Rebuilding underway after tornado blows through SFM

Photographer: Tom Lloyd
Published: Updated:

FORT MYERS, Fla.- For the second time in a week, a tornado swept through a Southwest Florida community, leaving a path of damage behind on Friday.

An EF1 tornado ripped through the South Pointe condos off McGregor Boulevard and Camelot Drive in south Fort Myers.

Jane Frost was inside her condo with her husband when the tornado touched down.

“The wind just picked up so fast we almost didn’t know what happened and it was over in just a flash,” said Frost.

Their condo was spared but their neighbors weren’t as lucky.

“I stepped out the door and I was like, ‘oh my God,'” said Frost.

The leasing office was damaged and several units are now unlivable after windows were blown in. A staircase and balcony railings were also ripped off by the strong winds.

Judy Sholtis, who works in an office building near the complex, says she was scared to death when she heard the storm coming their way.

“I was in the office and I just hear this, it was just like what they say about this tornado. It was like a freight train going over and I jumped up from my desk and ran out into the hallway because I thought, it’s going to hit us and my heart was just beating 90 miles per hour,” said Sholtis.

Residents say they’re sad about the damage but thankful no one was injured.

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