GOREVILLE, ILLINOIS – The bridge that once stood over the pond was upside down in the middle of the water. The gazebo was wobbly and askew, and the brick chimney that had once hugged the side of the two-story cabin now lay on the ground in a heap of broken tree branches and debris.
The tornado sirens blared in the distance as Goreville residents sought shelter. Several places in southern Illinois experienced damage after a tornado hit the area on April 2, 2025.
Advertisement
The National Weather Service survey said that an EF-2 tornado passed through the area on April 2 causing “severe and extensive damage to hundreds of pine trees along its path.” The tornado also caused damage to some structures in the area. According to the survey, “One home suffered the loss of its roof, and a few outer buildings were destroyed.”
The Cedar Rock Cabins were also affected, where fallen trees damaged their cabins and other parts of their property.
Cindy Beshears was not in town when the sirens went off and the storm hit, but her family hunkered down in their storm shelter underneath their home in Goreville, Illinois. Beshears recalled that her deceased ex-husband made the storm shelter with a shovel, a wheelbarrow, and a 5-gallon bucket.
Advertisement*
The shelter sits under what used to be their back porch, which is now enclosed. An 8-foot-by-20-foot, cinder-block-lined room shielded her children and grandchildren as the tornado brushed past their home.
Cindy said that her ex-husband saved their lives that night and that God had his arms wrapped around them.
A majority of the damage on the property was done to the Toler Cabin, the biggest of the three cabins on the property.
Blake Stowers from the Stowers Tree Service volunteered to remove some of the fallen trees and storm damage from the Beshears’ property before the anticipated rain on Thursday afternoon.
The lift, steadied on plywood because of the soft muddy soil, hoisted the workers as they used chainsaws, pulleys, ropes and other tools to clear the fallen tree from the cabin’s roof. A skid steer was used to move heavy debris out of the way.
The National Weather Service in Paducah reported between 5 to 9 inches of rain had fallen between Wednesday and Sunday.
Editor’s note: This story has been edited after the National Weather Service in Paducah confirmed tornados in the coverage area.
Photo Editor Enan Chediak and Student Managing Editor Dominique Martinez-Powell can be reached at echediak@dailyegyptian.com and dmartinez-powell@dailyegyptian.com. To stay up to date on all your southern Illinois news, be sure to follow The Daily Egyptian on Facebook and Instagram @dailyegyptian.
Advertisement
