SELMER, Tennessee — McNairy County, Tennessee residents are just beginning to pick up the pieces after Friday's string of deadly tornadoes.
One resident says that the storm came in so fast that he had no idea what was going on. He was on the sofa watching television and the next thing he knew, the sofa was on top of him, the frame of his home was behind him and the rain was falling all around him.
"I was in the house watching TV and everything went out and got real loud and windy. It was in and out that fast,” said resident Tim Tucker.
Tucker called this Selmer property home for nearly 20 years, after moving to McNairy County from Michigan. Now, Tucker is leaning on support from the community, including the help of strangers, as he looks for some of his belongings in the rubble that was once his home.
“Everybody’s been here helping me pick up and find stuff. They brought me a trailer down to sleep in. It’s been good”, adds Tucker.
Tucker is just one of dozens of the most affected by Friday's tornado now getting help from their community. Members at First Baptist Church of Bethel Springs created a command center for donations.
Vonda Burns, one of the church members that organized the assistance center says, “Just from a little idea, it took off. People from all over have pitched in to help. We even had people come cook for us from Louisiana. It has been absolutely amazing. It’s been overwhelming.”
So far, the volunteer donations include baby items, toiletries, clothes, food - along with a small memorial honoring those who lost their lives.
McNairy County Mayor Larry Smith has been on the ground delivering food, generators and anything else that his residents need. He says, “We can get by this and we will get by this and we’ll end up being a stronger County for it.”
We’ve been hearing stories all day about survival and resilience. This is just the beginning. But, they are continuing to press on.
This photo was found at a house in Adamsville. We asked several residents around the county and no one can identify the family. If you know who they are, please contact us so that we can get the photo back to the family.