Modifiers enhance nouns, adjectives and verbs, often adding meaning and thoughtful description to sentences. However, when used incorrectly, modifiers can convolute the meaning of sentences.
In the example above, the phrase destroying a corn crib and causing heavy damage to his house does not modify anything in the sentence. The only word it could modify in the sentence is the subject, farm. This doesn't make much sense though. How could a farm destroy its own corn crib and damage the owner's home? What was its motive for that matter?
The implied subject of the sentence is the tornado that damaged the town of Wilton Center. The sentence should be rewritten as follows: Hansen's farm was hit by the tornado, which destroyed a corn crib and caused damage to his home. Replacing His with Hansen clarifies whose farm the sentence is talking about. Adding the phrase by the tornado clarifies that the tornado caused the damaged, not Hansen's farm.
The full article for this story can be found on Page 3 in the Nov. 22 issue of Joliet's Herald News.
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