Press Release: Stronger Than a Tornado Testimonial

(Waldron, IN) – In 2007, Dennis and Rhonda Danner hired Bath Fitter® in the Indianapolis area to remodel the bathroom in their Waldron home. During the remodeling process, there were heavy storms, which led to an electricity outage. The Bath Fitter employee was forced to finish caulking the tub wearing a helmet with a light attached to it.  Little did he know what was to come!
 
Nearly one year later, on June 3, 2008, a category F-3 tornado ripped through the Danner’s town of Waldron, as well as several neighboring towns. Mr. Danner had been listening to news about the storm on his weather radio. He also received a warning from his neighbor that the tornado headed toward them. He told his wife, Rhonda, to take blankets and get into the Bath Fitter bathtub.
 
The tornado, which was a half of a mile wide, approached the town at 9:09 p.m. Mr. Danner watched it long enough to see the tornado uproot his neighbor’s six large pine trees. He described it as a huge “wall” that turned green and orange. The noise it made sounded like a loud roar and the force of the storm caused tremendous pressure inside his ears.
 
Mr. Danner joined his wife in the bathtub. The tornado’s winds knocked them down. They could hear the house being torn apart, windows and boards breaking. During their stay in the bathtub, the door blew open and brought with it a hanging flower basket from the front porch, which showed no signs of any visible damage. 

Throughout the storm’s duration, approximately 45 – 60 seconds, the Bath Fitter® bathtub and its supporting wall remained intact. “The Bath Fitter bathtub held up,” Mr. Danner said. “I really believe that bath tub saved our lives,” he added.
 
Damage to the Danner’s property included: the home, which was picked up and moved off its foundation; a barn; a garage; a shed; a fence; and trees in the yard. In addition, the Danner’s boat was thrown 100 yards. Paperwork belonging to them was found six miles away. The only items that remained untouched were the deck attached to the house, an
8 x10 barn and a large shrub.
 
The next day, while speaking to a fireman in the living room of his home, the bathroom ceiling fell into the bathtub.
 
When Bath Fitter® heard how the Danners braved out the storm in their bathtub, the company asked the couple what it could do to help them. Mr. Danner requested new towel bars and toilet paper holders for each of the two bathrooms in his rebuilt home, which Bath Fitter® happily supplied.
 
The rebuilding process has taken nearly one year to complete. Mr. Danner says the new home includes one thing that his old home didn’t – a storm cellar, where the couple can safely hide in case of a future tornado.

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