City Crews Still Clean Up Tornado Damage In Tulsa-Area Neighborhoods

Tulsa crews are hard at work today making their final sweeps in tornado-damaged neighborhoods.

The City of Tulsa hopes today is the final day of green waste collections after that EF-2 tornado.

Meanwhile, for one woman who lives in Tulsa, it's her first day back home in almost 10 days.

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"Very lucky, yes I am, yes," said Claudette Wheeler.

It's been a long week and a half for Wheeler after the rare August tornado took its toll on her house.

"It sounded like a freight train coming through," Wheeler said. "It just hit and was gone in a few minutes. It tore up my garage, inside it took it off the track."

It also damaged her roof, ripped apart her fence and knocked out power.

"It took the electric off the side of the house," Wheeler said.

Wheeler had to make a hotel her temporary home while an electrician and power company worked to get things up and running again at her house.

She says it took them eight days to restore her power.

"It's just been very stressful," Wheeler said.

A stranger helped ease a little stress by hauling away what's left of her fence.

"His wife is artistic and she's wanting to do something artistic with it, I don't know. I said, 'take it all,'" Wheeler said.
    

City workers are also doing their part, making a final green waste sweep through Wheeler's neighborhood.

Wheeler's grateful to see things are getting cleaned up on her street, but more than anything, she's happy to be back home.    

"I am ecstatic I can be home. I am a homebody and I just love being home," Wheeler said.

City workers say they hope to have all of these limbs and debris picked up by today, but say it's possible it could stretch into tomorrow.