HARLOWTON — Friday June 13 turned frightening for some residents in Harlowton.
Wind speeds exceeded 70 miles an hour that sent debris flying.
Watch full video of the damage that was caused by the storm below:
Tonya Briscoe, a local resident, described the terrifying moment.
“You almost didn't even have time to react as to what to do,” Briscoe said Sunday.
Briscoe watched as the powerful winds barreled down the hill toward her home.
“You could see it coming down the hill and then before you knew it, it was here,” Briscoe said.
The Briscoe family was caught off guard by the intensity of the storm.
“The winds are always bad here, but this was a whole new level of bad,” Briscoe said.
Briscoe witnessed the strength of the storm firsthand, noting it moved her play structure.
“It had picked it up and moved it to the north,” Briscoe said.
Her son, Ruger Briscoe, was outside with his dad when chaos ensued.
“We heard a really loud sound, and he pushed me into the shed, and we sat there for a little bit and just waited,” he said.
Not quite knowing how to react was a common feeling among the family.
“You almost didn't even have time to react as to what to do,” Briscoe said.
When the storm subsided the family and neighbors were faced with the damage.
“I had come out to this window that's right here and looked over here and my aunt's garage roof is actually off her house,” Briscoe said.
The winds uprooted trees and tore roofs off buildings, which caused damage throughout the area.
“We spent all of yesterday kind of helping neighbors get stuff cleaned up,” Briscoe said.
Despite the damage neighbors came together to help one another.
“When you live in a community where kind of everybody pitches in and helps one another, it's beneficial and helpful and makes things go by quicker,” Briscoe said.
Briscoe also expressed her gratitude that no one was injured.
“It could have been much worse and so we're very lucky that nobody got hurt,” Briscoe said.
