An “amazing” and “beautiful” 10-year-old boy has been identified as one of six people killed when powerful tornadoes ripped through Tennessee over the weekend.
Arlan Burnham, a fourth-grader at West Creek Elementary School, was found dead under debris when his Clarksville home collapsed Saturday, his mother announced on Facebook.
“My beautiful baby boy, Arlan, did not make it out of the house,” Katherine Burnham wrote, noting that her home is gone” after being in the “direct path of [the] tornado.”
“I can not put into words how absolutely devastated I am.”
Arlan and his older sister, Ella, were both trapped under debris.
While a neighbor, Billy Urban, managed to pull both out, only the girl survived, escaping with superficial injuries, Clarksville Now reports.
“My son was amazing,” the grieving mom told the outlet. “There is no one in this world like him. Anyone that has ever encountered him is experiencing a loss.”
Her husband, Kyle, also posted on Facebook that “our entire family was turned upside down” by the tornado.
“Kyle and I are not OK,” the mom stressed in her post.
“We don’t know how to navigate through this, we have no idea what is next,” she said. “Anyone who knows me at all knows how much I love and adore my kids, all kids really.”
A family friend has since set up an online fundraiser, to raise money for the Burnham family to rebuild their homes and pay for Arlan’s funeral expenses.
“The road to recovery will be long and arduous, both emotionally and financially,” it reads.
“The Burnham family is now faced with the overwhelming task of rebuilding their lives from scratch.
“As they navigate through the grief of losing a cherished family member, they also must contend with the daunting challenge of reconstructing their home and replacing the essentials that were lost in the tornado.
“Let us come together as a community to show Kyle Burnham and his family that they are not alone in their struggle,” the GoFundMe says, noting: “Your generosity will provide them with the strength and resources needed to begin the healing process and rebuild their lives in the wake of this heartbreaking tragedy.”
As of Monday morning, the fundraiser had already netted more than $85,000 for the family — 17 times more than the $5,000 it requested.
The family is also asking for clothing donations.
Two other adults who died in Clarksville have not yet been identified.
Also killed in the powerful storms were Joseph Dalton, 37; Floridana Gabriel Perez, 31; and Perez’s 2-year-old son, Anthony Elmer Mendez.
Metropolitan Nashville Police said Dalton’s mobile home rolled on top of Perez’s during the storm.
Perez’s other son, 7, and Dalton’s 10-year-old son, had both been inside their respective homes at the time and were taken to a local hospital with non-life-threatening injuries.
In total, 83 people were injured and 23 are being treated at local hospitals.
