Recovery efforts continue in Hazel Crest one week after tornado damaged several homes

A week after seven tornadoes roared through the Chicago suburbs, the lengthy process of cleaning up and rebuilding remained underway on Monday.

In Hazel Crest, where an EF-1 tornado destroyed or damaged many homes, streets were clear on Monday, but yards remained littered with branches or huge tree limbs.

Despite the lingering damage, resilient Hazel Crest residents remained determined to rebuild.

With his broom in hand, Larry Wood Sr. worked to tidy up his front yard on Monday.

"Every tree down, wires down, it was like a bomb went off in this place," Wood said.

For the past week, Wood and others living in Hazel Crest have coped the best they could. Wood's home is safe, but his van for sale won't find a buyer anytime soon thanks to a broken windshield and damaged hood.

Yet he realizes how fortunate he is to still have a roof over his head.

"Thankful enough that I didn't lose my house, but there's other people, like by the apartment buildings," he said. "They don't have anything to live in, but I got something still."

Around the corner, people living in townhomes off 171st Street have been left temporarily homeless after the tornado crumbled their brick homes, forcing them to find somewhere else to stay until they rebuild.

But around the Hazel Crest community, there's an eerie but pleasing hum in the air as tree cutting crews work to remove the debris left behind by the storm.

As neighbors work to clean up, George Pena and his wife just try to regain a bit of normalcy to their block.

"Yeah, we've got to do whatever we have to do to be okay, you know?" he said.

Even if that means chopping up branches after work every day before the sun sets.

Although a week has passed since the tornado, neighbors understand it will take some time to get what's lining their curbs removed. But in the midst of the shock, one thing did not surprise this south suburban community – the compassion of neighbors.

"They've been coming out helping, a lot of them," Wood said.