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Disaster: Union University prepares to restart classes following twisters | Mindy Belz

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The clock tower at Union University is frozen at 7:02. That's when an EF-4 tornado tore through the Southern Baptist school's 3,200-student campus in Jackson, Tenn., on Tuesday evening, Feb. 5. But little else on campus has been standing still, as over 1,000 volunteers, alumni, and local, state, and federal emergency personnel have worked round the clock in the days following the storm to rescue the wounded, care for students and faculty, begin cleanup, and prepare to restart classes: School officials are set to begin again Feb. 20.

"It is absolutely amazing to think that we will be able to start classes within two weeks of this devastating story," school president David S. Dockery said. Student housing for 800 students of 1,100 who lived on campus was destroyed when the cluster of tornadoes tore through parts of Arkansas, Kentucky, Mississippi, Alabama, and Tennessee, killing 59 people and injuring dozens. The storm system packed winds topping 200 mph and is one of the deadliest to hit the Southeast.