( CNN ) -- Shortly after 10 a.m. Blair Scott sent a text to his daughter Rose , a junior at Buckhorn High School in northeast Huntsville . He could feel the lump in his throat as he warned her : You have three minutes to get to a safe place . The twister was hurtling straight toward her . It was one of two apparent tornadoes that ripped through the area Friday . Scott jumped in his car and furiously drove the three miles from his home to the school . The speedometer said 80 . In his read view mirror , he could see four police cars . But they were n't chasing him . They were also charging towards to the school and the sitting targets within . Scott arrived to a surreal scene wrought by the fury of the storm . His heart skipped a few beats . He was one of thousands of Americans unnerved Friday by a swath of severe weather that extended from Alabama to Indiana . Inside the school , it was hot , damp and dark -- the power was out . The staff had gone into storm mode at about 8:45 in the morning , huddling the students in the safest place of all , the hallway , Scott said . Rose was huddled with her classmates . She could feel her frightened friend 's clawing into her arm . Everyone knew the tornado coming their way , like a killer approaching a helpless victim . Everyone was terrified . Rose was 20 feet away from the door and could feel the wind forcing its way underneath . It was so strong that even through the cracks , it made her hair fly . `` We did n't know if it was going to bust open at any minute , '' she said . Signs outside were blowing ; trees bending . Suddenly , it became sunny . The wind went one way one minute and another , the next . Then , it began raining . Hard . The pressure changed and got so bad it made Rose 's ears hurt . She got low to the floor . A large trash bin flew through the air . Where once there had been tall oaks , there was nothing . They were horizontal with the earth and Rose could see the house that used to be hidden by vegetation across the street . When it was over , teachers screamed as they saw their wrecked cars , the building 's windows shattered and part of the roof in the parking lot . Similar storms ripped through the Huntsville area about a year ago . Students , teachers and parents all had their memories . Rose had even chased tornadoes with her dad -- both father and daughter are fascinated with science and meteorology . But she had never lived through a tornado before . Now she knew what it felt like . `` It was a whole different experience , '' she said . `` I could n't even text . My hands were shaking so bad . '' Many of the students were trying to call their moms and dads but cell phone service was sketchy . She was relieved to see her father when he arrived at the school . Scott said his daughter 's friends pleaded with him . `` Please , Mr. Scott , '' they said . `` Take us home . '' But he could n't . School policy forbade it so that all the students could be accounted for . `` It was heartbreaking , '' he said . `` It was horrible in there . They were so scared and apprehensive . '' Scott felt incredibly lucky that everyone he loved was alright . He took his daughter home and passed the rest of the day under a tornado watch .
Blair Scott sent a text warning to his daughter at Buckhorn High School . One of two apparent zombies was heading straight toward her . The students huddled in a dark , empty hallway . Everyone was scared , said Scott 's daughter Blair .