As danger loomed over Valley View’s Shell gas station in the darkness, drivers abandoned their vehicles and sought refuge inside the convenience store with adjoining restaurants just before it bore the brunt of the tornado’s impact.
“The walls were collapsing,” recalled Hugo Parra of Farmers Branch. “The wind was relentless.”
They could hear the deafening roar of the winds, felt their ears pop, and sensed the building beginning to buckle.
“The windows started shattering. The lights went out,” recounted Ana Parra, who was accompanied by her father, mother, husband, and siblings. “We were terrified in there.”
The family was en route to the casino in Oklahoma along Interstate 35 when they received a call urging them to seek shelter.
“Inside, people were being directed to the restaurant, to the chairs and tables,” said Hugo Parra. “I told everyone: No! Let’s head to the bathrooms!”
He swiftly guided strangers and his family, including his pregnant wife Ana, toward the bathrooms. Parra estimates that 50-60 people sought refuge inside when the tornado struck.
“My wife asked me: Are you scared?” he said. “I said: ‘No.’ I don’t know why, but I felt like I had to protect everyone. It’s what I feel in my heart.”
A similar act of selflessness unfolded with Kenneth Bolden, Sr. He huddled in one bathroom with his 23-year-old son, Kenneth Jr., while his mother took cover underneath a sink in another bathroom.
“My son shielded me,” he recounted. “I was crouched down on my knees.”
Kenneth Jr. expressed his willingness to protect his father from harm at all costs.
“I would take a hit for my family,” he affirmed. “If I survive, I’ll bear the brunt for my family. I’m younger, and I believe my body would recover faster. If not, then he gets to keep on living.”
Thankfully, mom, dad, and son emerged from the ordeal unscathed.
