Indiana tornado survivor makes recovery

SELLERSBURG, Ind. — A southern Indiana woman is making progress with her recovery a year after losing parts of both her legs when a tornado destroyed her house.

Thirty-eight-year-old Stephanie Decker protected her two young children from falling debris when a March 2, 2012, tornado demolished her family’s home near Henryville, Ind., about 20 miles north of Louisville. She’s now learning to walk on prosthetic legs.

The Courier-Journal of Louisville reports Decker has used the tragedy to lobby for legislation that would require private insurers to give amputees in her native Kentucky greater access to advanced prosthetics. The bill has advanced out of a Kentucky House committee.

Decker plans to mark Saturday’s tornado anniversary by inviting friends, relatives and supporters to sign the framework of the family’s new home in Sellersburg.