PORTAGE, Mich. — Despite on and off rain, the Portage community continues cleaning up the destruction left behind by a powerful EF-2 tornado that rolled through Tuesday evening.
City leaders say upward of 100 families have been displaced from their homes. Many of the people we spoke to say they never expected anything like this to happen to them—but they are just happy to be alive.
The focus shifts now to clearing away piles of wreckage and debris left behind by that tornado.
On Thursday, Colin Beam could be seen cuddling his cat Chico closely to his chest. Both are survivors of Tuesday’s EF-2 tornado.
“When I walked in there to assess the damage, I heard (Chico) hollering so you know I would look for him," Beam said of finding his cat. "He was just sitting there on the headboard by the bed. He was meowing and saying, 'Hey, come on, come get me.'”
Beam and his wife are among more than a dozen people, including 16 pets, that stayed at the Red Cross shelter located inside the First Assembly of God Church in Portage.
“The Red Cross is here for them now, and they'll be there for them later," said Sue Heydlauff, supervisor of the shelter. "We create a case number for them, where they'll have other contacts down the line that will help, you know, to guide them to resources that can help them.”
Beam scrolled through his phone looking at images of the damage done to his apartment. The roof is missing, and insulation covers the floor.
“It was a very shock. I'm only 23 years old," Beam said. "I've never experienced this in my life. This is something very new.”
He says they lost almost everything.
“The only thing we were able to salvage is mostly our clothes and a couple of TVs, but we don't even know if they work anymore,” he said.
Severe storm damage in West Michigan
Crews will be making repairs to intersections, hauling away downed trees and clearing out the massive piles of debris over the next several days.
For Beam and his wife, the focus will be on moving forward.
“I have a lot of support going on right now with family so right now we still are trying figure out what to do," Beam said. "Ultimately, our landlord's giving us our money back so we can get a new apartment.”
Luckily, his family has a place to stay for now and the community is doing everything it can to help others impacted by the tornado.
Recovery could take weeks and even months for some people.
If you would like to help, both the United Way of South-Central Michigan and the Kalamazoo Community Foundation are accepting donations.
►Make it easy to keep up to date with more stories like this. Download the 13 ON YOUR SIDE app now.
Have a news tip? Email news@13onyourside.com, visit our Facebook page or Twitter. Subscribe to our YouTube channel.
Watch 13 ON YOUR SIDE for free on Roku, Amazon Fire TV Stick, and on your phone.