Whiteland tornado destroys at least 16 homes
WHITELAND, Ind. (WISH) — The Whiteland tornado caused anything from minor damage to total destruction of at least 179 homes.
There were 16 total losses, 28 homes with major damages, 69 with minor damages, and 66 that were considered lightly affected as of Monday afternoon.
One homeowner says she never expected this to happen in Indiana and has never seen damage to this degree in her life.
“I didn’t even have a Plan B,” said Carolyn King, Whiteland tornado victim whose home was declared a total loss.
Carolyn, along with her husband, Larry, has been sorting through the rubble and the emotions that come with sifting through nearly ten years of memories that were tossed out on the lawn during Friday’s tornado.
“When I walked to the door, I saw rotation, and then it goes deathly quiet. He said, ‘it’s here now, get in the bathroom,’ and he braced himself against the door. He had his foot on the wall, and the deafening roar. I thought the house was gone,” King said.
Their entire neighborhood was hit hard, and most of the neighbors say their houses are also total losses, but everywhere you look there are people out helping.
“I wanted to help as many people as I could because my house is still here and some peoples aren’t,” Jaxon Cooper said.
Cooper is a freshman on the Whiteland Football Team. While the storm may have canceled school, it did not stop his willingness to jump into the thick of it and help a total stranger carry out what’s left of their heavy possessions from the wreckage.
“It’s just the fact that helping people is better than helping yourself all the time and if I can help someone I might as well just do it. I don’t expect anything out of it. I just want to help people,” Cooper said.
King says this storm has been devastating but is thankful she is alive. “It’s been amazing. People we don’t even know come and helped. We’re lucky. We’re thankful. This town has my undying gratitude,” King said.
The Kings will have to demolish their home and sell the land because it will be too expensive for them to rebuild. From there, they do not know where they are going to live.
King says she could not get through this disaster without the help of the Whiteland community.