Barnett home near Lasalle County sees damage after 3 tornado reports

Peggy and Walter Barnett stepped outside their home about 2.5 miles east of Jameson in lasalle county on Wednesday afternoon and found uprooted trees, splintered limbs and a power line ripped loose across State Highway P. Peggy Barnett said, “Got an awful mess to clean up.”

Walter Barnett heard an alarm on his phone about 4 p.m. and moved to the front door as the wind hit. He said, “I was just looking at where the clouds was,” before the strongest gusts reached the house.

State Highway P

The Barnetts said they did not make it to the basement before the worst of it passed. Peggy Barnett said, “It was like somebody had a vacuum unit hooked up to the whole house trying to suck the insides out,” and Walter Barnett said magnets were pulled off their refrigerator. He added, “I held on to the wall to keep from going out. And I was holding tight.”

The house itself was left untouched, even as debris covered the property and blocked part of the highway. Neighbors arrived afterward to help clear the mess, and Howard Bailey brought a skid loader to clear the driveway.

KCTV5 Viewing Area

KCTV5’s First Warn 5 Weather team said there were three reported tornadoes in the KCTV5 viewing area on Wednesday, all north of the Kansas City metro. One was reported in the area where the Barnetts live, about 80 miles northeast of Kansas City.

The National Weather Service can take a day or two to confirm whether damage came from a tornado, plot a path and issue a rating. The Barnetts have seen this before: a tornado damaged a shed on their property about 10 years ago.

Walter Barnett laughed after describing the house surviving the storm and said, “Good Lord taking care of me. That’s all I can say.” For people along State Highway P, the immediate job is clearing the yard and reopening the drive while the storm reports are still being sorted into a final track.