Overnight Storm Sends Tree Through Brentwood Home

Brentwood resident Mike Callihan called his mother-in-law Alice Serrano a hero for her help during Sunday night's major storm.

Serrano called the Callihan family three times just before midnight. On the third time, Callihan answered and learned that tornadoes were spotted in St. Louis County.

Mike and Shawnean grabbed their 10- and 8-year-old daughters and headed to the basement at 11:57 p.m. At 11:58, the house started "shaking and rumbling."

"We thought it was a tornado," Mike Callihan said. "The lucky thing is we made it downstairs."

Their home on 2447 Salem Road wasn't hit by a tornado. Instead, heavy winds pushed a tree on top of the house, puncturing the roof in three places and sending limbs and debris through the second floor.

The home is without power and the Callihans will have to stay with family for an extended period of time, but Mike Callihan said its better than the alternative. No one was hurt.

"The most important thing was getting the girls down into the basement," he said. "We're just very thankful."