Storm Chaser Rescues Texas Family After Tornado Destroys Home — and It Was All Caught on Livestream

Freddy McKinney was chasing a tornado in Hodges on May 2 when he came across the Lambert family, whose home was obliterated by the storm

A storm chaser is being praised for his heroics after stopping to help a family in need after a tornado destroyed their Texas home.

Freddy McKinney was chasing a tornado in Hodges on Thursday, May 2, when he watched the large twister obliterate a home on County Road 458 right before his eyes.

Footage of the incident, which was streamed live on McKinney’s YouTube page, showed McKinney racing toward the damage after the tornado was a safe distance away.

As he came to a stop in the middle of the road, McKinney saw people running up the street, including a woman who was carrying a child in her arms.

Related: At Least 5 People, Including a Baby, Dead After Tornadoes Hit Oklahoma and Iowa

“Get in!” he yelled as the family approached his vehicle.

“Please god help! Hurry!” the woman wailed as McKinney instructed the family to enter his vehicle. A father and son followed shortly behind.

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McKinney asked where the nearest hospital was as they piled into the car and then jumped on the phone while the father helped load the family’s dog into the car.

In the clip, the mom said the children had sustained head injuries in the twister and that another family member had a broken hand.

McKinney later confirmed in a post on X that he had indeed taken the family to a local hospital. “Thank god they survived that tornado,” the storm chaser wrote on X.

The family has since been identified on GoFundMe as parents Wes and Kasey Lambert and kids Lane and Allie.

Related: Zach Bryan and His Band Help with Clean Up After Tornadoes Tear Through Midwest: 'Standing with You'

Family member Bradye Lynn McQueen thanked McKinney for his heroics, writing on social media, “We are all so grateful you were out there."

McQueen went on to share that all four members of the family were “very banged up” but have already been discharged from the hospital.

Meanwhile, donations are pouring into the GoFundMe campaign started for the Lambert family. Within three hours of it going up on Friday, more than $23,000 has been raised.

“They will need funds to help in the transition and rebuilding their lives and covering ER bills,” wrote McQueen, who organized the online fundraiser.

Neither McQueen nor McKinney immediately responded to PEOPLE’s request for comment.

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