911 calls detail panic, destruction of Port Orchard tornado


PORT ORCHARD, Wash. -- Recordings of 911 calls made to Kitsap dispatchers detail the chaos, confusion and destruction caused by Tuesday's tornado in Port Orchard.

Some remained calm when calling 911, concerned for the people around them.

"I'm reporting the tornado," one caller said. "I'm not sure if all my neighbors are okay."

In other calls, you could hear the panic in their voices.

"We have two people trapped inside of a trailer," a man exclaimed.

"Why are they trapped in a trailer? Did it tip or..." the dispatcher asked.

"The wind! The wind just came up like crazy and rolled it over," a woman replied.

Multiple calls detailed people trapped in their homes, blocked by fallen trees through the house or other damage. One caller reported that five trees had fallen on his neighbor's house.

The gas leaks that followed had families fearing more danger was in store as the smell spread throughout neighborhoods.

"There's water spewing everywhere, the gas leak is getting stronger," a woman said.

Dispatchers, overwhelmingly busy with reports of danger and destruction, did what they could to keep callers calm.

"My partner has already dispatched a fire unit for you and I have somebody in route," one dispatcher told a caller who was in her mother's house when a tree smashed through the middle of it. "Keep yourself safe, that's the biggest thing. If anything else changes, just give me a call right back."

As they waited for help, residents surveyed what's left of their neighborhoods.

"It's a disaster area here right now," one woman said. "It's horrible."