"I feel a bit humbled. You only hear about this sort of thing [happening] overseas, or to someone else. It never happens to yourself and your family. But you realise the community is there, and they are willing to help you.
"We had guys coming from three and four streets back running over, saying, 'We've heard about you guys, just come down to see if you guys need a hand to shift stuff', and people bringing food."
Everything has been covered by their insurer and they will be able to move back into their home in about six months.
"The furniture has all been moved, the carpets have been all pulled up, they have already started pulling back walls.
"From Friday everything has happened so quickly but it's what you want. They definitely understood we were homeless, so to speak, but are making sure they get us back into our home as quickly as things can happen."
Murphyne Raquel has moved into her mother's house just down the road from her Links Ave property since the tornado.
Ms Raquel has been told it would be at least three months before her rental house would be livable again.
She was able to salvage most of her belongings with the help of her family, and will now look for another property to live in.
The tornado has also prompted a family to kick-start their planned renovations.
Ascot Rd resident Kelly Hayward's caravan was tossed on its side and part of the boundary fence around her home was blown down.
"We were going to redo it anyway," laughed Mrs Hayward.
"We were going to demolish that exact place, so it's not too much of a biggie."
She said there was not a lot of work to be done at their house other than righting the caravan and cleaning up the broken fence.
"I was more worried about my sister's belongings that were inside [the caravan]. We needed to turn it on its side because everything was getting wet inside," she said.
Mrs Hayward was home with her two sleeping daughters while her husband and sister, who lives in the caravan, were out when the tornado struck.
Tornadoes
What is a tornado?
A tornado is a narrow, violently rotating column of air that extends from the base of a thunderstorm to the ground. Because wind is invisible, it is hard to see a tornado unless it forms a condensation funnel made up of water droplets, dust and debris. Tornadoes are
the most violent of all atmospheric storms.
Where do tornadoes occur?
Tornadoes occur in many parts of the world, including Australia, Europe, Africa, Asia and South America. Even New Zealand reports about 20 tornadoes each year. Two of the highest concentrations of tornadoes outside the US are Argentina and Bangladesh.
- The US National Severe Storms Laboratory
