Community cleanup events take place in Round Rock and Elgin following tornadoes

Round Rock and Elgin were some of the areas hit hardest by tornadoes on Monday.

ROUND ROCK, Texas — On Saturday, two communities came together to help those in need. People in Round Rock and Elgin continued to help piece back together the lives of their neighbors.

Round Rock and Elgin were some of the areas hit hardest by tornadoes on Monday.

Jennifer Dayton, her husband and a few others from their church spent their Saturday helping out in Round Rock.

“We actually live on the other side of the neighborhood. We got lucky we didn’t actually get any damage from the tornado, but we wanted to help our neighbors that did,” Dayton said.

Several homes sustained damages and others were deemed uninhabitable, but Dayton and the people who went to help did it with the hope to take some weight off their neighbors’ shoulders.

Heather Compton and her family moved from St. Louis, Missouri, where tornados aren’t uncommon. They have only been in Texas a few months, but Compton said she didn’t expect it to happen here. She said she’s inspired by the community’s resiliency.

“They say, everything’s bigger and better in Texas, and that doesn’t stop at hospitality and loving your neighbor. So that’s just, it’s just phenomenal to be a part of it,” Compton said.

In Elgin, Josh Yamin is still taking it all in. He and his family moved into their home a few months ago and now it’s severely damaged.

“The tornado literally went a corner around my daughter. I mean, she’s three months old, so she has no idea what’s happening,” Yamin said.

Now, his focus is cleaning up the mess the tornado left behind.

“Everybody just drives up and drops off Gatorade or visits or helps and it’s overwhelming,” Yamin said about the support he has received from family, friends and strangers.

Yamin said it’ll take him some time to process what happened, but he’s just thankful everyone made it out alive.

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