Teton and Tornado

[tnance]

Friends of mine were in their 10-year old Teton when a tornado stuck. They said the Teton lifted in the air before it rolled. While they suffered some cuts and bruises they both walked away. As you can see in the photo below the Teton ended up on its roof. The only broken glass was the inside pane of the large double pane rear window. No other window broke. All the cabinets in the kitchen and bedroom were still in place on the wall, and all the cabinet doors still worked. The entry door still opened without dragging. I wonder how many other 10-year old fifth wheels could have fared this well. They don’t build them like they used too!

[davydee]

Exhibit #1 in what makes up a true, quality built 5th wheel.

[Hitchhiker]

Wow, glad they weren't hurt. A real testimonial for a quality rig that might have made the difference between life and death. Or at least between cuts and bruises and serious injury.

I've seen other photos of RV's that were flipped in a heavy wind and they break apart into hundreds of pieces and scatter their contents to the wind.

[TXiceman]

Glad everyone made it through with and injury. The RV can always be replaced.

Ken

[bstark]

Whew! Have also seen pic's of rigs that have been turned upside down and the largest chunk remaining was the plastic toilet. Did Teton ever change from the 'stick' built wood framing?

Is that the reinforcing wire from the sewer hose still attached to the RV? If so, that trailer has been moved considerable distance from it's site as well.

[tnance]

Teton never changed from wood framing. The trailer in the photo was 10-years old. I believe its length was 39 ft. I would suspect it weighed around 20,000 lbs.

Yes, I believe the wire you see is the reinforcing wire of the sewer hose. The original position of the trailer was on the gravel pad at the far left. You can also see the water hose and filter in the photo. It appears the trailer rolled once.

Eddie and Betty were in the trailer at the time of the tornado. They felt the trailer lift first then it rolled. Both were knocked unconscious by being tumbled about. From looking at photos of the interior of the trailer they were probably hit by some of the furniture. From photos you can see the oak dining table, chairs, sofa and recliners all on the roof which is now the floor of the trailer.

The tornado occurred May 1st in Tennessee.

Link to news article about the tornado.

http://www.wsmv.com/weather/19344900/detail.html