Tornado Shelter

As I grew up in the High Plains Desert northeast of Denver, on the border of Nebraska / Colorado
are not too violent weather. There were times, of course, when people would not send us to the
basement when there is a green and black cloud come from the southwest and we were all afraid for
our lives, but it just was not as often. Every year or two we have is "caring Strangler" in a rain storm
and some hail, but for the most part, we did not have too violent weather.
In 1949, the year I was born, northeastern Colorado did experience one of the worst winters on
record and had a severe blizzard in January. It was talked about by veterans of all my years living in
this small town. Then in the spring of that year, we had a tornado that took our little town off the
map. But the hearty people just too busy and rebuilt. I am 62 years old now.
During many winters we have blizzard like conditions, when I was growing up, closing schools and
roads and we all loved it snowed in for days at a time. But we were always warm, well fed and could
always go sledding and playing in the snow.
Other than a few rare moments, not much severe weather was part of our lives back.
It seems that they are becoming more frequent and more severe storms than I can ever remember or
than I remember hear about every year we have several tornado watches, tornado warnings and
severe weather warnings. God, some of the pictures of a tornado that I saw on here in our region
seems so ominous, so bad. A tornado those who are of Greensburg, Kansas, Joplin, Missouri,
Tuscaloosa, Alabama, and so many cities each year are so alarming. There are only really seems to
be worse the weather, and every year more and more of them.
Knowing that the only real safe way to survive F3 tornado with wind speeds or higher is
underground and not being able to afford to dig a cellar in my house, which sits on a cement slab, I
wondered what in the world I 'd do if we've had a direct hit. I think I would die.
Most people in my area do not have basements, and all of us are vulnerable. We live on a slab of
concrete with a wood frame house built on it. I looked in the "safe room", and are so high priced and
impractical. Just out of reach for us lower middle class types.
I had an idea. I saw that the local junkyard had an old school bus for sale, the spare parts for a
couple of years or so. I was able to get him to sell what's left of it, shell, for me for $ 200. I did not
care that the engine and gearbox were robbed outside of it. It was quite an old bus. All the windows
were intact, the door firmly closed, and there was enough for 32 students in it room. I towed it to my
house. My neighbors complained of a nasty yellow monster sitting in the back. They thought that it
is an eyesore. I never shared my thoughts, decided what I love to do and began to gather what I
need.
So I live on 3 acres sloping lot. The rear end of my land is steeper quite a lot, so I decided to start
digging. I dug a hole in the side of the hill. I kicked her hand and I worked on what I got out of work
and into the night. I would dig on weekends and holidays, and finally, after 27 weeks of back
breaking digging and pulling, I had a hole in the side of the hill, which was 9 meters wide and went
up the hill 60 feet. In the farthest, deepest point at the end of the tunnel or a trench, it was 20
meters from the floor to the floor above. I had to accumulate a lot of dirt around the edges of the
wound that I dig, so I worked my butt off trying to dig, haul out the dirt with a wheelbarrow, and up
the hill and back to digging.
My neighbors howled at me. They thought I lost my mind. Sometimes I was not too sure that I did
not. But I had a goal.
Finally, after more than 6 months Hoots and hollers "around my back breaking work, I felt like I was
done with this part of my project. Took Chevy pickup and put an old tire between it and the back of
the bus, locked the steering wheel on the bus place and began to push the old bus into a hillside, the
wound that I dug. pushed him all the way to the place where he crashed against the mother country.
I used a cutting torch and cut into 4-6 inch holes in the top of the bus a few meters apart. I welded
steel pipe 6 inches on each hole, and it stood up like a chimney on each hole. They stood 18 feet in
front and tapering down to 13 feet on the back of the hole. Each of them had screens around the
upper end of the conical chimney and then welded in place with metal straps, leaving room for air
movement, but to keep the rain water and varmints.
Then, I cut 24inch hole in the top center of the passenger bus and 24 inches wide, welded steel pipes
on him. She stood about 15 feet high. I put a hinged lid on top of the pipe before I welded in place.
Before I started throwing dirt on the bus, I put a 24 foot extension ladder is extended, the bus
through the back door and stocked with supplies; water, dry food and candles. I also pulled out all
the places, but 4 and put blankets and folded the sides of the crib. I built a table and seats moved
around the square so that people can sit and eat or visit at the table, or go to bed and sleep. It was
primitive, but it would keep me safe in the storm. Unfortunately, my neighbors I never COTTON
much of what I was up and they simply wrote off as crazy.
I started filling the hole by filling the space under the bus first. I wanted to get the weight off the
tires and suspension, so I connected it and filled the area under the dirt and took the plug and let
the rest of the bus at the very dirt. It was not the tank; someone bought it from a dealer unhealthy. I
just had a shell and it will work fine.
I started to push the dirt around the top of the hole to the area around the bus, tamping the dirt
down as I went and compacting it as much as I could. Finally, the hill looking a bit like it did before,
with some tubes protruding from it, which I painted green so that it would blend into the hillside. I
put an extension ladder to the top of the pipe 24 inches. I tested it and the air flows in and out of the
bus. I had to shorten a couple of tubes because they were too long, but it was pretty easy.
My project lasted from spring to autumn, and I planted grass and watered it as the last thing to be
done for this part of the effort.
With the new spring hillside looked almost like it had just the green pipe sticking out of it and some
new grass growing. People almost forgot what I did, and life went on. But I had a storm shelter.
The weather was bearable for the next four years. There were some threats and some heavy rain and
all, but no direct threat of storms. The surroundings have changed a bit, as all do. Some have moved
away or died and new moved
2 years after I built a storm shelter, most antagonistic of my neighbors, art Burg, died. He lived a lot
of 2 and 3 acres left a lot to her house and tons of shit to make his daughter and her husband. My
neighbor was a bit unfriendly junk dealer and his lot was pretty well saturated with old piles of scrap
wood and metal, which would periodically sell some to get money. We constantly add to it or sold out
of it.
In the spring of the second year Art daughter and her husband lived there four years after I built my
storm shelter, I sat in the beautiful evening and heard his neighbors to fight. I heard glass breaking
and banging like pans being thrown. I heard a woman's scream, the blood clot. Then silence.
I watched as a young man, Ray, ran out of the house and looked around seemingly to see if anyone
knew about it, and got into the car and ran away, spraying gravel all over my lawn, fully 200 feet
from him.
I decided I needed to see the girl. We had not spoken since lived there. It was her father's daughter,
and he and I have never farther, so that the dispute seemed to leap from generation to generation to
it as well, though I never exchanged a single word. But I heard a terrible scream and he leave very
quickly. I could not help but see if it was okay.
I knocked on the door and no one answered. I peered through the window and saw the bottom half
of a person lying still with the upper body inside another room. I could not see her face, but she was
not moving.
"Shit!" I said under my breath and tried the handle. It was unlocked and announced I went inside
and never moved. I did not know her name, so I did not know what to call her, but it did not matter
that he was out. Blood was pooling around quickly and saw that has a bad wound on the side of the
neck. It was at that moment I realized that bled to death right in front of me. I put pressure on his
neck and stopped the bleeding for the moment. With my free hand I reached into his shirt pocket
and dialed 911. I gave the operator the address and what I did, what happened, and she said, "I have
an ambulance on the way, and do not let off the pressure on that wound."
I've never seen her up close and while I was waiting, I noticed that the young victim was
unconscious quite a bit; had on shorts and a t-shirt that came just above her belly button and no bra.
Her shorts came just above her pubic area, so there was a lot of skin between the shirt and shorts.
Her legs were spread and I could see her yellow panties and a sheer hint of silky blond hair
protruding from the side, where her leg was crooked. She had blond hair and eyelashes, and was
quite trim and attractive, although somewhat gray, and chaotic at the moment. She was breathing,
so I waited. The bleeding has stopped, but I knew I dare you to take my hand, otherwise it again.
Finally, I heard the wail of ambulance sirens and soon people were there and the sheriff was right
behind them. Ambulance crews took over and worked on it for a while, the deputy started asking me
all sorts of questions, what with all the blood I had on me. I think I was just a breath away from
being wrestled to the ground and arrested. But I managed to convince him that my neighbor and I
heard her and her husband fought what I heard and how they left in such a hurry after her terrifying
scream.
Ambulance and put it off and went screaming away. I was told to go home and clean up, and that my
claim would be accepted for a while. He still did not know if it was the murder scene, or just what
was on my hands as of yet.
When I got out of the shower, two representatives were standing in my living room waiting. To scare
me, but I realized that only the police and did not want me to have a chance to produce any weapons
or run, so they decided to "keep me in sight."
I asked if they had heard how the girl was doing and they said that Brooke is going to do it. She had
a nasty wound on his neck and bit into the carotid artery, but I saved her life, Brooke had surgery
and will probably be fine. As we talked about their radio radio crackled and other representatives
shouted into the radio that he was in a high-speed chase on the green 1979 El Camino, headed south
on Route 71 at mile marker 65 I told the two deputies to me, "hey, this is what the man was driving
when he left here after Brooke screams. old green El Camino. "
Just then, the radio crackled again and the agent, who is chasing a man reported that "rolled over
her." "We're at mile marker 66 send me an ambulance and backup." Then, about 45 seconds, "he is
dead, I have a senior coroner"
.
One of the deputies who were with me in my house with someone on the radio, "a witness at the
crime scene report that the perpetrator left in the old green El Camino." They radioed back and
forth, and I have heard their boss to tell them to take me for a thorough interrogation, and the fact
that I make a statement on the tape.
Members agreed to drive me in on my own, and I said that I would meet with them for 20 minutes in
his office. I waited for 4 hours. They were still doing crime scene investigation and eventually
showed up. I later realized that went through my house, too.
When the questioning ended two hours, I decided to stop by the hospital and see how my neighbor
does. I went to the nurses desk and asked Brooke Burg, not knowing her name after marriage. The
nurse said that "in recovery who are you?" I was the first visitor, and nobody knew much about it, No
ID, no one around to tell them anything other than what the ambulance guys had in its report. I just
said that I have a neighbor who reported the incident and stopped the bleeding in the ambulance got
there.
"Oh, you're all that he has and then. You saved her life., I'm sure he would have wanted you to be
there for her, this way."
"Man, that's weird," I thought. But, I watched. The nurse took me into the ICU room, behind a
curtain, and there lay the wan little creature pipes and wires and ICU things all around buzzing and
clicking. Brooke opened her eyes in horror. It was heavily bandaged where he can correct his artery
and tubes sticking out of the drain, I think. My sister did not like that Brooke was alarmed and
pushed something in his IV and Brooke went out. I was asked to leave, I will.
I went home and wondering what in the world happened.
After 4 days, still no sign of any activity there, so I decided to make another trip to the hospital and
see if Brooke did fine. I went to my room quietly and looked out the window. She looked much better
and turned her head to see me. When he saw me, she smiled and said she heard I saved her life. I
realized that it would be welcome, so I sat down and told her what had happened from my point of
view. She cried and told me that it was just as well that he died, because it almost every day abuse.
Every day I visited her until she was released. She had no one else.
Ray was so jealous of her and she never made any friends; and her father is dead, being alone. It
showed the type indicated that there was little heritage left by her father and that she could sell
some more of his junk and get by for a few years, so there was no need at the moment because of
the money that I was most pleased because I did not have any extra money to give or loan.
After 10 days, released her from the hospital and she asked if I would take her home. I, of course,
said: "I'd like to," but not at each other and wondered aloud if there was some way to get some
clothes to wear home. I just did not know how to respond, so I said, "hmmm".
Brooke said, "Mr. Bill, I know that we really know each other, but I really do not have anyone,
because you were in my house and saved my life, would you mind going back and I bring a change of
clothes?"
"Brooke," I said, "I'll do what I can to help. Course, I have something for you to wear home."
So I went back to my neighbor's house and found her bedroom and her dresser and closet. I brought
her a nice sleeveless button down, pink blouse, jeans and socks with tennis shoes. I struggled for 30
minutes to her panty drawer, trying to decide which of the two she would prefer. I settled on a pair
of rose colored flowers with green, clear, and I found a matching bra. It was also overwhelming.
Damn, I had to stop in the bathroom and shake off the dew. I put it all in a plastic bag and brought
her to the hospital. It was a joy, and give them all the while I was waiting in front of the curtain. The
doctor came before it was released and gave me a list of instructions, which included medication and
treatment for a full recovery. I think I became 25 years old, this young woman care giver. On
discussing her care with me, telling me about diet, exercise restrictions, and he wanted to make with
her.
The weather was hot, it was in May. We had some rain and lightning storm in the last few days, and
it was typical for this time of year. I have seen a number of thunderstorms in the west built, and it
looked like it could be a stormy night. I never turn on the radio to hear the forecast bad storms in
our area today. We were under a storm watch, and I never knew it. And I was the one who was so
meticulous about things like that.
I took out the garbage in Brooke driveway and helped her to the door. When he opened it, she burst
into tears. The disorder has not been cleaned; There was dried and caked blood, her blood, broken
pots and pans on the floor. The house was a mess. She paused as the door and I ran into her as she
bent down and stepped into my crotch, crying and sobbing.
I touched her and she turned and put her arms around his neck and sobbed. Slowly my hands on her
hips and then my arms around her and just held her as he soaked his shirt just above my right
breast. We stood toe to toe and my crotch to her navel, boobs grinding in my stomach. Then just
pretended attack.
I caught her just as she was going down and gently placed it on the floor in the living room and
closed the door behind him. I was afraid the neck wound and control it. It was bleeding. I found in a
kitchen towel and wet it with cold water and wiped his face and arms and hands with him. She
revived a little and looked at me. "Mr. Bill, I do not think I would stay here alone tonight, please, can
I stay with you, no problem,.? Need only a day or two for the"
.
"Sure, Brooke, that's fine.'ll Get you home with me and you settled in." I offered.
When we got to my house, the clouds covered the sun, and it was a bit windy. It smells like rain and I
looked and saw some nasty formation brewing in the Southwest. I needed to remember to be careful.
Brooke was hungry, so I fried up some big burgers, some sliced celery, green onions,
radishes, tomatoes and got a bag of corrugated lay outside the enclosure. I did not have hamburger
buns, but had some good 12 grain bread and we had a feast of hamburgers and vegetables. I poured
her a glass of milk and she giggled and drank it leaving a mustache on his upper lip. She was
adorable.
Lightening cracked loudly close. We both jumped off our chairs, back to reality. I went to the door
and looked out. "This is bad," I said. "We have to go on the bus."
"The bus?" What are you talking about Mr. Bill? "He asked Brooke.
The wind picked up and the rain started pouring down. I heard a small drop of hail hitting the roof,
and he knew that it would be better to get the bus and quickly.
"Let's go!" I said and grabbed her hand and we started toward the bus. She could not run because
she was so weak, and it was uphill. We just got home from the hospital and she was in no condition
to run uphill. She screamed in horror at the approaching storm, so I picked it up, and the fire engine
wear over my shoulder, I ran to the 24 in. pipe that protruded from the ground, which I so carefully
placed there four years earlier. It was a downpour of rain, wind thrashing around and stuff all over
the yard were swirling in the air already. I made it to the tube, because he realized that Brooke
crotch was bouncing up and down on my right shoulder and that her breasts were dug up and down
the back of the neck and left shoulder. I also realized that it is fine with the new surgery and I
needed to look for bleeding, but we needed to get down the bus first.