VIRGINIA BEACH, Va. — The Great Neck area of Virginia Beach was devastated by an EF-3 tornado Sunday afternoon, damaging homes and leaving community members fearing for their lives.
News 3 spoke with homeowners in the Haversham Close, and listened to their stories as they recounted what they felt while the tornado hit.
"Stuff started hitting the house and flying sideways so I hid in the bathroom, got the dogs with me, everything. All of a sudden the trees in the backyard went fump, fell over, glass shattered, things banging against the house. I thought the house was going to come down on me," said Peter Congdon, who lives on Haversham Close.
Congdon has pieces of neighbor's roofing in his yard and garage after it came in through a window.
Trees are fallen and littering the streets in the Great Neck community, cars are crushed and roofs are missing from homes as neighbors prepare for what's next.
Larry Torrence, a homeowner in the Chelsea neighborhood, said the emergency response helped save his neighbors.
"There were people climbing over the trees, but the firemen, the fire department was here almost immediately and going from house to house, counting people making sure they were safe. I think they helped to get the elderly lady that lives next to me," Torrence said.
News 3's Kelsey Jones talked to homeowner Ale Chewning whose home also saw damage.
"The house shook and we got out," he said. "We were like 'oh that wasn't so bad' and then we look around and we have a tree in our living room, and our front porch is gone and both of our cars are crushed."
Chewning said he's fortunate that he's unharmed, a feeling that's consistent through the community.
