When Carson was 7 years old, a tornado ripped through his hometown of Hesston, Kansas. It struck on March 13, 1990. The tornado was one of hundreds that touched down that year in Tornado Alley, a part of the central United States that stretches from Texas through Iowa.

The evening started normally, Carson recalls. His family was gathered around the dinner table when.... Click here to read, in his own words, what happened next.