Like so many of us, the Johnson family has been through a lot this year. But their lives were turned upside down not just by the pandemic but also by a disastrous tornado that ripped through their town on March 3.

Families in Tennessee are still picking up the pieces – quite literally.

In Cookeville, the EF-4 tornado (ranked for winds ranging from 166–200 mph and causing “devastating damage”) came through in the early morning hours while everyone was asleep.

Here’s a look at some of the aftermath. Twenty-four people were killed by this storm.

As those of us with dogs know, our pets can sense these things coming and start acting up.

Bella, the family’s Australian shepherd dog, wasn’t going to let her family stay in harm’s way.

The storm made her nervous and so she whined until dad, Eric Johnson, woke up and realized what was coming. That gave him just enough time to get his family into the bathroom for refuge. They huddled together in the bathtub as their home was blown apart around them.

Johnson told The Tennessean that if Bella hadn’t woken him up, they likely wouldn’t have survived – everything was destroyed.

In fact, the bathtub carrying the family was thrown out of the house about 50 yards away from the home.

Johnson posted a photo of his wife Faith and two youngest children to Facebook three weeks after the experience. Everyone was doing ok, at least physically.

Noticeably missing from the photo was Bella.

The brave Australian shepherd who had saved her family was nowhere to be found after the tornado. She was likely spooked by the chaos and ran off.

The family’s grief was compounded by the loss of their heroic dog. She was missing for weeks, then a month…but while part of them had wondered if they should give up hope of finding her alive, they just couldn’t believe it and continued looking.

“I think God alerted her to wake us up,” Johnson said. “She deserves the world. We owe her that for saving us, because she did.”

Fortunately, there were some possible Bella sightings over the next few weeks, so they were fairly sure she was ok. The family began begging anyone who saw the dog to call them.

Then, one day, the good news finally came – 54 days later!

“After 54 days missing from the tornado that leveled our home on March 3rd we have been reunited with our dog Bella. To say that I wasn’t starting to lose hope in ever finding her again would be a lie. Me and my wife would pray daily that god was keeping her safe out there until he brought her home to us,” Johnson wrote on Facebook.

He and his wife Faith were able to follow a lead and track Bella down. She was ok, but needed a good bath…

…and some TLC from her thankful family.

That same day, Bella was back with her family happily eating and napping away, and enjoying some long-awaited cuddles.

After hearing about Bella’s actions during the tornado, and the fact that she made sure her family was awake before she ran off earned her high praise from around the country, as well as from the organization People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals (PETA).

In late April, Bella was honored with PETA’s Heroic Dog Award, which came with a treat basket.

But her real reward was being safe and sound and back with the people she loved.

“It’s such a relief,” Johnson told The Tennessean. “(She) was just a missing piece. She was a scattered piece of our lives, and I knew if we got her back, we could put our lives back (together).”

The family can now rebuild knowing their hero dog is safe.

And now she has a “thunder shirt” as well to keep her calm during storms!

“I feel at peace knowing she is safe at night,” Faith Johnson said. “I feel safer knowing she is with us. After all, she did save our lives.”

The family has set up a GoFundMe page for those who want to donate to them in these tough times.

Scroll down below to see the amazing post-tornado photos from Johnson’s neighborhood.

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Source: The Tennessean (April 28), The Tennessean (May 1), Eric Johnson via Facebook (March 23), Eric Johnson via Facebook (April 26)