Friday, March 27th 2015, 11:35 pm
Relatives returned to the place their loved one died in the Sand Springs tornado. 41-year-old Arian Lakey died pinned under debris after seeking shelter in his mobile home.
The family wasn't ready to talk about it, but they invited News On 6 to be beside them as they returned to the place where Lakey lived and died.
Lakey's family wanted to meet the man last beside him, Major Tom Huckeby.
"It's what we do and I'm sorry, very sorry for your loss," he told the family.
Huckeby tried to save Lakey but couldn't.
"Thank you so much," the family told Huckeby.
"Hey, listen, we'll talk to mom and anybody and we'll sit down with you and do whatever we can. I mean, we're very, very sorry for your loss and whatever we can do to help we want to do," Huckeby told them.
It was the family's first time back to their home since the tornado.
Lakey's stepdad went to the spot where his stepson took his last breath; a last breath that was difficult to take, as Lakey was trapped under the rubble.
3/27/2015 Related Story: Sand Springs Man Killed In EF-2 Tornado, Father Survives
Even being trapped, in his final moments, Lakey yelled for crews to save his dad who was pinned under a propane tank.
Lakey's sister wanted to find mementos of her brother; things that remind her how smart he was and how he made her laugh.
Other family members, neighbors and deputies helped sort through the debris.
Huckeby escorted them to the area, and tried to comfort them.
"I don't know how you could. I don't think words do it, but hopefully," he said. “That's gotta be rough."
Rougher than all the mangled metal, nails and plywood, but the family knows all of Oklahoma is behind them.
Lakey's father, who turned 71 the day the tornado hit, is still in the hospital.
March 27th, 2015
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