LOS ANGELES, CA (Catholic Online) - Taylor was babysitting Zane while his parents were at work the time the tornado struck last week.

"She said to Zane, 'I'm not going to let you go,'" Stewart's nephew, Kenneth Hayes told TV reporters. "She doesn't remember anything else, except somebody found her in the road. She remembers somebody talking to her when she was out in the middle of the road, and she didn't let go of him."

The tornado was so strong it had lifted the toddler's home in Gordon County off its foundation and carried it about 50 feet toward the highway where Stewart was found still clutching baby Zane.

Zane survived the storm with a broken leg while his great-grandmother suffered a broken back in two places and a broken leg.

"The skin is gone from one hand down to her elbow," Hayes said, describing Stewart's injuries. "She has bleeding on the brain, cuts all over. She's black and blue all over."

Both Zane and Stewart underwent surgery at Erlanger Hospital in Chattanooga. Both are recovering.

Zane's father, Daren McFarland can't describe his gratitude for his grandmother saving his son's life.

"Words cannot explain what my grandmother did," he said. "If it wasn't for God and her, my son wouldn't be here. I love her to death," he added.

Zane will have to wear a body cast for three months, but he is recovering well. "He's just our happy little boy," he said. "He's our miracle boy."

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