Garner residents continue cleanup effort after EF-1 tornado damages more than 20 homes
Even in darkness, some neighbors in Garner are out clearing their homes after an EF-1 tornado swept through parts of town on Sunday, causing extensive damage.
Neighbors around Springview Trail heard the roars of crashing trees from inside their homes. The tornado traveled about 1.5 miles. It was on the ground for about four minutes bust after 12:30 p.m. and carried top wind speeds of 110 mph.
The town of Garner reported more than 20 homes were damaged after Sunday's storm. Four of those homes are now uninhabitable. Six others have areas that can't be lived in or other major damage.
Trees fell onto homes and cars, and piles of debris were visible along Timber Drive. No one was injured, according to the town.
On Monday, all roads had reopened as cleanup continues. Garner's storm assessment teams were also on the ground taking inventory of the damage.
Neighbors describe the tornado coming through
John Pitt's home was among those with major damage.
"It was calm [and humid] ... then rained real heavy," Pitt described. "As soon as I saw the rain going sideways, I knew it was time to get into the shelter."
Pitt said the rain got louder as he took shelter in his bathroom and began praying.
"I could hear trees cracking. It was like the house was being hit by rocks and debris," he said. "It sounded like an avalanche. [In] 30 seconds it was over, I didn't want to come out and look because I knew it was bad."
Pitt said he has lived in Garner for 30 years. On Monday afternoon, his family was still cleaning up the damage.
"After the storm, residents are nervous [and] scared about this, and we have it under control," said Jesus Diaz with Alpha Tree Service. "I was surprised, [this] is not something I've seen before."
One video sent to WRAL News on Sunday shows fire shooting from the top of a utility pole as winds picked up and branches and debris quickly went flying through the air.
"Imagine you open a door and it's just a huge tornado outside spinning around," said Ashley Lopez. "I'm like, did I really just experience this?"
William Shaw, who lives on Springview Trail near Garner High School, said it all happened just seconds after the alert about a tornado warning hit his phone.
"As soon as I got that notification, I see it coming towards the house," Shaw said.
"It was extremely loud, rumbling," said Natalie Isrel. "The power was flickering on and off. I was petting my cat trying not to freak out."
The chaos included whirling winds and punishing rain.
"You could just hear it. It’s like ‘whoosh-whoosh-whoosh,’ said Shaw. "So I talked to my momma. She is sick. She is on oxygen, so I told her, 'go in the bathroom, take shelter.' And as soon as I did that, everything started hitting the house."
The worst was over in seconds.
Shaw then stepped outside to find cars nearly crushed and a neighborhood permanently changed.
"You can just see how bad it hit my neighbors," Shaw said.
At least eight houses and sheds were damaged along Buckhorn Road, Old Buckhorn Road and Ford Gates Drive. Some homes were nearly split in half.
Ivory and Ivan Cunningham live right next door to Shaw and made it through unscathed.
"I would say coming out and seeing it is a terrible feeling," Ivan Cunningham said.
"You actually hear the debris," he said. "And you look outside, and you can’t see anything. It’s just clear white. You can’t see anything. And it’s like ‘oh we’re actually in the middle of a tornado.’"
Denise Barker was taking shelter inside a bathroom when the storm came through.
"I thought my windows were busted out – but none of that happened, it was just super super loud. Then it got totally quiet. Didn’t even last two minutes. It got totally quiet and I came outside and saw all this destruction," she said.
The storm destroyed Barker's backyard.
"I saw trees uprooted everywhere. My fence on both sides were torn down," she said. "It was like a path that went right through my backyard.”
Crews told her that her home wouldn't be safe until those trees were removed, because they could fall onto her home or even push other trees onto her home.
Garner officials warn locals of potential danger from damaged trees, powerlines
Garner officials, including Council Member Phil Matthews, toured the damage, and are encouraging people to stay out of the area if they can.
"There’s wires down over there, stop lights down, and limbs hanging," Matthews said.
NCDOT was working to repair a traffic signal at Woodland and Timber Drive. Duke Energy was working to restore power to affected customers.
"Let the fire and rescue do their job," said Matthews.
On Sunday less than two hours after the storm, people were already stepping in to clear up the damage. One text to a church women’s group was all it took to bring out all these people to cut down limbs, and haul away the debris.
"Tree took out the garden, my fence, my laundry room," said Griffin Stanley.
Stanley just moved into the neighborhood in October.
Trees damaged the side of the house, and his car. In the aftermath of this storm, he’s not having to pick up the pieces alone. For that, he’s thankful.
"It means a lot honestly," Stanley said. "Because people can always say stuff, but it’s actions that speak louder than words. So knowing I have all these people to help me in the community to help me, really speaks volumes."
