‘It's all gone': Largo residents cleaning up after tornado rips through neighborhoods
LARGO, Fla. (WFLA) — Claudia Hobbs heard the thunder and went outside to roll up the windows on her car. She lives in Pinebrook Estates in Largo.
'I noticed it sounded like there was a plane,' Hobbs said.
About five minutes north in Ranchero Village, Linda McGee had just finished dinner.
Largo residents deal with aftermath of EF-1 tornado
'It really started to move like someone was shaking a rag doll,' McGee said.
Both women were in the path of an EF-1 tornado. The National Weather Service said it reached wind speeds of 90 mph and lasted about 8 minutes. It felt a bit longer to Hobbs.
'Probably for 10-15 minutes things were just scary,' Hobbs said.
As the tornado moved north, it lifted a home off its foundation. But before that, one street over, the storm snatched the roof off McGee's house. It put the carport on top of her car. It also peeled off her lanai. McGee said she was inside the whole time, hiding in the bathroom.
'We just wanted to live through,' McGee said.
They started cleaning up Thursday, and options are limited for McGee.
'It's all gone,' McGee said. 'We don't know.'
As neighbors helped remove a tree off the top of Hobbs' patio, and tarps covered the roofs of other homes in the neighborhood, she said this storm put things in perspective.
'We had two hurricanes in a row last year; we didn't lose that many limbs. No, this is probably the worst that we've had, a tornado,' Hobbs said. 'It makes you think and realize where we live and we have to be prepared.'
Largo Fire Rescue said 40 to 50 homes in Ranchero Village had damage ranging from minor to severe. Anyone needing assistance can call the American Red Cross at 1-800-RED-CROSS.
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