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‘I thought I was going to die’: Virginia Beach woman recalls moment tornado ripped open home

Posted at 3:27 PM, Apr 03, 2017
and last updated 2017-04-03 19:49:18-04

VIRGINIA BEACH, Va. - Jennifer Mingo says she was in her bedroom Friday night when all of a sudden the windows broke and she was blown against the wall.

Mingo says she hid behind a recliner.

"The next thing I know the whole side of the room went out and the TV went, the nightstand went, the dresser went," recalls Mingo. "Everything was flying out the room and I thought the chair was going to be next and I said this is my time."

But it wasn't. The tornado passed and, other than a few scratches, Mingo was fine. Her husband, children and grandchild were all okay too.

"We were in the hallway and the roof was literally going up-and-down in the insulation was coming down like snow," said Michael Mingo, Jennifer's husband.

Now the family is waiting for restoration teams to work on their home so they can figure out the extent of the damage.

Others in the Rock Creek Neighborhood near Landstown High School are in the same boat.

Instead of counting their losses the Mingo's are choosing to count their blessings.

"I told my husband he could've been worrying about the house and preparing for a funeral at the same time but I said by the grace of God it just wasn't meant to be," said Mingo.