Amid the broken homes and scattered belongings in Washington, Ill., is a community refusing to give up hope, one day after it was devastated by a deadly tornado.
An E-4 twister struck the community in the afternoon, killing one and injuring dozens of others. The storm was part of a massive surge that swept across the entire state.
Stormchaser Todd Cannon rode out the storm with his son, Matthew, in their SUV. The vehicle was severely damaged as a result, and Cannon said he and his son were saved by "the grace of God."
"Honestly, I thought we were going to die," Cannon said.
Back in town, Ryan Bowers took cover in his basement with his wife and 3-month-old daughter. The couple lay on top of the baby to protect her from falling debris.
"Things were dropping on top of me and splitting in two, like the part of the wall, I think," he said. "We crawled out and looked around, couldn't believe it."
The family made it out unharmed, and Bowers' wife said their daughter even slept through the incident.
Residents are now combing through what's left of their community. For many, the devastation is simply too much to comprehend.
"Nobody has anything left," resident Nancy Rampy said. "It's all gone. It's just awful."
"We'll get through this because we all stand together," Rampy said.
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