Tornado Aftermath in Gueydan
Several Gueydan homes were destroyed and a cemetery was damaged after a tornado touched down early Wednesday morning. The EF-1 tornado stretched about 40 yards wide and winds whipped more than 100 miles per hour. "It sounded like a train whistling, and all of a sudden I felt the pressure of my house. It started to move," said tornado victim Ruby Broussard.
Broussard is one of several Gueydan residents who heard the powerful storm in action and had to deal with the aftermath. "My son came outside and he noticed my trailer was torn into pieces. The rain got really bad and the wind started picking up," said tornado victim Holly McDaniel.
Residents throughout the town can identify with yards filled with debris, uprooted trees and homes ripped apart. Neighborhoods weren't the only places that were hit hard. At the Gueydan Cemetery, power lines were on the ground, pieces of nearby homes littered the land and dozens of headstones were knocked over. "We really need the help of the community right now, it's heartbreaking," said cemetery board member Gale Smith.
Smith said this is heart wrenching, because her parents are buried here."I cried this morning. We've been cleaning up this area, but the north side is unreal."
Quote