- Destruction from ruthless tornadoes trapped a Southwest Tallahassee neighborhood one year ago.
- Burgess Drive neighbors recall sawing open a makeshift pathway in order to escape destruction and try to get help.
- Watch the video to see how the neighborhood has transformed and recovered over the past year.
BROADCAST TRANSCRIPT:
Saturday, May 10th marked one year since several tornadoes swept through neighborhoods across Leon County. I’m Kenya Cardonne in the Southwest Tallahassee neighborhood, where 12 months ago, a makeshift pathway here was the only way out for a neighborhood trapped by incredible destruction.
You can now drive in and out of Burgess Drive. But one year ago, that wasn’t the case.
“We’re trapped! We can’t get out of here," said neighbor Lawrence Trawick in 2024.
Brutal tornadoes ripped through this neighborhood on May 10th, 2024, barricading the street’s only entrance and causing an unimaginable congestion of downed power lines and trees.
Trawick - “Actually, the head electric guy that came down here said that it looked like a bomb went off.”
When I found Lawrence Trawick, he took me inside through a makeshift pathway mostly sawed open by hand.
He explained to me that landscapers couldn’t clear the debris without shutting off the main power box first. But, the power box was surrounded by massive debris, blocking utility crews from reaching it.
Trawick - “There was a point where I know everybody was looking at each other, and I think we kind of lost hope. We were just like, we're just going to have to, you know, kind of figure it out.”
Neighbors tell me Burgess Drive is used to waiting 2-3 weeks for help after a disaster.
That day, I tapped in the American Red Cross and shared the situation on our newscasts.
Trawick - “About five o'clock that morning, I heard trucks, and we heard some things that we hadn't heard in a while, and they basically cleared it halfway.”
One year later, things look completely different. Power lines and street lights are standing tall. Giant trees that impaled homes are gone and, for the most part, repairs have been made. Some of the massive trunks that blocked the road were pushed aside and are now covered in a year’s worth of vegetative growth. The same goes for the makeshift pathway.
Collene Reynolds, Neighbor - “And you coming out here, I know you don't like the credit, but had you not come out here, they probably would have been trapped a lot longer.”
While repairs and insurance claims are still a burden one year in, the people of Burgess Drive say they are just thankful to have made it through the worst of it in one piece, thanks to all of the crews and neighborly support.
Trawick - “Houses can be replaced. Cars can be replaced. But, you know, I couldn't replace some of these people here, you know, never that.”
The County reportedly traveled more than 1300 miles to assess damage across our neighborhoods. The May 10th tornadoes destroyed 174 homes and caused major damage to 742 others. In Southwest Tallahassee, Kenya Cardonne ABC 27.
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