Residents of Little Rock discuss improvements one month after the tornado

Little Rock, Arkansas – The tornado that ravaged Central Arkansas on March 31 has been nearly a month ago.

Walls are still falling down for residents of Little Rock’s Shackelford neighborhood, but significant progress has been achieved.

The shooting at JJ’s Grill on Saturday night is being looked into by Little Rock police.

Homes that were formerly inhabited by children are now only shattered shells, while the damage to George Jucha’s family house is covered with tarps.

“It’s pretty heartbreaking to see this but we feel lucky because down over the valley they got hit worse than we did,” homeowner, George Jucha said.

The Hood family resides down over the valley, and even though their house is a total loss, this still-standing wall says it all.

“There is some level of solidarity that’s built up around just simply expressing that we are coming back and we are excited about that we are coming back, we are excited to rebuild,” homeowner, Jeff Hood said.

Over the course of almost a month since the tornado ripped their homes apart, “it’s been just a blur, a loss of just time, like a sense of no time,” Emily Hood said.

“It’s tough, it’s crazy its surreal, and you just don’t think this is going to happen,” Hood said.

They keep moving toward normalcy and cherish each memory of the area, which they claim is being rebuilt stronger.

“In picking up the pieces, we have all found ourselves picking up the pieces together and that has definitely created a sense in which we aren’t saying goodbye but perhaps even saying hello again,” Jeff Hood said.

While the wind blows over the open roof further up the valley, George waits and prays that life will return before March 31.

“May 10th we are supposed to start construction and hopefully it will all be done within that week,” Jucha stated.