A dedicated married couple both lost an arm in a destructive tornado that ravaged their Kentucky home this month, revealing the brutal impact of such catastrophic storms.
Paul and Gail Cline, both nearing their 70s, took shelter in their bedroom in the small town of London as a tornado with winds reaching 170 mph obliterated everything in its path on May 16.
Fearing for their lives, the pair embraced each other tightly in horror, enduring severe damage to their exposed arms.
It is believed their lives were saved by the quick thinking of a neighbor, who found them and applied a tourniquet to their arms, stopping them from bleeding out.
The Clines were victims of a series of apocalyptic storms that recently broke out in America’s heartland, killing at least 23 people and leaving millions without power.
The US is still in the middle of one of the most destructive tornado seasons ever.
If caught in a terrifying twister, would you even know what you would do to survive?
A new book from the hosts of the hit podcast Against The Odds, Mike Corey and Cassie De Pecol, details the best places to shelter when a storm passes. In the worst- case scenario – if you’re caught out in the open – how do you improve your chances of escaping with your life?
According to the book, How to Survive Against the Odds: Tales and Tips for Animal Attacks and Natural Disasters, acting quickly can mean the difference between life and death. And a little planning can go a long way.
Paul and Gail Cline were hunkered down in their bedroom as a twister with 170mph wind speeds shredded everything in its path on May 16
The couple each lost an arm while they embraced as the tornado ripped through their home
A tornado swirls in New Richmond, Wisconsin, earlier this month, in one of the deadliest US storm seasons
Find shelter immediately
If a tornado warning comes through and you’re home, the safest spaces to take shelter are the interiors of your basement.
No basement? Any interior room will work, as long as you’re away from windows and ideally on the ground floor. Closets, center hallways, and bathrooms also suffice.
Chris Tuveng of Dallas ignored an alert in 2019 and figured he had time to grab a snack in the middle of watching a football game.
He ended up being sucked out the door of a Little Caesars Pizza parlor, in winds gusting up to 140mph.
He tried grabbing on to a concrete support pillar as his body was repeatedly battered by flying debris, including trash cans, rocks, and shards of glass.
But a ferocious gale pulled him away and he was sucked into the vortex. Several times he was lifted into the air before being slammed to the ground.
When he finally landed near a truck, he instinctively grabbed for its tire, the tornado tugging at him and lifting his legs off the ground.
Just as his strength was giving out, the storm passed. Tuveng had survived being inside a tornado for 30 seconds, though it felt like a lifetime. Miraculously, he suffered no broken bones or serious injuries.
Tuveng survived being inside a tornado for 30 seconds and miraculously survived with no broken bones or serious injuries
Tuveng held on to a truck tire as the tornado lifted his legs off the ground
Seeking safety in a bathtub
Waiting out a tornado in your bathtub may sound like a good idea, but that’s not true for tubs made of plastic or fiberglass. Those can be easily pierced by flying debris, causing serious injury.
Remove potential projectiles
Wherever you’re sheltering, make sure get rid of anything that could be harmful if it were to go airborne. This includes items like clocks, artwork, lamps, and smaller pieces of furniture.
In violent tornadoes – such as EF3s to EF5s, where winds can range anywhere from 140mph to 300mph – flying debris is your biggest threat. These tornados can carry cars for considerable distances, rip entire homes off their foundations and turn metal, glass, and other building materials into lethal projectiles that can lodge in your skin.
‘If something is impaling your body, leave the item inside your body until you can get professional medical attention,’ says Matt Cummins, a board-certified emergency physician.
‘You need imaging first, as the projectile can be plugging broken blood vessels. Pull it out and you risk bleeding to death.’
Tuveng still has small pieces of debris lodged in his body that doctors were unable to remove.
‘We typically leave small debris that doesn’t impact functionality in the body,’ Cummins said. ‘We can cause more damage when removing it.’
Over time, any small bits of glass, wood, or metal may work toward the surface of the skin, where they could then be removed.
Know what’s above you
Heavy objects like pianos, refrigerators, or dressers can fall through upper floors if a tornado hits your house. Make sure there’s nothing sizable above your head wherever you’re sheltering.
Protect your body
Drag a mattress over yourself, if possible. Thick blankets or bedding work, too.
Lie face down and cover your head, either with a helmet or your hands, as head trauma is common in tornadoes.
‘You don’t have to fall from very high to have a serious injury,’ Cummins said. ‘Your neck can snap, or you can have tissue swelling inside your head, increasing pressure on your brain.’
Severe head injuries are often the cause of death from a tornado. Objects can pierce your skull too, causing instant death.
Residents inspect their home after a tornado tore off the back wall of a two-story house in St. Louis, Missouri, on May 16
The Little Caesars Pizza place in Dallas where Chris Tuveng had been sucked into a tornado
Avoid commercial buildings
Bigger buildings, like shopping plazas, gyms or malls, are among the worst places to be when a tornado hits. They’re constructed to be supported by outside walls, and they collapse quickly during a twister.
The Marsh Lane Plaza, where Tuveng went for pizza, was completely demolished.
If stuck in such a location, get under a door frame or a structure like a bathroom sink that can protect you from falling debris.
Find anchor points
If sucked into the storm, hold on to anything that doesn’t seem like it could be ripped away. You’ll stand the best chance of surviving if, like Tuveng, you can grab and hold on to something like a concrete support pillar.
Lie in a ditch
If caught outside without anything to hold on to, your best bet is to find a depression in the ground and lie in it, face down, with your arms covering your head and neck.
In the 2024 movie Twisters, starring Glen Powell and Daisy Edgar-Jones, the protagonists survived by taking shelter in an empty motel swimming pool.
Do not lie on asphalt, however. If the winds are strong enough, the tornado can rip up the pavement.
Splint broken limbs
If you break an arm or leg, get the limb straight enough to ensure good blood flow. You want to feel a pulse in the affected area.
‘The longer you’re without blood flow, the worse it is,’ Cummins said.
An image from the 2024 movie Twisters, starring Glen Powell and Daisy Edgar-Jones
In the film, the protagonists survived by taking shelter in an empty motel swimming pool
After the limb is straight, don’t move the broken portion. ‘Movement equals tissue damage inside,’ Cummins added.
He suggested using a tree branch and shoelaces for a splint, for example. Just make sure to stop movement of the joint above and below the break.
And if you can’t splint it, make a sling out of a T-shirt.
‘You want to take the weight off the broken area,’ he said.
Debris can also gouge out chunks of flesh. If you’re left with a gaping wound – as in the case of Paul and Gail Cline – first stop the bleeding.
‘Apply pressure, bandage it, and elevate the wound above the heart,’ Cummins said. ‘For missing skin, a wet bandage is better to prevent tissue drying, but any bandage is better than no bandage.’
From the book How To Survive Against the Odds: Tales and Tips for Animal Attacks and Natural Disasters by Wondery. Copyright © 2025 by Wondery. To be published on June, 3 2025 by William Morrow, an imprint of HarperCollins Publishers. Reprinted by permission.
