ELKHORN, Neb. (KMTV) — It’s been a year since the Arbor Day tornado devastated the Ramblewood neighborhood. Now, three neighbors are sharing what they’ve learned to help you be better prepared when disaster strikes.
- Harry Perkons, Nichole Peringer and Heidi Bodaddy all have different stories of loss and hardship.
- It's been a year of working with several structural engineers, insurance adjusters and contractors for them.
- Video shows footage from tornado damage over the last year and updates of how things look now.
BROADCAST TRANSCRIPT:
Three families. Three stories. One goal: Be ready. These Elkhorn neighbors are sharing their stories with the hope you are more prepared than they were.
“Our phones are starting to go crazy. The sirens are all going,” said Nichole Peringer.
“All of a sudden it was like the urgency to—we need to get in the basement, like something's going on,” said Heidi Bodaddy.
“And watched the tornado come right over that hill, straight over the house,” said Harry Perkons.
It’s been a year since the Arbor Day tornado devastated the Ramblewood neighborhood.
Looking back, there’s been a lot of hardship.
"It's real expensive. It's hard to recover,” said Perkons.
“Anytime your house is still partially standing, it's a harder fight because insurance is trying to figure out how to not pay out your policy, right?” said Bodaddy.
“Sometimes things just happen that are hard to explain,” said Peringer.
But with hardship comes lessons learned.
“Really take advantage of the resources around you as far as support,” said Peringer.
“It's actually amazing to see all that available, but I wish I knew it was there earlier,” said Perkons.
“All you can do is get up and hit the ground running and grind. Not give up. You don't have to give up. That's the most important thing—you do not have to give up,” said Bodaddy.
And while the memories of the storm still linger…
“Every time now the wind starts picking up, you can hear stuff. You're scared,” said Perkons.
Hope is on the horizon.
“I keep telling myself at the end of the day I’m gonna have a new house. Every hardship has a brighter side, like there's something beautiful about it. I just decided I'm gonna lean into that,” said Peringer.
“We have each other. And that was the most important thing,” said Bodaddy.
While no one can ever prepare enough for something like a tornado to hit, these survivors want you to keep your valuables safe, have an emergency fund, find comfort and encouragement from friends and family, and take advantage of the resources available to you.
