MINDEN, Iowa – As a tornado ripped through Iowa Friday evening causing cataclysmic damage, a state trooper patched up his battered patrol unit and rushed to helps others in need, according to authorities.
“Trooper Dustin Pieken found himself trapped in a whirlwind of tornado debris that crashed through his patrol car window near Minden,” the Iowa State Patrol posted on social media. “With remarkable creativity, he cleverly utilized whatever was nearby in order to continue through his night shift, supporting the victims of the catastrophic tornado.”
The tornado splintered trees, tore roofs from homes, and even pushed a two-story residence 20 feet from its foundation. Flying debris pelted the trooper’s car, but he did not let the damage sideline him.
Pieken rummaged through the trunk of his patrol unit before the wind even died down and found plastic sheeting, tape and cardboard to patch up the damage, just enough to get into Minden, the town that took a direct hit. He went door to door checking on people, authorities said, according to FOX Weather.
“Happy you are OK. Thank you for carrying on taking care of the storm victims,” read a response from a follower on ISP’s Facebook page.
“You are a hero!” wrote another grateful community member.
In total, about 180 homes in the town were damaged, with about 40% of them destroyed.
“We lost about every building in town for the business part of it, and our water tower stood,” Minden Mayor Kevin Zimmerman said. “But we can’t pump water right now into it, so we’re running off generators.”
Iowa Gov. Kim Reynolds issued a disaster proclamation.
