The tornado had just hit Greenfield, Iowa, and residents were already using skid loaders to clear streets.
With the hospital damaged, they took the wounded to a medical triage center at the local lumberyard.
And across western Iowa, paramedics and police officers were speeding toward the small town to help.
“Everybody became little makeshift ambulances,” said Ray Sorensen, a member of the Iowa House of Representatives who lives in Greenfield, and who said he helped with the rescues after racing back to town shortly after the storm hit on Tuesday afternoon.
Kim Reynolds said some areas had been “flattened into debris,” and the National Weather Service reported “at least EF-3 damage” in the town, using the 0-to-5 rating system for tornado severity.
Persons:
”, Ray Sorensen, Kim Reynolds
Organizations:
Iowa, Gov, National Weather Service
Locations:
Greenfield , Iowa, Iowa, Greenfield, Des Moines