City officials are relying on the “spirit of Chattanooga,” to endure and rebuild after Sunday’s tornado that killed at least 10 people between Southeast Tennessee and North Georgia, leaving hundreds of millions of dollars in damage in Hamilton County alone.
The majority of Bob Ateca’s second floor and roof was ripped from his home by the EF-3 tornado that also uprooted and flung a large tree, crushing much of what remained while he, his wife and 17-year-old daughter took shelter in the basement.
“I went up the stairs to see what kind of damage there had been because we heard glass and whatever else, but had no idea, and there just really wasn’t a roof or much of an upstairs at all … I was stunned,” said Ateca, the athletic director for Grace Baptist Academy, which was also dismantled by the storm.
“We’re now just trying to get the last of our stuff out, and I guess it’s just still hard for me to believe this happened,” Ateca said, standing in front of what’s left of his home. “I’ve never seen anything like this in person, I mean I’ve seen it on TV, but certainly never experienced it.”
During a three-minute conversation with the Times Free Press, a former colleague helped Ateca clear out his belongings in the background, and neighbors stopped him to offer snacks and prayer.