AR officer injured in tornado located through 911 ping
Mar 19, 2025
DIAZ, Ark. -- An Arkansas police officer was found injured through a 911 ping after tornadoes struck last Friday and Saturday.
The two EF-4 tornadoes were reported, and one of them hit Jackson County, devasting the town of Diaz and injuring Sergeant Richard Morris.
"Personally, he's been a fri
end of mine for years, and when I saw him that night, I didn't expect to see him again alive," said Donny Ivie, EMA Dir., Jackson County, Arkansas. "And it took him up in the air and spun him around, twisted him around, threw him against a house upside down, and he hung in his seat belt over an hour before we were able to get to him."
Arkansas police officer injured in EF-4 tornado
Rescue crews located the 70-year-old Morris by his cell phone's 911 ping. The sergeant was out trying to warn Diaz residents of the approaching twister.
Ivie said Morris fractured his neck and back and had a broken collarbone.
"He's home, and I went last night and took him some fried pork chops, and apparently there was some kind of miracle drug in those pork chops because I got a call today that he was out here at City Hall," said Ivie.
National Weather Service confirms a pair of rare EF-4 tornadoes touched down in Arkansas
"It's sad to see all this destruction and stuff, but we're a strong community, and the Lord blessed us where nobody got killed," said Diaz resident Daniel McCormick.
Donations have filled city hall, but more volunteers are needed to help with cleanup.
There has been one reported case of looting so far in Jackson County, and that was in the Jacksonport community. ...read more read less