One Year Later, Tornado Victims Near Normal

Rebuilding almost complete in tornado-torn Arlington neighborhoods

Arlington residents have spent the last year picking up after tornadoes ripped through the city, damaging and destroying more than 500 homes and buildings.

Today, where windows were broken, new ones hold their place. Where trees were toppled, new ones stand. Where homes were destroyed, new ones have been rebuilt.

"Things have come along pretty good," said Glen Wilson, whose southwest Arlington home was damaged last spring.

Jason Ribbe has come a long way after his home had to be completely rebuilt.

"I have yard work to do, and I have pictures to hang is all," he said.

"When I moved back in here last November, I just felt weird walking into my home," he said.

Ribbe's road to recovery was long.

He said he remembers thinking, "Where was I the past eight months? Why do these things even occur -- going from one place to another, packing all your things, putting it in storage, figuring out different ways to do your life?'"

What Ribbe figured out surprised him.

"You realize how much support you have," he said. "All these people come out of the woodwork to help you."

Glen Wilson and his wife are a perfect example.

"As soon as I got home [the day of the tornado], me and my wife assessed everything and we were OK," he said. "We went next door and started moving [our neighbors] out because the whole roof was gone."

While there's still some rebuilding ahead, the relationships that were built after this now stand strongest.

"We've lived next to each other four years and you give them a wave, but now you give more than a wave," Ribbe said.

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