Dozens of Ellis County homes were destroyed Saturday in the EF3 tornado, and days later the search for important photos, documents and family heirlooms continues.
When you've lost everything, residents say, sometimes finding just one special photograph can mean so much. But the search can turn up empty-handed – and it can be heartbreaking.
Hunter Seck, 17, spent the day doing things no teenager should have to do: sifting through the rubble of what was once his home, looking for toys and heirlooms to cheer his family up back at their motel room.
"They can't be replaced. It's the memories we have. It's the times before this. When you were safe, the sense of security. That security is now gone," he said, standing atop of pile of brick and lumber rubble.
Hunter did have some success Tuesday.
"This is a Beanie Baby my sister got for Christmas, so I'm going to take this home to her. She'll love it," he said.
Chopper 5 Surveys Tornado Damage on December 27, 2015
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In the piles of debris, Hunter found a lot of old stuff he doesn't care about – XBox games, old Star Wars toys – but he was turning over old furniture and lifting up debris in a desperate search to find one photograph in particular.
"It's my sister when she was still in the hospital still wrapped up in a hospital blanket. She was sleeping with her eyes closed. It means a lot to my mom and I'm trying to find it for her," he said. "It's the only copy we had."
Directly across the street, a half-dozen of Tony Wooten's friends and neighbors helped him load up boxes. His home was also destroyed in the tornado.
Those friends and volunteers have been with him, Wooten said, every day since the tornado hit.
"The outpouring of support, people don't even know. I've met more people this week, neighbors that I didn't know I had," Wooten said. "It’s priceless. Priceless. You can't buy that support."
Wooten has also had some success finding things amid the rubble.
"Christmas presents, I found a lot of Christmas presents," he said. "They'll need to be washed."
Hunter Seck was at work at Jimmy John's when the tornado struck. His younger sister, father, mother, grandparents and two dogs were home.
As Hunter drove home and saw the destruction, he thought they were all dead. But they only suffered minor cuts and wounds.
NBC 5 News"I should have come (home) an orphan, but God helped them. God saved them," he said.
He's thankful he has a future to make new memories with his family.
Hunter is still looking for that baby photo. He thinks he knows where it is but there's still so much debris around the area.
He's also looking for his missing dog, who might have escaped from his kennel. Neighbors told Hunter they saw Kip running around the neighborhood Monday night, but he got away.
