Amid the devastation, chaos. Shining through the chaos, hope.
Raw footage from the scene at Briarwood Elementary, one of two Oklahoma City-area schools severely hit by Monday's massive tornado, captures the emotional reunion of two neighbors in the storm's aftermath.
Dressed in a red shirt, first responder Jim Routon, 47, of Moore, Okla., embraces Hezekiah Darbon, 6, after the EF5 tornado ripped through Briarwood, destroying the school building. The jarring video, aired by KFOR, shows adults scrambling to find children after the storm.
“When we got to the school it was pretty much chaos and destruction,” Routon told ABC's "Good Morning America." "People were just running in all directions, trying to find their children... I think I needed that hug as much as he [Hezekiah] did."
Although there were a few minor injuries, miraculously, no fatalities were reported at Briarwood Elementary, according to Oklahoma's News 9. A school spokesman told the station that students and faculty took shelter in hallways and under desks moments before the tornado struck.
But tragedy struck just miles away, as Plaza Towers Elementary School was leveled by the storm. Seven children died at Plaza Towers after the school took a direct hit from the tornado, Reuters reported Tuesday.