Heroic rescues: Tornado survivors team up with first responders

Tornado survivors rush to help first responders

When the tornado that tossed vehicles and ripped apart homes passed, Nick Naylor jumped out of his storm shelter in Mayflower, Ark., and immediately started looking for his friends.

CBS News' Manuel Bojorquez spotted him as Naylor was carrying a gravely injured 4-year-old girl in his arms.

"Keep your eyes up on me, you hear me?" Naylor said to the girl.

Her name is Grace. Naylor found her about 50 yards from her parents and what was left of their house.

"Lord, you're going take care of this child, I know you are. Because we put our faith in you, God," Naylor said while carrying Grace.

Naylor put her inside a sheriff's truck, which then drove off to find paramedics. He said finding Grace that way was devastating.

"I've got five of my own, and that's all I could think about," he said. "My only boy plays with her, just about every day in that yard that she was laying in. I don't want to have to look into a little child's eyes and see her hurting like that."

When Bojorquez caught up with Naylor again, he was out searching for more victims.

"Cindy, if you're in here, make a noise!" Naylor yelled in front of what used to be a house.

"OK!" someone responded from the rubble.

"We got her! OK!" he said.

Massive twister devastates Arkansas town
Naylor is not a rescue worker. He does flooring. Yet he was one of dozens of residents who teamed up with first responders to help their ailing neighbors. Life and death hinged on quick thinking and improvisation. Pickup trucks were used as ambulances. Anything flat served as a stretcher.

"I knew they had to be helped, and I knew they were friends of mine. And some of them I didn't know, but it didn't matter. It's a life," Naylor said.

Naylor helped rescue about half a dozen people Sunday night -- none more precious than little Grace.

"I love you Grace," he said to the 4-year-old as emergency medical workers prepared to take her away on an ambulance.

"She will be in a body cast from her chest down for awhile," Naylor said. "She is alive. That little girl is strong. Let me tell you, God had his hands on her."

Naylor said Grace sustained broken bones and internal injuries, but she is stable. Her parents were also seriously injured and are recovering at the hospital.

f

We and our partners use cookies to understand how you use our site, improve your experience and serve you personalized content and advertising. Read about how we use cookies in our cookie policy and how you can control them by clicking Manage Settings. By continuing to use this site, you accept these cookies.