First Tornado|اولین گردباد

By ( 110 )

“108th story”

First Published: Sep.12.2019

A story by Laleh Chini:

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A story by Laleh Chini:

In 1986; I lived in Charleston, a small city and the Capital of West Virginia with a population to near 50,000 at that time. Charleston had one shopping mall and a beautiful main street beside the river, and one vast picnic park.

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One day there was a street festival in downtown, which at least half of the population participated — walking by the river with the loud music, between back to back crowd was very joyful.

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There were many street foods along with the street concert. Many people were holding ice cream in hand; some kids had cotton candy. People were dancing and having the best time, my cousins and I were appreciating the happy moments.

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I think it was around 3 pm when we started getting closer to the stage and were dancing with thousands of others.

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All of a sudden, the sky got very dark, like a cold winter night. Clouds were compacting to extreme, the thunder’s voice was so loud that shook everyone’s bone structures.

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We could feel the clouds would explode any second. Everyone started running without knowing where to. The out of leash wind started.

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The stage went up high to the sky with all the instruments, and gladly the performers left the stage seconds before that. We all held hands and ran to find shelter. It was very dark, and it was hard to see.

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Some store owners opened the doors to the public; God bless them; they saved us. The rain started pouring, and every drop was a bursting water balloon. Many other things that the tornado sucked in dropped back to the ground from the sky.

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The beautiful Charleston turned into a disaster in just a few hours. We all survived along with many others.

Dear friends:

You can purchase my book “Climbing Over Grit” Winner of “Canada Book Award” at;

Barnes & Noble, Gardners, Bertrams, Ingram, Baker & Taylor, Amazon.com and all bookselling channels via hubs in the US, UK, Brazil, Germany, Russia, and Australia. The links are listed below:

http://l-aleph.com

http://www.wisehouse-publishing.com

https://m.barnesandnoble.com

http://www.baker-taylor.com

https://www.gardners.com

https://www.bertrams.com/BertWeb/index.jsp

https://www.whitcoulls.co.nz/product/climbing-over-grit-978917637553237903

Our Book Page is:

http://l-aleph.com/project/climbing-over-grit/

http://l-aleph.com/our-authors-2/

Join me at:

lalehchini.com

Facebook-LinkedIn-Laleh Chini

twitter @chini_laleh

Instagram avoicefromiran

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Categories: bedtime storyTags: , ,

110 comments ›

  2. crispina kemp
    September 12, 2019 • 8:24 am

    Gosh, is that a true account? It reads like one. Terrifying. Yet all survived.

    Liked by 8 people

    Reply ↓
  5. Indira
    September 12, 2019 • 9:27 am

    Terrible! When we read news about these things, its difficult to perceive the actual situations!!

    Liked by 5 people

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  6. hassanmosleh
    September 12, 2019 • 9:44 am

    Beautiful post and pictures. I’m glad that no one hurt. The interesting part is that we never had tornado and nature disasters before, as much as we do now in America.

    Liked by 6 people

    Reply ↓
  8. Nautilus
    September 12, 2019 • 10:21 am

    Awful, but awesome. Seeing a real tornado is one of the main reasons I want to visit U.S.

    Unfortunately, those whirls are not wandering just on empty plains; they hit towns and cities, they bring disaster and tragedy.
    Nature is mighty and sometimes merciless. However, we should remember that we are not in nature’s hands, but in God’s hands.

    Liked by 5 people

    Reply ↓
  9. lillyevechristie
    September 12, 2019 • 10:30 am

    How frightening, glad you’re ok x

    Liked by 4 people

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  12. Author Ryan Callahan
    September 12, 2019 • 11:29 am

    Incredible! So glad you survived! I filmed a tornado that was close to our home once. I called the local news in Denver and they came to our house and interviewed me live and put my video on TV. It is surreal watching a tornado! God bless!

    Liked by 3 people

    Reply ↓
  14. petrel41
    September 12, 2019 • 1:25 pm

    Congratulations, dear Laleh!

    I have nominated your blog for the Mystery Blogger Award.

    More about this nomination is at

    https://dearkitty1.wordpress.com/2019/09/12/mystery-blogger-award-thank-you-showdonttell/

    Liked by 2 people

    Reply ↓
  15. Rosaliene Bacchus
    September 12, 2019 • 1:29 pm

    What a terrifying experience, Laleh! Happily, these days we have better warning systems for tornadoes and hurricanes.

    Liked by 3 people

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  16. Manessah B.
    September 12, 2019 • 4:04 pm

    Living in Texas, I’m always fearing hearing those tornado sirens go off. I’m so sorry that you had to experience something so scary, but very grateful that you are here with us today to share this story with us, Laleh. It’s a great example of how things can change so quickly.

    Liked by 3 people

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  17. Susi Bocks
    September 12, 2019 • 8:59 pm

    Being a resident of Kansas, what you’ve written hits close to home. Scary! Glad you are ok, Laleh. Those images are incredible and I’d love to dig my teeth into those ice cream cones! They look amazing.

    Liked by 3 people

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  18. www.corneliaweber-photography.com
    September 12, 2019 • 10:05 pm

    What a life experience, living for moments in such horrible fear. You were saved for a reason, which is , that you contribute such wonderful words , stories and an amazing book to the world.

    Liked by 3 people

    Reply ↓
  19. Sonrisa
    September 13, 2019 • 5:40 am

    What a frightening experience. So glad you all survived. And it came suddenly unexpectedly, wow,♥️

    Liked by 4 people

    Reply ↓
  20. loujen haxm'Yor
    September 14, 2019 • 12:11 am

    Incredible story and photos, Laleh. Thanx for sharing.

    Liked by 4 people

    Reply ↓
  21. inhiscare753
    September 14, 2019 • 1:20 am

    Wonderful story with such vivid imagery. Hanging on to each word made me feel as though, I was there. 😊🌸

    Liked by 4 people

    Reply ↓
  22. Silver Screenings
    September 15, 2019 • 2:07 pm

    Whoa! What a horrible storm! But it was wonderful to read about the kindness of shop owners who let people in out of the storm.

    Liked by 4 people

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  23. Roy McCarthy
    September 16, 2019 • 5:00 pm

    Wow, what an experience. And with no warning? You were very lucky.

    Liked by 4 people

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  24. bigskybuckeye
    September 16, 2019 • 10:53 pm

    Any type of thunderstorm turns eyes to the sky, searching for potential harm from a funnel cloud. Your account definitely captured the trauma of the tornado hitting Charleston without warning.

    I have never experienced such an event, but we had a close call during a tornado warning at the middle school I was teaching at. Fortunately, the storm stayed south of our location.

    Liked by 3 people

    Reply ↓
  25. Ultra
    September 17, 2019 • 5:58 pm

    You must have survived a terrible tornado, I feel sorry for you. Fortunately, there are no tornadoes in Poland, but due to climate change they can also appear over time.
    best wishes

    Liked by 3 people

    Reply ↓
  26. Sunith
    September 20, 2019 • 12:31 pm

    Glad to know you all came out safe.

    Liked by 4 people

    Reply ↓
  27. DutchIl
    September 23, 2019 • 5:45 am

    Thank you for sharing!.. have witnessed 4 tornadoes in my lifetime here on the prairies, do not wish for another… 🙂

    Until we meet again..
    May the sun shine all day long
    Everything go right, nothing go wrong
    May those you love bring love back to you
    May all the wishes you wish come true
    May peace be within you
    May your heart be strong
    May you find whatever you’re seeking
    Wherever you may roam
    (Irish Saying)

    Liked by 4 people

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  28. janetsm
    September 30, 2019 • 11:33 pm

    How frightening! I’m so glad you survived the tornado, dear friend.

    Liked by 4 people

    Reply ↓
  29. spwilcen
    October 17, 2020 • 11:58 am

    Glad you came out of it safely. The weather can be such a teacher, no? Disciplinarian, consoler, lover, and alas, enemy.

    Liked by 1 person

    Reply ↓
  30. OIKOS™-Editorial
    October 17, 2020 • 1:30 pm

    Thank you very much, for another thoughtful story, Laleh! From the wonderful Charleston to Canada? What a journey through the States. 😉 Excuse again the late re-visit. I hope you and yours are well, and staying save. Have a beautiful weekend! Michael

    Liked by 1 person

    Reply ↓
  31. Samreen Asad
    October 18, 2020 • 12:43 am

    That is so frightening and terrifying, you told the story as always so wonderfully, like am witnessing all of that. May God help us all in terrible times.

    Liked by 1 person

    Reply ↓
  32. Crissy
    October 18, 2020 • 3:34 am

    Wow that must’ve been scary. And now kind the shop keepers were. So glad it had a good ending.
    💜🍃💜

    Liked by 1 person

    Reply ↓
  33. Jonathan Caswell
    October 18, 2020 • 6:14 pm

    Reblogged this on By the Mighty Mumford and commented:
    QUITE A TWIST…SO TO SPEAK! ❤

    Liked by 1 person

    Reply ↓
  34. David & Laura Speer
    October 18, 2020 • 7:16 pm

    Argh, tornados are awful, but this post is a real nice share.

    Liked by 1 person

    Reply ↓
  35. rulookingforjesus
    October 19, 2020 • 9:54 am

    Thank you for sharing this tough one though

    Liked by 1 person

    Reply ↓
  37. cheriewhite
    October 21, 2020 • 3:43 pm

    Awesome story! It kept me on the edge of my seat. I’m so glad you all weren’t hurt!

    Like

    Reply ↓
  38. morishige
    October 22, 2020 • 5:03 am

    I saw a small tornado once in the middle of a volcanic dune but I guess it was nothing compared to the tornado you told us about.

    Liked by 1 person

    Reply ↓
  39. gayatribagayatkar
    October 23, 2020 • 2:28 pm

    I like the simplicity in your language and ease to understand your stories , no doubt that makes them popular

    Liked by 1 person

    Reply ↓
  41. natuurfreak3
    November 23, 2020 • 7:52 am

    Wat heb je dit prachtig beschreven .In tornado gebied wonen moet schrikwekkend zijn op die momenten
    .

    Liked by 1 person

    Reply ↓

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