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Recovery efforts underway in Slidell after damaging tornado

“We will put this back together, and it will be better than it was when we got here,” Slidell Mayor Greg Cromer said. “We will come back strong. I promise you.”

SLIDELL, La. — Recovery efforts are underway in Slidell after a powerful tornado ripped through the city on Wednesday morning.

Janis Brunell was dropping her husband off at work when she got the call from her neighbor, Jennifer.

“I was sobbing coming down the street, because I didn’t know what happened,” Brunell said.

A tornado touched down in Slidell, ripping the roof off of her home.

“It sounded like a train coming down,” Jennifer Giardina said.

Severe weather swept the entire New Orleans metro area on Wednesday, including a powerful tornado that landed in Slidell around ten in the morning. It left a trail of destruction behind it.

“It did take our roof down all inside of our house which is devastating,” Giardina said.

Parish officials describe the damage as catastrophic, but Jennifer and Janis have a different perspective, saying they’re ready to rebuild and come back stronger.

“It’s okay, the dogs are okay, the neighbors are okay. We’re all okay, so we feel pretty lucky with that. It’s just the rebuilding,” Brunell said.

According to the neighbors, they’re veterans of recovering from storms.

“This feels like Katrina all over again,” Janis said.

They say they’re a resilient community.

“It’s going to take time to rebuild, but we will rebuild that’s for sure,” Giardina said.

City leaders agree with them.

“We will put this back together, and it will be better than it was when we got here,” Slidell Mayor Greg Cromer said. “We will come back strong. I promise you. It’s the spirit we’ve always had.”

If your home was damaged in Wednesday’s storms, the City of Slidell has opened Creekside Junior High as a shelter.

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