She continued upstairs, and made her way to the top floor to make sure everyone had left. Seeing that the roof was clear, she looked up at the sky just as she turned to leave, and stopped suddenly. Behind her it was blue, but slicing the sky in half was a line of black clouds with an underlining green tint that looked so eerie it sent chills down her back. She walked over to the edge of the parking deck, never taking her eyes off the turbulent sky. Just as her intuition told her to run, her curiosity told her to stay. Her curiosity won, and Aidan stood there, with the wind whipping at her hair, and watched as a funnel cloud came down from the rotating clouds, and Aidan knew she was seeing exactly what Vicky had described, a massive tornado, which looked to be directly over the downtown area of the city, approximately five miles from the hospital.
Aidan stood motionless, mesmerized by the enormity of the tornado, until her cell phone rang, pulling her away from the terrifying hold it had on her. It was Vicky calling. Aidan answered the phone, but didn’t have time to speak into it as she ran down the stairs, two steps at a time, to the first floor. By that time, the wind from the tornado had picked up significantly, already sending debris spiraling through the air, like a projectile missile. She yelled for everyone to drop what they were doing and take shelter.
Aidan only had seconds now, as even more debris from the tornado reached the parking deck area first. She thought she heard a train rumbling toward her, but she knew there weren’t any trains anywhere near the hospital, and then she realized that the roar was coming from the tornado barreling down on top of her. Sensing she was out of time, she ran to the stairwell, which was made of reinforced concrete, and hunkered down in the corner, covering her head with her arms. Unaware that the phone had dropped the call, she yelled into it, “I love you, Vicky!” When she realized she had lost the connection, she quickly called Vicky back.
Suddenly, Aidan felt the air being sucked out of the stairwell, as the tornado reached the parking deck. Outside the staircase, cars were being slammed into each other, and Aidan crouched tighter against the far wall. The sound of a car suddenly bashing loudly against the door, where metal scraped against metal, made Aidan jump, her pulse raced as she braced herself. But the car only dented the metal door before being blown into another corner of the building. Frightened, Aidan screamed, “God, please don’t make Vicky a widow on her wedding day!”
Inside the hospital, Vicky huddled in a crowded hallway, together with her family and friends. There had never been a tornado to come that close to St. Frances Hospital before, and she was very anxious for her patients. She could hear the roar of the winds, even inside a building with layers of brick and concrete. For an instant her mind flashed on the destruction and carnage she knew a tornado could produce, and she said a quick prayer that the tornado would pass them by. Oh Aidan, where are you?
Ruth sat next to her sister in the hallway, as Kate made her way over to her. Without saying a word, Ruth held out her arm to her, and Kate nestled in beside her, accepting the comfort of Ruth’s strong arm around her shoulders. Ruth pulled her in tight, assuring her everything would be all right, and hoping that she would be right in that assumption.
Vicky jumped when her cellphone vibrated in her hand. Aidan’s picture came up as the caller ID and Vicky quickly accepted the call, putting it to her ear. At first all she could hear was static, and then she heard Aidan screaming to be heard over the noise, but she couldn’t make out what she was saying. “I love you, Aidan!” Vicky screamed back, just as the phone went dead. She trembled in fear that Aidan was caught up in the turbulent winds, hurt and calling for her. Her imagination began to play tricks on her, and she jumped up to go find her wife. Leonard grabbed her, and held her back.
“No please, I have to find Aidan!” Vicky pleaded, but her father was stronger and held her fast, as the sirens blared and the tornado roared overhead, “Oh God, please don’t make Aidan a widow on her wedding day!”
Chapter 8
Before a tornado hits, things are incredibly frantic. The sirens are screeching, the wind is howling, and the humidity is suffocating. But after a tornado has loose its terrible wrath, the wind blows the clouds away, and the air is still and humid free. In some cases a storm follows along behind the tornado, making the scene of destruction even more miserable. Or, as in the case of the Little Rock tornado, the clouds parted and the sun shined brightly down on the obliteration, as if it were trying to make up for the frightening darkness the tornado had brought. And in that split second afterwards, no sounds were heard, save for the whimpering of a child held tight to its mother’s breast.
As quickly as the tornado came up over Little Rock, was just how quickly it disappeared. The sirens were still blaring, the car alarms still wailing, but the tornado had lost its outflow of air when the cold air dissipated over the parking deck, leaving only warm air, which is not enough to feed it, so the twister folded up into the clouds and seemingly evaporated.
Aidan slowly lifted her head, shaking the dirt and dust out of her hair and off of her clothes. Standing up on unsteady legs, she wasn’t sure at first, if it was really over with. She listened at the door, but when she didn’t hear the train anymore, she tried to open it and found that it was jammed. She yanked on it a few times, and finally put her foot up on the wall and pushed, as she pulled with all her might. The door flew open, sending her back against the wall. She regained her balance, and her breath, and peeked outside the stairwell, at the bent, dented, and tumbled cars lying strewned about.
She had to climb over several cars, until she could jump down to the concrete floor. She looked around to orient herself, and saw that the building had cracks in its columns, but had withstood the violent winds, much to her relief. She pulled out her cellphone and tried to call Vicky again, but there was too much static interference, so she pocketed her phone and moved as fast as she could for the entrance. Something out of the corner of her eye caught her attention, and she looked to see a car on fire. “Fuck me!” she yelled as she ran for the nearest exit, praying the car wouldn’t explode. But it did explode, and the blast sent her flying to the ground, once again covering her head from airborne debris. Luckily she was unscathed and she hurried out of the deck toward the hospital.
Aidan stopped to catch her breath, and then looked up at the sky in amazement. It was completely blue, with only a few puffy dark clouds lingering about. She looked at the hospital next and exhaled gratefully, when she saw that it did not appear to have any damage. She thought at least a tree or two would have been blown over, and had she given it further thought, she would have realized the parking deck had shielded the hospital from the initial onslaught, but she didn’t linger to wonder why, she ran for the front lobby.
“Vicky!” Aidan screamed, as she barreled through the doors. She didn’t care about professionalism right then, or the fact she was screaming in a hospital, she just wanted to find her bride and make sure she was all right, and apparently Vicky felt the same way because she called out to her, “Aidan! Over here!”
Aidan ran over to her and gathered her up in her arms, “Oh, my God, are you all right?”
“I’m all right now that you’re here, but are you all right? I was so scared for you.”
“I saw the tornado, Vicky! I saw what you saw. It was awesome!” It’s not that Aidan didn’t appreciate the severity of the situation, but this was her first tornado experience, and as terrifying as it was, it was also exhilarating in the sheer power that it possessed.
“I know exactly what you mean, Aidan, it is fascinating,” Vicky agreed, ignoring her still twitching nerves. “I’m just so glad you’re all right.”
Seeing how frighten her wife was, Aidan put her hand on Vicky’s shoulder and pulled her into a gentle, reassuring kiss that soon had Vicky trembling for a different reason. God, I was so afraid for you.
“Yvonne!” Jerry came running over to Yvonne, who was still crouched in the hallway. He had ridden out the tornado in the front lobby because that was as far as h
e could make it before it hit the parking deck. “Are you all right?” Yvonne practically jumped into Jerry’s arms, shaking and crying. He wrapped his comforting arms around her and said, “Thank God, you’re all right. What about Freddie?”
Yvonne released him and pulled out her cellphone, showing Jerry a text message from her son, “I received this text right before the phone went dead. He’s fine, thank God.” She had left him in daycare after the wedding because he was to cranky to stay any longer at the reception and Yvonne knew he’d have more fun playing with the other kids. Besides, she wanted to have a little fun herself.
Ruth stood up and looked at Alice, “Are you all right?”
“We’re fine, are you all right?”
“Yeah, right as rain.” Ruth laughed nervously and Alice raised her eyebrow, “What? Too soon?” Ruth asked mischievously, more so to relieve her built up tension, than to be funny. She turned to help Kate up, but Kate was already standing, smoothing down her skirt.
“Damn, that was more intense than my last orgasm.” She looked up at the surprised faces looking at her, and she whispered to Ruth, “Shit, did I just say that out loud?”
Ruth laughed and then fibbed, “Yes, but I don’t think anyone heard you.”
Paul walked over to Vicky, anticipating that she would want a report on the damages from the tornado. “The police scanner indicates that the tornado warning and severe storm warnings have been lifted. We can breathe easy now, thank God. I have my staff out assessing the campus for damages, but it looks like just the parking deck suffered the brunt of the tornado, and most of that was to the cars. There are several cracks in the support columns and overhead beams that will need to be repaired before we can use it again. At first inspection, the hospital looks like it wasn’t touched at all. I talked with Rebecca who said that her nurses are reporting no injuries to the patients or staff, and‒‒”
But before Paul could finish his report, Vicky raised her hand to stop him, and then excused herself. She squeezed Aidan’s hand and told her that she would be right back, and then she walked into the communications office, and asked the operator for the microphone for the house wide speaker.
“Your attention please. This is Victoria Montgomery-Cassidy, President and CEO of St. Frances. Please stand down from code black stat, I repeat, code black stat all clear.” Calling or canceling a code was not usually something the CEO concerned herself with. She had people to do that for her, but something of this magnitude compelled Vicky to reassure her employees and patients. “God in his mercy has spared St. Frances once again. Please join me in prayer if you are so incline. ‘Our Father, who art in heaven, hallowed be thy name…,”
Aidan looked around at the other’s standing nearby, and saw that their heads were bowed, some in tears, as they recited the prayer together. She didn’t really know all the words but Aidan bowed her head and let the others speak for her, joining in at the end with a hearty, “Amen!”
Vicky came out of the office with moist eyes. She looked up at Aidan, whose heart melted at the sight of Vicky’s large eyes shimmering with teardrops, and she pulled her in close for a reassuring embrace. She rubbed her back and kissed her forehead, and Vicky absorbed the warmth of her touch, like it was a healing balm soothing her frayed nerves.
“I’m all right honey.” Vicky said softly, patting Aidan’s back.
In the meantime, the Leadership Executive team members, who had attended the wedding, gathered around, anxious to learn if they were needed, because they desperately wanted to get home to their loved ones. All except Paul, who had been listening to the police chatter on his walkie‒talkie.
“Ma’am,” he said, “initial reports are saying that the downtown area was hit pretty hard with a lot of people injured.” Those standing within earshot of Paul gasped in shock. “They’re asking for any and all assistance from local hospitals, and to be aware that there’s too much debris on the road for the ambulances to maneuver through, so they’re setting up a triage at ground zero.”
Vicky immediately took charge, “Okay, let’s get our people down there. Have the ER pack as many supplies as they can spare, and I’ll get back on the microphone and ask for volunteers, and‒‒”
“I’ll help,” Joyce said as she and Ellen walked into the lobby, wearing scrubs that they had changed into when they first got to cardiology, “And so will I,” Ellen offered.
Rebecca Collins, Chief Nursing Officer, came off the elevator and joined the group, offering to help as well. Soon everyone, even Vicky’s parents were offering to help. Vicky’s leadership team immediately raised their hands as well.
“Thank you, thank you all. Let me say how much I appreciate your sacrifices. My loved ones are here with me, so I am spared the anxiety of making sure they’re all right, as I know you wish you could do. Please don’t hesitate to call your families and let them know you’re safe and sound, and vice versa. In the meantime, Rebecca, who can we spare from the floors?”
Rebecca replied, “I will stay here and cover for the nurse managers. I can spare five of them, and the two float nurses on duty right now, the rest of the managers will stay here and help me cover the other floors.”
“Sounds good, ask them to bring any supplies they can spare, and to come immediately.”
Vicky turned to Nick Belanka, Director of Laundry and Linen next, and said, “Nick, please call down to the laundry room and get us as many scrubs and blankets as they can carry up here, ASAP.”
Next Vicky then turned to Paul and said, “Paul, please call Dakota Lewis, our new hospital administrator, and get her in here. I know her first day isn’t until Monday, but we need all the help we can get.” Dakota was supposed to have started a few weeks ago, but had a death in her family that she requested time for. She had called Vicky just a few days ago, to let her know she was back in town and ready to work.
“I can’t call, ma’am. Cellphone service and landline telephones have been disrupted.”
Everyone pulled out their cellphones at once, to verify that their phones weren’t working. The uncertainty in their eyes was palpable.
“Oh dear…” Vicky exclaimed. How can the hospital operate without its cellphones? “Mike,” Vicky turned to Michael Chesney, Vice President of Information Technology, better known as I.T., “this hospital has to be able to communicate with its self, and if I’m not mistaken, we have the capability to do just that, correct?”
“You are correct, ma’am. We have our own infrastructure in place which supports the wireless pagers, in-house emails and the intranet. Nursing already uses the voice-controlled devices or communication badges, as they are called, and we can give some of those out to key departments to use as well.”
“Excellent. And would you also make contact with our other hospitals, and find out if they were damaged in the storm? Also have the webmaster post updates on the intranet as appropriate.” Turning to the rest of her leadership team, Vicky stopped and recognized their anxiety. She took a deep breath and slowed her pace as she said, “I know this is hard, not being able to call home, but I’m depending on you all to fill in for the nurses and techs that are coming with me. As you know, we have 348 patients lying in bed upstairs. Can you imagine being sick in a hospital room, not able to leave, not able to call their families? This may well be the hardest thing I’ve ever asked you to do, but our patients need you. Plus I anticipate an influx of patients who were injured in the storm, so your help is critical.”
Some of the members of the executive team patted Vicky’s shoulder or squeezed her arm, expressing their sorrow that her wedding ended on such a dire note. And then they rushed for the elevators.
Vicky turned to Jerry next, “Jerry, would you please go to the cafeteria and raid the water and sports drinks, we’ll need them for the victims,” Jerry nodded and looked at Yvonne, who asked if she had time to go hug her child first. The hospital had an employee day care on the ground floor which cared for approximately 200 children at any given time, but on that Saturd
ay there were only twenty children of varying ages. Yvonne ran to check on her child while Jerry went to find a cart to carry the water on.
Vicky looked at Joyce and asked, “Joyce would you please go to the surgical units and gather any supplies you feel might be necessary in case we have to operate right there on the scene? And round up any doctor’s that are free also.” With it being a Saturday, Vicky knew that Joyce probably wouldn’t find too many doctors’ that would be able to leave their patients.
“Good idea, I’m on it,” Joyce said, and then asked Ellen, “Will you help me,” Ellen nodded her head and together they walked towards the elevator as Joyce explained to her, “Listen, I have to go out there, but I think they could use your help around here.”
“Oh honey, I can read you like a book,” Ellen laughed, knowing that her wife was just being over protective, “All right, I’ll stay here, were I won’t see anything bad,” She smiled, and Joyce leaned close and kissed her on the cheek.
Vicky went back to delegating, “Aidan, will you coordinate transportation and get as many vans as we own up here so we can start loading this stuff. I’ll leave it to you to find the best way into the downtown area that gets us as close as possible to ground zero. Bring whatever you think we’ll need, okay?”
“Roger that,” Aidan said, and then had an idea, “Paul, we could use some walkie‒talkie’s if you’ve got extra to spare?”
Paul nodded his head and clicked his walkie‒talkie, and spoke into it, while Vicky walked back toward the communications office.
Alice stopped her with a hand to her arm, and asked, “Vicky, honey, what can your father and I do to help?”
Smiling at her mother, Vicky said, “Would you mind staying here and coordinating the stragglers? People will be lost and dazed and may come to the lobby looking for comfort. Get whatever you need out of the cafeteria, and I’ll ask laundry to bring up blankets for you to hand out.”
Remember This Day Page 11