ALLENDALE COUNTY, S.C. — A South Carolina couple had a harrowing experience as they got caught in high winds as a massive tornado was moving through the county Tuesday.
The video was taken by Stephanie Cochran as she was heading home with her husband Marc in the town of Ulmer in Allendale County. As they driving down Highway 300 at Mathis Farms the winds began to rapidly pick up.
Cochran said at the time, she's heard about possible tornadoes in the Allendale and Martin areas, but had lost service on her cellphone before her sister could warn her about the one in Ulmer.
With Stephanie’s phone at the ready to video clouds in the distance, winds began to circle their vehicle, Marc rolled up her window and hit the gas to outrun the storm.
“We just know that with God’s guidance he kept us focused and kept us safe,” Stephanie said. “We are blessed that only the back glass is shattered.”
The video shows high winds battering the car and what appears to be rotation in those winds. However, at this time it's not clear if they were in winds directly associated with a twister.
Multiple videos showed a large wedge tornado moving through Allendale County. The intense storm caused extensive damage to some homes and property.
"This will be a story for us to tell our future grandchildren but this is not how we wanted to start our daughter’s wedding weekend," she wrote.
The National Weather Service has not determined how strong the tornado was, but based on the size, it's likely it was on the higher end of the scale that measures tornado intensity.