Last Tuesday, Lori Mehmen looked out her front door in Orchard, Iowa and this is what she saw. She had a digital camera handy, and somehow managed to take this photo before crapping her pants and taking cover. This, my friends, is why always having a camera nearby is helpful. Oh, and no one was injured during this tornado, fortunately.

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When the weather turned violent and stormy on Tuesday evening, Lori Mehmen, who lives in the small farming town of Orchard in northeastern Iowa, looked out her front door and saw a funnel cloud bearing down — and evidently had the presence of mind to grab her digital camera and capture this shot before taking cover. The local paper, The Mitchell County Press-News, posted the photo on Wednesday  and The Associated Press picked it up today.

The Press-News report says no one was injured by this tornado, which was one of scores reported in Iowa and across the Midwest this week, where storms and heavy rains have also produced widespread flooding.

Ms. Mehmen told the paper that her funnel cloud came close to the ground only briefly, then retreated back up into the clouds. Still, the high winds from the storm knocked down trees, damaged crops, and left behind one indelible image.