When tornadoes ripped through the state of Tennessee, the forceful EF-4 gusts destroyed homes and killed 24 people. They came in the middle of the night, but for one family, they were alerted to the dangers by Bella, their Australian Shepherd. Fortunately, the family was able to survive, however, their home got destroyed.
Worst still, they could not find Bella anywhere.
The Johnson family had been living right in the middle of the Cookeville tornado’s path, and they credited Bella with saving their life by alerting them in time. Eric Johnson spoke to The Tennessean, revealing that Bella’s whining woke him around 2 a.m. and gave the family just enough time to get into the bathroom before the funnel cloud hit.
The home was completely leveled and their whole family was “thrown about 50 yards in a bathtub from our house,” Johnson posted.
Preparing to rebuild, the Johnsons were looking for Bella daily, reaching out to their community for help in finding their dog. They spent nearly two months hoping and praying for a miracle and for their beloved dog to return. Finally, after 54 days, Bella was found.
Johnson had finally received a call from someone, letting the family know that Bella had been spotted in a parking lot.
He wrote, “So something amazing happened today!!. After 54 days missing from the tornado that leveled our home on March 3rd, we have been reunited with our dog Bella. To say that I wasn’t starting to lose hope in ever finding her again would be a lie. Me and my wife would pray daily that God was keeping her safe out there until he brought her home to us.”
The family was so thankful to everyone in the community who’d looked for her and assisted in any way. The Johnsons were happy to report that Bella was doing well.
“At the moment our miracle dog has a full belly of food and is currently sleeping in a warm bed where she belongs.”
Given that Bella was a hero who saved her family, PETA awarded her the Heroic Dog Award and gave her a basket full of goodies. Well done, Bella!
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