Bridgeport Rebuilding as Tornado Anniversary Marked

A year has passed since a tornado roared down Main Street in Bridgeport, Connecticut, battering buildings and toppling trees in the Nutmeg State’s largest city.

Recovery has been steady in some areas and lagging in others.

The initial shock has given way to tales of resilience and rebuilding, and some say recent twisters in Joplin, Mo., and Springfield, Mass., reminded them that Bridgeport got off lucky, since nobody was killed.

The Federal Emergency Management Agency twice rejected Bridgeport’s request for financial help. FEMA set the damage tally around $3 million, while Bridgeport calculates it around $5 million, not including up to $17 million for the historic Barnum Museum and its contents.

Topics Catastrophe Natural Disasters Windstorm