‘It was terrifying’: Storm rips roof off family home in southeast Nebraska

RAYMOND, Neb. (KLKN) – The roof of the Reese family home is roughly 80% gone, torn off due to Saturday’s severe storm.

The Reese family is lucky to be alive after deciding to take their 1-year-old son and hide in their bathroom tub during the storm.

It was a decision made in a matter of seconds as they received storm alerts on their phone.

Taija Reese immediately ran to grab her son from his crib.

“I walked through his toys, and I grabbed him out of his crib,” she said, later explaining how the roof of his room caved in on them, giving her a cut on her forehead.

Shortly after that, her husband rushed them into their bathtub to wait out the storm.

“We’re kind of just waiting while we heard the rest of the roof rip off,” said Anthony.

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Anthony, Taija and Atlas Reese stayed in the tub for 45 minutes before they came out to see every item in their home out of place, wet and covered in dirt and insulation.

The pink insulation even covered the stalks of corn in their backyard.

The family called 9-1-1 from the tub and once police arrived, they had to hand over their son through their bedroom window due to no clear path to escape.

“It was terrifying,” said Taija Reese.

Reese said her son is safe with his grandparents while her and her husband search for anything salvageable in the wreck.

The family expressed their gratitude that no one was seriously hurt, including their dog and cat, who were not in the tub with them during the storm.

“We prayed this morning that everything will be okay, and we’re okay. The house is not, but it could have been worse,” said Tajia Reese.

The family said they are working with their landlord and speaking with contractors about next steps, which most likely will be finding a new home.

Members of the Raymond community created a Facebook page to help the family with any expenses, and a GoFundMe page has also been set up.