GRAYSON COUNTY, Va. – People near the town of Fries are clearing away debris Tuesday after a tornado with 100-mile-per-hour winds downed trees and knocked out power early Monday evening.
Trees fell on a house and an apartment resident Doug Turner built in the early 1980s. One went through a roof. Another tore down a deck.
“You can replace things. You can’t replace us,” Turner said.
He pointed out the downed trees as he recounted his memory of the winds picking up.
“I was standing in the kitchen when it happened. The whole door came off the hinges, came back on me,” he said.
People say winds lasted just a minute or two. Marcus White was working inside a nearby convenience store.
“It went black. You couldn’t see,” he said. “It was just like a really loud cargo plane.”
Volunteers helped clear a main road near the store as EMS and fire crews responded. Nearby, the winds blew a car off the road, into a tree.
Ravin Bilbrey ran to his wife and kids and they crammed into their bathroom.
“You get scared for your family any time. I’ve been in two tours in Iraq and things like this can be more scary because your family is involved,” he said.
The damage was over an area only covering only about 50 yards. The National Weather Service confirmed late Tuesday afternoon that it was an EF-1 tornado that touched down. There are no reports of injuries.