Dramatic video captured the terrifying moment an Iowa sheriff's sergeant barely escaped with his life after he was caught in the path of a tornado earlier this week.
Sgt. Todd Dollen was evacuating campers at Hacklebarney Campground in Red Oak, Iowa, Monday, when he was forced to ride out a tornado after a tree fell on top of his patrol vehicle, trapping him, according to the Montgomery County Sheriff's Office.
Dollen was able to get the campers to a shelter, but became stuck after trying to get to another side of the campground to rescue more campers.
Dollen's body cam footage captured the tense 2-minutes as he rode out the storm – white knuckling his steering wheel and breathing heavily.
"I put the vehicle in park, my foot on the brake, and grabbed the steering wheel," he told WOWT-TV of the harrowing incident. "I kind of relate it to an amusement park ride where you are anticipating what's going to happen."
"Honestly, I was just trying to get to the park, make sure everybody was out and I was going to get the heck out of there, too," he said. "I just ran out of time."
"While Montgomery County sustained widespread damage to the eastern portion of the county, we are thankful there were no major injuries and are thinking of those who were impacted by the storm," the sheriff's office said.
