Mississippi tornado victims identified as young father of three and his one-year-old daughter

Two victims killed by the destructive tornadoes that hit Mississippi Friday night have been identified as a young father of three and his one-year-old daughter. 

Friends and loved ones have identified Ethan Herndon, 33, and Riley Herndon, 1, as having been killed when a tornado hit their home in Wren, Mississippi overnight. 

Ethan’s wife, Elizabeth, and their two other children, Brantley, 7, and Aubrey, 4, were badly injured by the severe weather but managed to survive. 

The series of two dozen tornadoes that struck the area caused catastrophic damage and have killed 26 people and injured countless others. 

Early Saturday morning, U.S. President Joe Biden offered full federal support to communities devastated by the storms that swept through Mississippi and Alabama. 

Ethan Herndon, 33, was killed while his wife Elizabeth was left with a broken arm, leg, and hip

In a GoFundMe created for the Herndon family states that the family is ‘physically and emotionally shattered,’ by the storms and the deaths.

‘They have suffered the most painful and terrifying loss any of us can imagine, and their needs are obvious and great,’ the fundraiser’s description reads. 

According to the page, Elizabeth suffered injuries including a broken arm and leg as well as a dislocated hip when their home in Mississippi was hit by the tornado. 

Her oldest child, Brantley, is currently in the hospital with multiple broken bones, a lacerated liver, and a punctured lung. He had to be airlifted to Lebonhuer Hospital for his severe injuries.  

Aubrey was also taken to Lebonhuer with multiple lacerations, a broken elbow, and a possible broken ankle.

The fundraiser was posted early Saturday morning and had already surpassed its $30,000 goal, hitting $80,000  within 10 hours of it going up. 

Donations and words of encourage poured in on the page from those who heard about the family’s devastating story and wanted to help. 

One person who donated anonymously contributed $10,000 to the cause. 

‘I don’t know this family personally but prayers going up for all of them. May God comfort and wrap His loving arms around them and hold them close during this tragic time,’ wrote one person who donated $50.  

According to Elizabeth’s Facebook page, this is the second time she has lost a child. 

In her profile, the mother says ‘mommy of four’ and writes ‘We miss you sweet Wyatt.’ The mother also advocates for awareness of trisomy 13, a genetic condition that can affect normal fetal development. 

The fundraiser was posted early Saturday morning and had already surpassed its $30,000 goal, hitting $80,000 within 10 hours of it going up

The series of two dozen tornadoes that struck the area caused catastrophic damage and have killed 26 people and injured countless others

The Herndon family is just one of thousands currently reeling in the aftermath of the series of 24-plus tornadoes that hit Mississippi and Alabama

FEMA tweeted: ‘Following last night’s devastating tornadoes, we are coordinating with @MSEMA officials to support affected communities’

The Herndon family is just one of thousands currently reeling in the aftermath of the series of 24-plus tornadoes that hit Mississippi and Alabama. 

One man in Rolling Fork, Mississippi – a town of less than 2,000 people – said his sister was killed and didn’t even get the chance to get out of bed. 

‘Now, I didn’t even go down there when they told me she had got killed,’ he said. 

‘I didn’t even want to go. She stayed in a mobile home right on the other side of that park right there. I didn’t even go. I didn’t want to see it. She never, she never got out of bed,’ the unidentified man told FOX Weather. 

He said the storms were so severe he heard his own roof come off just moments after he ran inside to seek shelter after hearing the storm coming. 

‘When I went in the closet, and it snatched the door back open and pulled me out,’ the man said. 

‘I heard the roof coming off, and then, all of a sudden, a big boom, and it was gone.’

The man’s sister has not been publicly identified as of late Saturday evening. 

One man in Rolling Fork, Mississippi – a town of less than 2,000 people – said his sister was killed and didn’t even get the chance to get out of bed

‘Now, I didn’t even go down there when they told me she had got killed,’ the man said

She stayed in a mobile home right on the other side of that park right there. I didn’t even go. I didn’t want to see it. She never, she never got out of bed,’ the unidentified man said 

One woman whose mother lived in Rolling Fork described the painful moments she pulled up to the scene and realized the extent of the damage. 

Lequita Barfield said she had heard that a tornado had gone through her mother’s town and began to panic when her mother, Mary Barfield, did not answer. 

The daughter said her mother lived in a mobile home. 

‘I just got a feeling that something was wrong,’ Lequita said in an interview Saturday evening. ‘I jumped in the car, and I got on the road.’ 

When she arrived in Rolling Fork, she said she found everything ‘just gone’ and added that she had to walk the last mile to her mom’s home because of debris. 

In the destruction, Lequita’s mother’s home had been flipped upside down. 

A man then led the daughter to an alleyway where there was an unmoving body lying under a mattress. 

‘I called for her, but she didn’t answer,’ Lequita said, telling media outlets she attempted to pull her body out. ‘She didn’t move her hand. She didn’t do anything.’

‘My mom is gone,’ the grieving daughter said. ‘My mom is gone.’

Lequita Barfield said she had heard that a tornado had gone through her mother’s town and began to panic when her mother, Mary Barfield (pictured) did not answer

 A vicious storm system spawning 24 twisters that ravaged Mississippi has torn apart a small rural town in the state with drone footage revealing the breadth of the devastation

Search and rescue teams have now been deployed to Rolling Fork, along with ambulances

Wonder Bolden was seen cradling her one-year-old granddaughter Journey as she surveys the remains of her mother’s tornado demolished mobile home in Rolling Fork

One of the biggest tornadoes to hit the air cut a path of at least 170 miles through Mississippi. 

On Saturday, the National Weather Service (NWS) sent crews to survey the damage. 

The weather service said that the extremely ‘rare’ weather system, which killed at least 26 people, took place because ‘all the ingredients were there.’

The Governor of Mississippi Tate Reeves declared a state of emergency on Saturday after surveying the extensive damage in the wake of the deadly storm in the hardest hit towns Silver City and Rolling Fork. 

The White House offered ‘full federal support’ to communities devastated by the natural disaster, President Biden saying he’s praying for those affected. 

Biden said that he’s ‘praying for those who have lost loved ones’ and ‘for those whose loved ones are missing.’

In a statement, the president wrote that he had reached out to Gov. Reeves, that he had spoken with Sens. Roger Wicker and Cindy Hyde-Smith, and that he had touched base with Rep. Bennie Thompson about the situation. 

He expressed condolences and offered ‘full federal support as communities recover from the effects of this storm.’

President Joe Biden spoke with state and local leaders after a deadly storm that spawned 24 twisters ripped through Mississippi and parts of Alabama

The Governor of Mississippi Tate Reeves declared a state of emergency on Saturday after surveying the extensive damage in the wake of the deadly storm in the hardest hit towns Silver City and Rolling Fork

A monster tornado cut a deadly path of at least 170 miles through Mississippi and produced dozens of other twisters obliterating towns in the state and ravaging parts of Alabama

The National Weather Service (NWS) sent crews to survey the tornado, but preliminary information based on estimates from storm reports and radar data indicate that one tornado was on the ground for more than an hour

Administrator of the Federal Emergency Management Agency Deanne Criswell were also among people Biden reached out to in the wake of the devastation.

‘[She] has already deployed emergency response personnel and resources to support search-and-rescue and assess the damage,’ he said.

‘We will do everything we can to help. We will work together to deliver the support you need to recover, for as long as it takes.’

FEMA tweeted: ‘Following last night’s devastating tornadoes, we are coordinating with @MSEMA officials to support affected communities.’

‘We are working closely with our state partners to assess the impacted areas. Our thoughts are with those communities and their loved ones.’

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