornado and the doctors had given me a 50-50 chance of ever walking again."
Johnson walked again, but without his wife by his side. She died from her injuries during the storm.
Fay Orlich survived the storm. She was at the [what was then] BP gas station at the corner of Airport and Whitesburg 20 years ago.
"Very scary, I'm even like right now I feel like I'm on the verge of a panic attack just standing here thinking about it," said Orlich.
Right across the street, her life changed.
"I had stopped at the gas station on the corner and had just got out to put gas in my car and the power went out."
"When I got out of the car I was facing the grocery store on the other side of the parking lot."
Orlich lived to tell her story but knows others didn't make it, which is one of the major reasons why she went to the memorial on Sunday.
"Things happen for a reason and you have to be thankful for the time that you did have with them," said Orlich.
