A mother lost four family members, including her husband and two of their children, when a tornado swept through central Iowa over the weekend.
Melissa Bazley, 63, her son-in-law, 37-year-old Michael Bolger, and two of his children, Kinlee Bolger, 5, and Owen Bolger, 2, died when the tornado hit Madison County on Saturday, according to theAssociated Press.
Michael’s wife, Kuri Bolger, was injured during the storm but survived along with her 8-year-old son, Brysen, in addition to her grandfather and uncle.
“Kuri is currently still in the hospital with severe injuries but stable and Brysen has been discharged from the hospital with minor injuries,” Nutt, who did not immediately return PEOPLE’s request for comment, said on the donation page.
“There will be a long road ahead for both of them and their entire family as Kuri lost her mother in the disaster as well,” she added.
Kuri Bolger and family.GoFundMe
As of Monday afternoon, the page has raised nearly $350,000 for Kuri.
“All funds donated will go directly to Kuri for hospital bills, ongoing expenses and provide proper celebrations of life for the family,” Nutt said. “Please help however you can during this tragic and challenging time.”
Three others also died during the storm, according to theAP. They include 64-year-old Rodney Clark and 72-year-old Cecilia Lloyd. Jesse Theron Fisher, 40, died in a separate tornado that hit Lucas County, the outlet reported.
According to theNational Weather Service office in Des Moines, the tornado that hit Madison County Saturday was an EF3 with wind speeds between 136 miles per hour and 165 miles per hour.
The tornado is said to be Iowa’s deadliest since 2008, when eight people died in Parkersburg and New Hartford, theDes Moines Registerreported.
In an interview with theAP, Lynn Larson, Michael’s mother, said Kuri underwent an operation on her leg on Monday and will likely have another to repair bones in her arm.
Larson, when remembering her son, called him “wonderful.”
“Everybody loved him,” she told the outlet.
“It just rips your heart out. My grandchildren were wonderful,” Larson added. “They were just the light of my life.”
source: people.com
