Thanks, TIS & MC. Our power was out just 2 days last week, and we whined and complained. But seeing what occurred this week to others certainly puts things in perspective. Lots of personal stories emerging. One was of an elderly couple. The wife was bedridden and on oxygen, but the husband would not leave her to save himself, and the twisters moved too fast to move her. Both were found dead, the husband's body over hers as if to shield her. But, thank God, there were some amazing stories of survival, too.
I've seen some really callous comments from people on other sites: cruel jokes about house trailers, stereotyping "stupid Southerners," and the like. The anonymity of the Net brings out both the stupidity and true hearts of some people (if they can be CALLED "people"). I pray none of them would ever learn for themselves the folly of making such remarks. Also, some don't take into account the enormous size, speed, and brutal power of those storms. Siren or not, many just didn't have time. Also, people should bear in mind that there just aren't many homes with basements: since frigid cold is a rarity, there's no need to dig deep for burying water pipes and the subsequent basement. TIS shared about earthquakes; coastlines are vulnerable to hurricanes, and desert places to wildfires. Chaos has no map, and doesn't show partiality, regardless of where one lives about the compass. Having said all that, I must add that the negative comments were far surpassed with positive and encouraging ones. May God help all those affected by these tragedies.