Storm damage in Bismarck. (Photo: Matt Buhrman, THV 11)
BISMARCK, Ark. (KTHV) - Severe weather that swept through Hot Springs County Monday caused some widespread damage, including destroyed homes in the area.
The Thornton family in Bismarck experienced the damage firsthand. The storm pushed their home, shown in the attached photos, off its foundation.
Michelle Thornton, her son, daughter and son-in-law were at home when the storm hit.
"I was right in front of an end table, and I just remember bear-hugging that end table and just hanging on," Thornton said.
Her son-in-law, Luke Morrison, was upstairs taking a shower and was suddenly thrown from the house.
"I knew when I made contact with the ground in the shower. The shower kind of catapulted me out towards the tree in the front yard, and that's where I came to. I immediately started looking for my family, my wife," Morrison said.
On Tuesday, community members helped the family with the clean-up process.
John Robinson with the National Weather Service in Arkansas looked over the damage with his team on Tuesday. He said the wind gusts were likely 80 to 90 miles an hour, but explained the signs do not indicate a tornado.