'We didn't have a roof': Tornado survivors recall harrowing night near Stonewall

Scenes of damage greeted people in Stonewall, Oklahoma, on Tuesday morning after overnight tornadoes hit Pontotoc County. The storm destroyed livestock housing, lifted roofs, and knocked down fences.

Residents described to News 9 what it was like to experience the tornado firsthand.

"It's like somebody was shooting a nail gun or something," Ronald Huff said.

Huff's family was unharmed by the storm, but his livestock was not as fortunate.

"That blue thing right there, that was my chicken coop," Huff said. "We just have one chicken."

Huff reported he did not hear any sirens and that the area was completely dark once the power went out during the storm.

Another resident described her own experience with Tuesday morning's storms.

"We were asleep, and the tornado alerts came on our phones, so we got up and looked at the radar and saw that it was coming straight toward us," the woman said. "We got to our lower-most point, and while we were sitting there, power started flickering."

The situation escalated in seconds.

"We heard a little bit of a rumble," she said. "It wasn't the freight train that we expected, but we felt the rumbling of the ground around the time that it hit."

"All of a sudden, we started hearing water," the woman said. "So we jumped up, looked, and realized that we didn't have a roof."

The woman and her family left their home, escaping unharmed. She expressed gratitude that only her house was damaged.

"What really matters?" she said. "Does any of the stuff in the house matter? Or is it that fact that we're still alive, we got out, and everything else will work out?"

Residents emphasized the resilience of Oklahomans and the strength of the community in the aftermath of extreme weather.

"I had my moment earlier, standing over by the fence, looking at it all just in disbelief," the woman said. "I shed a few tears and was like, 'alright, that's done, and now we just need to do what we need to do.'"

She credited her faith for bringing her and her family through the storm safely.

"I've already told several of my friends that he's good, he's merciful, and I'm incredibly thankful that I even woke up," she said. "I'm a hard sleeper."

The Union Valley Fire Department next door was determined to be a total loss. Portions of the building were left scattered on top of parked fire engines. A nearby home on a hill was also "completely wiped out" by the high winds, according to Huff.