BLAIR, Neb. (WOWT) - Veteran lawman Dave Volenec was home alone in Blair when he faced the only danger he’d ever run from, but he still had lives to save.
“Got the cats in the basement and went to get [my dog] and as soon as I got him to the bottom of the stairs, he turned around and ran back up the steps,” said Dave.
And he had no time to catch 3-year-old Wrigley.
“Next thing I knew, I was getting inundated with drywall and insulation,” said Dave.
Minutes after surviving a tornado on April 26, 2024, Dave took video of the destroyed house, but the family feared Wrigley would be the worse loss they’d have to endure.
“He was what we were most worried about,” said Anna Volenec, Dave’s daughter. “Belongings and possessions can be replaced, but being able to see him again, it was like, ‘Alright, our family is whole and we’re okay.’”
That emotional reunion between Wrigley and Dave’s wife, Gina, came a day after the tornado struck.
Friends and volunteers from Muddy Paws rescue found Wrigley and a neighbor’s dog roaming a nearby farm field. His owners say the dog still shows the effects of having lived through a tornado.
“He’s just jumpier than he used to be and gets scared much more easily,” Gina said.
“A gust of wind, sometimes if it’s hard enough, will startle him a little bit,” said Dave.
The tornado destroyed the Volenec home, scattering debris about their acreage. Wrigley was excited to come back to the home — just days ahead of the first anniversary of the Arbor Day Tornadoes — but he had to be carried around the property because a lot of the debris still remains.
“We’re hoping to be back sometime in July,” Dave said.
The new construction sits atop the only part of the old house that the tornado left behind: The foundation. That’s proof the basement is the safest place to be for the entire family, should another tornado come their way.
The Nebraska Humane Society and Muddy Paws Rescue offered the following tips for keeping you pet safe during and after damaging storms:
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