Mother arrested for abandoning children during tornado warning

A 27-year-old mother from St. Ann, Missouri, named Crystal Ray, was arrested on March 14 after abandoning her four children during a severe weather warning. The children, aged eight months, three, five, and eight years, were left home alone for several hours as tornado sirens sounded. During the storm, the weather brought intense conditions, including brush fires and power outages. Family members notified the police after discovering the children were alone. When officers found Ray, she showed signs of intoxication. Reportedly, she resisted arrest and physically confronted the police officers. During this encounter, she allegedly threatened to kill the person who reported her actions. Authorities charged her with four felony counts of endangering the welfare of a child and one felony count of resisting arrest. In a related case, another mother from Indiana left her two infants alone for 14 hours while she spent time drinking at a bar. The infants were eventually rescued when neighbors heard them crying. These incidents highlight ongoing concerns about child safety in similar situations.