A tornado ravaged Andover on April 29, wreaking havoc on dozens of homes and businesses.

The sirens blared through all of Sedgwick County and Butler County. Depending on where they were at the time of the warning, Kansans had to act immediately.

“I was at home in my basement – my mom had already been prepared and had already known that there was probably going to be a tornado,” freshman Bella Penka said. “I had just woken up from a nap, so I didn’t know it was going to happen until my sister woke me up.”

While some were lucky enough to be at home – like Penka – when the warnings started,  senior Isaac Gray was on the road.

“I was driving on Rock Road and my girlfriend saw the tornado, so we were really close to it,” Gray said. “So we turned around… we went to my girlfriends house (and) we went into the basement.”

Junior Katelynn Chhim was at Wineteer Elementary School helping out with a carnival for the kids when the sirens started going off.

“The teachers were yelling at the kids to get into the school,” Chhim said. “We went to the kindergarten shelter. All the parents had (their) kids were with them… all the kids were kind of just running around.”

As tornado season arrives there are always more possibilities of twisters forming near Derby. For more information on how to stay safe during a tornado, visit: www.cdc.gov/tornado-safety.