Communities in Northeast Arkansas have been working together to clean up and recover after Friday night’s deadly tornadoes.
INDEPENDENCE COUNTY, Ark. — Friday night’s EF-3 tornado touched down in Bethesda and continued toward Cave City, leaving behind a path of destruction.
In its path lay Cushman, a town with a population of a little over 400 people.
Judge Kevin Jeffery reported that three women lost their lives, including two sisters, as the tornado struck the rural town.
Homeowners along Highway 69 are now dealing with the aftermath caused by the EF-3 tornado.
“In one case a man was in bed and his house disappeared and he was still laying in the bed,” Jeffery said.
Neighboring communities are also cleaning up. Remnants of the tornado’s path can be seen in Sandown.
“Our community is still trying to get a grasp on everything that has happened. They’re still trying to go through what they have and what they’ve lost,” Cushman Mayor Nichole Bryant said.
Despite the devastation left behind by the life-changing storms, people living in the area are sticking together.
“You can go to any one of our affected areas and walk onto that land, and I guarantee you they’ve got a neighbor from another area that has come over to check on them,” Bryant said.
This applies to Cave City, too, where members of the community have worked endlessly to get things back to normal.
Serving as a sister city for Independence and Sharp County, the largest municipal area impacted also serves as the hub for resources.
“Cave City has been a major asset to us, as they have received an overwhelming response,” Bryant said.
Donations fill the inside of Cave City Middle School as volunteers organize piles of food and clothing.
American Red Cross of Greater Arkansas has turned Cave City First Assembly Church into a place where people can go for help.
“We will take them in, we’ll do an intake, we’ll see what resources they may need. We’ll get them settled,” Communications Manager for Greater Arkansas American Red Cross Jill Eaves said.
While the road to recovery will be long, every helping hand makes it a little bit easier.
“As time goes on, we will still pull together for anything that each community affected will be needing,” Bryant said.
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