‘I thought we were going to die’: North Mississippi man remembers moments during tornado

MEMPHIS, Tenn. (WMC) – Neighbors are still searching for memories scattered across the fields of their destroyed homes in north Mississippi.

Crockett, a small community outside Senatobia, was hit by what preliminary reports by an EF-3 tornado, according to the National Weather Service.

“You know, we are live. And we are very, very lucky,” said Greg Griffin, a man whose home sits in that small neighborhood.

Griffin’s home was in the middle of it all. His family lived there near Waverly Circle for 15 years. He said what happened Wednesday night was something he does not want to experience again.

“You could feel everything shaking. It felt like a dump truck, full of gravel, driving on top of our roof,” he said. “I just knew we were going to get sucked out of this.”

After receiving an alert on his phone, he gathered his family in a hallway closet. He did not know that a closet and a mattress would save their lives.

“I just dove on top of them, thinking maybe my weight will help hold them down,” said Griffin.

Memories and thoughts flooded his mind in those few moments where they found safety.

“When I realized it was happening, I thought we were going to die,” he said. “And when that goes through your head, memories flash, and I was thinking, my baby grandson here is going to die, and he is 15 months old. I mean, it was just a plethora of things going through my mind. I didn’t want them to die like that.

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