New Mesmerizing Video Documents Incredible Moments After Okla. Tornado Destroyed Moore Elementary School

Iconic shot of first responder Jim Routon discovering his neighbor Hezekiah Darbon, 6, had survived the Oklahoma tornado and scooping him up in his arms. (Credit: AP)

...and the bloodied mother and father walking their children away from the rubble left by the monster tornado that ripped through Moore, Okla., on Monday.

Now, a mesmerizing video has surfaced capturing not only both of those moments of incredible relief in the midst of great loss, but also the reaction of the children and others amid the confusion after the storm:

Good Morning America gets to the story behind the photo of the "hug seen 'round the world" shared by Jim Routon and Briarwood Elementary school first-grader, Hezekiah Darbon (the first picture):

More from GMA:

“I was so happy that I saw him,” Darbon said. “I didn’t know that he was coming.  I thought my mom and dad were going to be the first ones.”

“When we got to the school it was pretty much chaos and destruction,” Routon, whose three adult children attended Briarwood, said on “GMA.”

“People were just running in all directions, trying to find their children,” he said.  “First responders were racing to the scene of where the collapsed walls were in the school and the children were emerging from the wreckage.”

When Hezekiah emerged from the wreckage, he saw Routon, his next-door neighbor, who considers Hezekiah his “part-time kid.”

“I think I needed that hug as much as he did,” Routon said of their surprise reunion.  “The embrace that we had, it was a very emotional connection.”

(H/T: Guardian)

--

[related]