Tornado Rips Apart Texas Church—But 45 People Inside Miraculously Saved Without a Scratch
Just 30 seconds after receiving a tornado warning, a church in Texas with about 45 people inside got smashed by the devastating twister.
Miraculously, no one was hurt—not even scratch.
Upon hearing the warning, the parishioners, toddlers and students among them, rushed to a hallway inside the St. John Evangelist Catholic Church in Emory, a town outside of Dallas, Texas, CNN reported.
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Some dropped to the floor while others held on to the doors of their hallway refuge to keep them shut as the tornado struck on Saturday night.
"About 30 seconds after we went into the hallway, it hit," said Monica Hughes, a youth minister.
Hughes told CNN they saw the tornado ripping the church apart.
"We could see the beams bending and the aluminum roof being ripped away," she said.
Amid the chaos, they prayed, Hughes said.
"As soon as the worst was over, we began to sing to keep the kids calm," she added.
"God is good. Grateful. So very grateful. House has a tree in it. Boat was tossed," she said as quoted by the Daily Mail.
The Diocese of Tyler later shared photos and videos of the devastated church building on its Facebook page.
"Saint John the Evangelist Church in Emory, Texas, was totally destroyed by a tornado last night," one post read. "About 45 people were just 10-feet away in a hallway sheltering when the tornado hit. By the grace of God and the protection of Our Lady, no one was injured."
That day, several tornadoes swept through Arkansas, Missouri and Texas, leaving dozens of homes destroyed and at least 13 people dead as of Sunday night, reports said.
Peyton Low, director of public affairs for the Diocese of Tyler, said the tornado directly struck the church, demolishing it.
"Both ends of the building were blown out," he said, adding that, "people are using the term 'miraculous' to describe what happened Saturday night."
On Sunday morning, a mass was held outside the church as the parishioners gathered to give thanks to the Lord for miraculously saving the people inside the church when the tornado struck.
