Hooker said Annistyns parents learned when she was 2 months old that she had a rare liver disorder in which bile ducts dont develop properly, sometimes making it hard to fight off illness. "Sometime during this conversation, she Snapchatted that picture of the girls in the tub. She said she bonded with Annistyn during doctors visits and blood draws and said the girl liked to draw with chalk on the cement of her carport. After a series of violent storms devastated many midwestern and southern communities last week, one young injured girl is inspiring the masses with her bravery. Are the girls going to know? Annistyn was a bubbly little girl, her great aunt Sandra Hooker told People . All rights reserved. Annistyn Rackley, 9, poses for a picture while attending a cheerleading competition in Arizona. The rain will subside in the evening, when the focus will shift to the wind, the NBC 5 Storm Team says, with strong gusts expected across most of the region. Mutual Fund and ETF data provided by Refinitiv Lipper. "The loss, it is exponential," Mandi Alexander, a friend of Meghan's, said at an emotional gathering of some 200 people Sunday at a riverside park to memorialize the young girl, TV station KAIT reported. Earlier reports showed the strongest parts of the storm likely to be in southern Kankakee county and into Northwest Indiana. On Monday night, after family members who picked through the debris of the Rackley home found the torn front page of Annistyn's Bible engraved with her name, along with a doll she especially treasured, a Pemiscot County Sheriff's deputy knocked on Hooker's door. ", "I believe she was an angel walking among us, because she was so kind and sweet and loving and caring, not just to me, but to everyone," she says. She said she bonded with Annistyn during doctors visits and blood draws and said the girl liked to draw with chalk on the cement of her carport. The middle child, Avalinn, or Ava, had broken vertebrae in her back and was expected to undergo surgery Wednesday, Hooker said. Girls high school basketball team forfeits a game because it refused to play against a team with a transgender player, Fox Leaders Wanted to Break From Trump but Struggled to Make It Happen, Not Going to Read That: White House Press Secretary Brushes Off DeSantis Op-Ed, Teacher accused of hiding recording devices in school bathrooms, Teen last seen at mall is missing, Newington police say, Journal Sentinel reporters recognized nationally for coverage of health issues, Boys basketball roundup: Teddy Williams' double-double helps Grand Ledge top Eastern, Biden administration urges Congress to renew warrantless surveillance law. To prove they were in their "safe space" with the storm approaching Friday evening, the girls mom texted her Aunt Sandy a photo of the three in and next to the bathtub all of them smiling, 9-year-old Annistyn holding her favorite doll. See the damage of the tornado that tore through Kentucky and other states, Kentucky tornado survivors share stories of their terrifying experience, Your California Privacy Rights/Privacy Policy. "There was a lot of loud, loud noises and banging," Rackley recalled on what he felt and heard Friday night, minutes before the tornado made a direct hit on their home. Seven-year-old Avalinn told doctors she flew around in the tornado, Hooker said. And that would be the safest place. That tornado just spit me out and threw me in the ground, in the mud.'". (KAIT) The family of a woman severely hurt when deadly tornadoes hit the town of Braggadocio said the young mother is out of the hospital, describing her recovery as a miracle.. The familys home was destroyed as they were carried into the air by the twister, landing in a field where they were found in the mud by first responders. Several hours later, the Tornado watches and warnings were issued. Market data provided by Factset. The great aunt of a nine-year-old Missouri girl killed last week in the deadly tornado outbreak across the Midwest shared the moments leading up to the tragedy in an emotional "Fox & Friends" interview Wednesday. Powered and implemented by FactSet Digital Solutions. Family of Missouri Tornado Victim Annistyn Rackley Pays Tribute Human Interest Younger Sibling of 9-Year-Old Missouri Tornado Victim: Now 'I'll Have to Be the BRAGADOCCIO, Mo. And she said, 'I prayed to Jesus to take care of me. Their house is splintered, she told The Associated Press during a telephone interview. If you purchase a product or register for an account through one of the links on our site, we may receive compensation. And so they were readythey thought," said Hooker during an appearance on "Fox & Friends" with Steve Doocy, Ainsley Earhardt and Lawrence Jones. "I prayed to Jesus for him to take care of me and that tornado spit me out into the mud," a 7-year-old reportedly told doctors. West of St Louis, 84-year-old Ollie Borgmann, described as a sweet and typical grandmother, died at a hospital after a tornado on Friday blew the Defiance, Missouri home she shared with her 84-year-old husband, Vernon, off its foundation. All rights reserved. One confirmed death in Missouri was a nine-year-old girl, Annistyn Rackley Her two sisters and parents survived when their house was destroyed by a tornado At least 88 people have died across five states as tornadoes ripped through multiple United States communities in the South and Midwest. Sandra Hooker shares a photo of Annistyn Rackley taken minutes before she was killed in storm. MISSOURI GIRL, PICTURED 15 MINUTES BEFORE TORNADO HIT, FOUND DEAD IN FIELD DOZENS OF YARDS AWAY, In this photo provided by Sandra Hooker, from left, Avalinn Rackley, 7, Alanna Rackley, 3, and Annistyn Rackley, 9, pose for a picture in a bathroom in their home near Caruthersville, Missouri. According to the NWS, quarter-sized hail is also possible in those areas. Annistyn's father, Trey Rackley, suffered cuts and bruises. Gov Mike Parson s office said that about 30,000 Missouri residents initially were without power. A candle factory in Mayfield, Kentucky, and an Amazon facility in Edwardsville, Illinois, were hit. Gov. Early Monday, the NWS reported the severe weather threat most likely to be at its greatest Monday between 7 a.m. and noon, along and south of Interstate 80, potentially extending into Chicago. There's some good news, though: temperatures are expected to be nearly 15 degrees above average, with highs in the 50s. We need continued prayers for Meghans improvement and getting her settled in a new normal when she gets to come home.. Seven-year-old Avalinn told doctors she flew around "in the tornado," Hooker said. Our hearts are shattered over the loss of Annistyn, Proctor Moore said. But update shortly after that indicated that "the severe weather threat appears to be diminishing. "She was just that giving, caring young girl and all of that has been robbed from her," Sandra Hooker, Annisytn's great aunt, told ABC24 Memphis Tuesday afternoon. Mutual Fund and ETF data provided by Refinitiv Lipper. Mike Parsons office said that about 30,000 Missouri residents initially were without power. But she adds that finding those three specific, tangible pieces from the girl's life are a comfort. She loved dancing.. You've successfully subscribed to this newsletter! "All of them were absolutely covered in mud from head to toe," Hooker says of the immediate aftermath. Amid Meghan's fight, the family is keeping vigil while they and their community make plans for Annistyn's funeral. Hooker teaches gifted students at the same elementary school where Meghan Rackley teaches kindergarten in Caruthersville, which is nestled next to the Mississippi River in whats known as Missouris Bootheel region. ", "He found Ava, and the 7-year-old is precocious and has, in my opinion, a near photographic memory," Hooker adds. Meghan and Trey had discussed it. Tornadoes also roared through both the Missouri and Illinois sides of the St. Louis area, as well as the Memphis, Tennessee, area and parts of Arkansas and Illinois. Get ready.' Get all the stories you need-to-know from the most powerful name in news delivered first thing every morning to your inbox. Cookie Settings/Do Not Sell My Personal Information. ", "Trey said Lani had gotten out of the tub and he got on top of her, on the floor," adds Hooker. For more on the devastating tornadoes that occurred and other top stories, listen below to our daily podcast on PEOPLE Every Day. AMAZON EMPLOYEE ALMOST PICKED UP SHIFT BEFORE TORNADO STRUCK WAREHOUSE, KILLING CO-WORKERS. In Pemiscot County in southeastern Missouri, bordering Arkansas and Kentucky, where the Rackleys live, the sheriffs office did not immediately return telephone messages Monday seeking comment about the storm that destroyed the Rackleys home. The family member is grateful for her community's emotional and financial support to date, as they pray the mother and elementary school teacher pulls through. The familys home was destroyed as they were carried into the air by the twister, landing in a field where The stuff was just strewn everywhere.". She did cartwheels and splits in front of Hooker. According to the NBC 5 Storm Team, steady, heavy rain is expected to continue developing throughout the morning, impacting roads and highways as commuters make their way to work. This video is Meghan, 32, her husband Trey, 37, and their three girls Annistyn and younger siblings Avalinn, 7, and Lani, 3 had moved to their new home outside of Caruthersville just one week before the tornado leveled it. "I would just gasp because she could do the splits all the time, and she would just laugh," Hooker said. LOTE EN VA PARQUE SIQUIMAN A 2 CUADRAS DE LAGO SAN ROQUE. However, the entire Chicago area has seen heavy, on-and-off downpours throughout the morning. A MOM took a heartbreaking final snap of her daughter holding onto her favorite doll to show she was safe before a series of deadly tornadoes hit the Midwest. The body of Annistyn Rackley, nine, was found in a field after the twister devastated her parents' home near Caruthersville, southeast Missouri on Friday. But their nine-year-old daughter, Annistyn, did not survive. Hooker said that the girls mother is "fighting for her life" and unresponsive in the hospital after sustaining severe brain trauma, broken bones, and deep lacerations. Seven-year-old Avalinn told doctors she flew around in the tornado, Ms Hooker said. On the right, the Rackley family poses for a picture while on a trip to Sedona, Arizona. "Then she said, 'Then I'll have to be the big sister to Lani.'". Hooker called Annistyn Rackley a "special angel," recalling the girl as outgoing and energetic despite a rare liver condition that required regular doctors visits. Trey and Meghan Rackley and their three daughters sought shelter in a windowless bathroom in their southeast Missouri home as storms raged across the middle of the country. A candle factory in Mayfield, Kentucky, and an Amazon facility in Edwardsville, Illinois, were hit. On the right, the Rackley family poses for a picture while on a trip to Sedona, Arizona. Ms Hooker called Annistyn a special angel, recalling the girl as outgoing and energetic despite a rare liver condition that required regular doctors visits. The other family members were injured, but survived. Ms Hooker also said she talked to the girls father. She said she talked to the girl's mother, Meghan Rackley, on Friday afternoon about the possibility of bad storms. From left, Annistyn Rackley with sisters Avalinn and Lani. Additionally, there were reports that a "brief tornado" touched down in DuPage County, and reports of wind damage from a "possible tornado in Kendall County. Hooker said Meghan Rackleys injuries included broken bones, a brain injury and a large cut, and shes asking people to pray for the 32-year-old mother. Hooker is the sister of Meghan Rackley's grandmother, and she said she and Annistyn, or Anni, grew close over the past four years. Annistyn, a third-grader who loved swimming, dancing and cheerleading, died, one of dozens killed in five states. 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