After the Dec. 26 tornado hit Rowlett, junior Michelle Juby assessed the damage to her house and then went to help.

Due to her knowledge of first aid and CPR from classes that she had taken, Juby assisted the injured people.

“There was this guy that wasn’t breathing and me and two other guys pulled rubble off of him and we started doing CPR, and he [turned out] fine,” Juby said. “There was [also] a two-year-old who I found underneath a porch and he had a giant gash across his face whenever I came up to him. His voice was hoarse like he had been screaming for a really long time and I pulled him out and started patching him up.”

Earlier that evening, Juby and her family were in the middle of watching “Star Wars: The Force Awakens” at the movie theaters when they learned a tornado was going to happen.

“[The manager said it was] heading right toward Rowlett and I saw my mom’s face go white,” Juby said. “She was like ‘Holy crap, we live in Rowlett!’ We got a call from my sister; she was underneath the stairs at our house, and the tornado was right on top of [the house].”

After learning the information, Juby headed home immediately to see the damage. Along the way, her family saw cars toppled over each other, and they started to grow anxious.

“We got to the house, and the roof was gone,” Juby said. “A large section of it where my 18-month-old nephew would have been sleeping, my brother’s room, and a part of mine and my mom’s rooms [were gone].”

Juby’s family had mainly lost general items such as furniture, clothing and a few electronics that were replaceable, but she also lost a special item given to her by her grandmother.

“We lost this teddy bear that my [grandmother] got me,” Juby said. “It has my name on the back of it and it has my grandmother’s saying written across the butt [that] says, ‘Love you more.’”

Though most people would experience distress from a natural disaster, Juby said that these situations felt normal for her because of many past experiences.

“It was really kind of more traumatic for my sister, her husband, and my little nephew,” Juby said. “I’m fine. I’ve lost so much stuff before. We’ve been robbed. We’ve had our house broken into. We’ve had our house stolen, because we were in a trailer park. [So] it was just another day [in comparison].”

According to Juby, broken windows are a result of pressure and it is recommended that in an event of a natural disaster, you should open your house window and car doors, depending on where you are. It is better to have damage due to debris, because it is harder to claim insurance on pressure damage. These small things could help save thousands of dollars. It is also imperative that those affected should register for housing and financial assistance immediately.

“First thing you should do [after a natural disaster] is register with Red Cross and FEMA,” Juby said. “Even if it’s not declared a natural disaster, at some point it will be, [and] Red Cross and FEMA will help you out.”

Juby said she was amazed by all the community support that was given during this time. She received clothing and financial help from others and said that people were walking up and down the streets with hot meals and offered to help with anything.

“The only thing I’ve ever cried about in this entire situation, [was due to] the graciousness that people showed us, like the fact that human nature and human courtesy still existed,” Juby said.