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Deer Park residents left to rebuild after an EF3 tornado tore through their community
“We will rebuild. This is Deer Park, we love it,” one resident said.
DEER PARK, Texas — The day after an EF3 tornado ripped through Deer Park, many families started to pick up the pieces.
“Why my house, why us?” asked resident Amy Ervin.
Ervin has lived on East X Street for 11 years and is one of several residents who lost everything in Tuesday’s storm. She was working at a nearby school when it came through. When she drove home, she wasn’t expecting to find her home destroyed.
“I get closer and I see my daughter’s baby swing in the tree, and I’m like, ‘That’s my house,'” Ervin said.
The tornado ripped off her roof and destroyed her house of 11 years. Her neighbor’s roof was obliterated too.
Across the street, the tornado seemingly skipped over dozens of homes.
“The firefighters had to hold me up, I was weak at the knees, I was crying, it’s just devastating to see,” said Ervin.
Luckily, they weren’t home when the twister tore down the street taking more than a decade of memories with it.
“It’s 14 years of all of our stuff in the house, gone, everything’s gone,” Ervin said.
The day after she and so many friends sifted through the debris. A few wooden beams were the only things left intact above her head.
“There’s water damage, sheetrock all down in my house,” Ervin said. “I found a knife from my kitchen in my daughter’s bathroom. Everything is everywhere.”
A few doors down there’s even less left of the house on the corner.
“It’s the most gut-wrenching thing I’ve ever seen,” said resident Ed Vickers.
The devastating damage took up entire blocks on Center Street. Businesses and livelihoods were shredded to pieces. A long road is undoubtedly ahead, but Ervin said she and her family aren’t going anywhere.
“We will rebuild. This is Deer Park, we love it,” she said.
She and others in her community will have lots of support in getting back on their feet. The Deer Park community is assisting one another with cleanup, cooking meals and anything they can do to help families who lost everything.