New Beginning For A Tulsa Hotel

It's been one year since a small tornado touched down in Tulsa, causing big problems at one Tulsa hotel. What a difference a year makes. The tornado that hit the Airport Radisson on April 1st, 2006

Monday, April 2nd 2007, 6:33 am

By: News On 6

It's been one year since a small tornado touched down in Tulsa, causing big problems at one Tulsa hotel. What a difference a year makes. The tornado that hit the Airport Radisson on April 1st, 2006 was on the ground for less than one minute. In that small amount of time, the twister cost the hotel $6 million in renovations. Work is now nearly finished on the 70 rooms that were damaged in the storm. Those 70 rooms are almost half of all of the rooms in the hotel.

Crews have also spent the last year remodeling the lobby, front desk and ballrooms. The hotel's general manager Kevin Roberts says it was a "twister" of fate, because the 40-year-old hotel needed a makeover. "A total new look. The Radisson did need it. Now we're the only Tuscan hotel in town, so we're very proud of that."

A year ago, the tornado ripped off part of the hotel's roof. The building also sustained water damage because of a rain that fell following the tornadoâ€™s strike.

Roberts says the company that operates the Airport Radisson runs about 30 other hotels across the country and this was the first time they ever dealt with this large amount of damage.

Related stories:

4/2/2006 - Small Tornado Causes Damage At Tulsa's International Airport And Nearby Hotel

4/3/2006 - Tulsa International Airport Tornado Cleanup And Safety Procedures