A storm chaser and video journalist recorded a dramatic rescue after powerful tornadoes tore through Illinois communities on Thursday.
Scott Lasker was documenting the widespread damage when urgent cries for help suddenly cut through the scene.
“Hey! Hey!” a woman yelled in the distance as Lasker’s camera swept over the shattered remains.
Following the screams, Lasker made his way to a collapsed home, where he discovered a man trapped beneath a pile of storage bins and heavy debris.
“I think I broke my leg,” the injured man told Lasker.
Lasker then passed his camera to the woman and rushed in to help remove the rubble covering the man.
“To actually be a part of a dramatic situation — that’s a new one for me,” Lasker told FOX32 Chicago, noting that he usually films twisters as they dance across empty fields.
“You don’t like to see when property is damaged, let alone when people are trapped,” Lasker continued.
Police arrived and pulled the man from the ruins before rushing him to a nearby hospital. Lasker expects the survivor to make a steady recovery.
At least three tornadoes touched down in Indiana and Illinois on Thursday, leaving 500,000 people without power, according to FOX Weather.
The tornado in Streator was an EF-3, with winds reaching 136 mph, capable of toppling cars, overturning trains and uprooting trees, according to the National Weather Service.
A reunification center was set up in Streator for displaced residents and the Red Cross operated a shelter for the injured.
Streator Mayor Tara Bedei said there were no reported fatalities.
“We are incredibly grateful for the safety of our residents and the quick action of emergency personnel,” she said in a statement.
With Post Wires
