North Texas family spends holiday cleaning up farm leveled by tornado
VALLEY VIEW — Victims in Valley View are spending their Memorial Day cleaning up what's left of their homes and livelihoods.
"I have never prayed so hard in my whole life," says Lisa Smith, who owns Smith Farms in Valley View with her husband, Todd.
A powerful tornado leveled their farm while they were huddled in a bathtub inside their home on the same property.
"Everything's gone, it's devastated. It's our life's work. It's a passion. We don't know any other way and now I'm not sure if we can continue it now," Smith said.
The Smiths have spent their Memorial Day weekend, recovering mangled tractor trailers, sifting through what's left of their belongings, and burying most of their livestock.
"We've lost cows. We've lost pigs. We lost one of our dogs. My husband's lost his horse. It's been hard," Smith explains.
On the West edge of Valley View, there are similar stories of survivors and recovery efforts.
Kelly Shaw waited out the storm in his tiny mobile home, which still stands, but is now surrounded by debris from his neighbors.
"It was like it was a movie," Shaw said. "I can't believe that we survived in this little while. Everyone else's homes are destroyed."
Shaw says he did lose a lot of his stuff, but some of his neighbors lost their lives.
"They're going through way more tough stuff than we are, you can't replace a life," Shaw said.
The intense heat on Memorial Day has made cleanup efforts even more challenging, but volunteer groups have canvassed the Valley View area to make sure victims are getting help and supplies.
"It's been amazing how the community's come together and people just helping people and a lot of these our friends. This is the heart of Texas. So very thankful," says Todd Smith. Todd says this is his sixth tornado he has lived through and hopes it's his last.
Volunteers with Ranchers Navy, a DFW-based nonprofit, helped bring a water tank to the Smith Farm for livestock. Feed and hay are now a big need for the farm.
