'It's an absolute miracle': 7-year-old survives being sucked up by tornado

A family in Abilene, Texas, is grateful that everyone is alive after a tornado ripped through their neighbourhood, destroying their house. 

On May 3, Wes and Kasey Lambert, along with their daughter Allie and son Lane, heard the tornado warning and sought shelter in a closet in their house. 

"We could hear the nails coming out of the boards and metal being ripped, but that’s all we could hear," Kasey told the local news station. 

The Lamberts thought the storm was moving away from them so they left the house and started running down the street. 

A storm chaser, Freddy McKinney, was filming the whole thing when he saw the tornado move towards the Lambert's house. 

"Oh my gosh, oh my gosh," McKinney said in his video. "There are people. There are people. Get in the car, get in the car."

As the mother ran towards the car, a flying piece of debris struck her, causing her to lose her grip on 7-year-old Lane's hand. She scooped up her daughter before making it into the back of McKinney's car. 

"Lane got sucked up in the tornado," Kasey Lambert’s cousin, Bradye McQueen shared. "They couldn’t hold him down. It sucked him up and he flew like 25 feet. They thought he was gone."

Searching frantically with little hope, the family was ecstatic to find their son on top of a pile of insulation after the house had been ripped apart. 

Once the storm settled the family sought medical attention. Lane had dislocated his shoulder and had severe cuts to his face, but was otherwise alright. 

"It is an absolute miracle," says Kasey. "It was strong enough that we shouldn’t have been able to walk away."

The family has since been released from the hospital. While they don't have a house anymore, the Lamberts are grateful they are all still alive.