![]() After undergoing many painful x-rays and more examinations, the doctors deemed she would never walk or drive again. After an overnight stay at a nearby motel, she reloaded and arrived in Pennsylvania shortly after.Įven though she was finally home, her fight to normalcy wasn’t over. As the plane approached Washington D.C., it was forced to emergency land into a nearby cornfield due to difficulties. She was finally well enough to fly and was loaded onto a plane to go to Pennsylvania. From ankle to hip to shoulder, there was mending that needed done.Īfter those 60 days, it was finally her turn to go home. In total, she spent 60 days in the El Dorado hospital, with her right side being completely broken. She responded, barely making it out, saying “mama”. When she arrived, she asked Stephens if she knew who was talking to her. Her mother immediately flew to Kansas to be with her daughter during such a trying time. The names were a match, and they learned her name was Isabelle Stephens of Harrisburg, PA.Īfter identification had been made, it didn’t take long for word to get back to Stephens’ family. The plate had rolled up like a cigarette from the winds of the tornado, but it had read Harrisburg, Pennsylvania once laid flat.Īfter the staff called Harrisburg to identify who owned the car and more information, they matched up the named to the initials on her wedding band. ![]() She remained unidentified for two of those weeks until one day, they were able to find the license plate of the car she was in. She continued to lay unconscious to three weeks in the hospital. “The nurse put a mirror under my nose and that was the beginning of the new year,” said Stephens.Īlthough the journey wasn’t short, Stephens had no idea the work her body was doing to heal her. The team went back to work on her, putting her in the Intensive Care Unit. The mirror immediately steamed up and they knew she was alive. ![]() The nurse had the idea to put a mirror under Stephens’ nose to check for breath. “Four doctors walked out and they said quietly to themselves, oh, we’ve lost another one,” said Stephens. Then, one nurse gave one last effort to check for a sign of life. “I laid there three days in the morgue.”Īfter laying motionless for three days in a temporary morgue, multiple doctors walked by, pitying her supposed death. “Then they put me in a temporary morgue,” said Stephens. The team soon deemed her lifeless, having trouble finding any sign of life such as heartbeat or blood pressure. Upon arrival, medical professionals examined her motionless body, cleaning the mud and silt off. On the way, he has incurred a flat tire, but he kept moving on, in fear that Stephens was near death. The gentlemen put her into his car and started the trek to the El Dorado hospital. That’s when he found her covered in blood and unconscious, knowing she had to have been moments from death. By a miracle, a man was stopped and blocked by going his usual route home, deciding to go through the same field Stephens lay in. She wouldn’t know this until weeks later. The tornadic winds had stripped her of all her clothes except for her shoes and wristwatch, which read 5:45 P.M., the exact time the tornado hit. ![]() Isabella was found in a field, 400 feet away from where they had been. The two had never seen a tornado since they had always lived north, so you can imagine the fear that enveloped them.īoth of them were thrown out of the car into different directions. The couple had filled up the car on gas and entered the highway, when suddenly the F4 tornado dropped down onto their car. Isabelle Stephens and her then husband were on their honeymoon in El Dorado, visiting her aunt Bertha who lived in Winfield. There are several local eyewitnesses of the tornado, but have you heard about the survivor from Butler Township, PA? Last week, “A moment in history” described a first-hand encounter of the 1958 El Dorado tornado, otherwise known as the “backwards” tornado. Nikole The unidentified and unconscious survivor ![]()
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