Father-Son Duo Faces Tornado During Gas Stop in Missouri

ROLLA, Missouri — A routine gas stop turned harrowing for Robert Holman and his son, Mondello, as they encountered a tornado while capturing the chaos on camera. This frightening event unfolded on March 15 at around 1 a.m. when severe weather swept through the region, leaving a trail of destruction.

The tornado struck the small town of Elliott, Mississippi, approximately 100 miles north of Rolla, shattering the pre-dawn darkness with its violent winds and rain. Holman described the moment, saying, “All of a sudden, it got like a freight train. Then all of a sudden, we just heard stuff just falling all on the house.”

Holman and Mondello were caught off guard by the tornado’s sudden arrival, describing it as a “nightmare.” Mondello added, “I didn’t know what to do. I just dropped to my knees. I got so scared.”

The aftermath was devastating, with uprooted trees, overturned vehicles, and demolished structures littering their neighborhood. “I wasn’t expecting it to be like this,” Holman said. “I just thought it was going to be a hard rain… wind blowing. But that got rough there.”

The bond between the father and son grew stronger as they confronted this life-threatening experience together. “I’m glad he’s with me,” Robert Holman reflected, his voice heavy with emotion. “We could have been blown away. I ain’t never been through nothing like this.”

The tornado that struck Elliott is part of a troubling pattern across multiple states, with various tornadoes reported and significant damage recorded. The Storm Prediction Center issued a Particularly Dangerous Tornado Watch affecting a large swath of Mississippi, including Elliott, and parts of eastern Louisiana, effective until 6 p.m. CT.

Further, the region faced a rare Level 5 risk on the National Weather Service’s severe weather risk scale for areas, including Birmingham, Tuscaloosa, Jackson, and Hattiesburg, indicating an extreme danger of life-threatening storms and potential property damage. Meteorologists warn that additional watches may be issued as severe weather progresses to the east throughout the day.