Damage still dots Revere one month later

REVERE – One month after a tornado roared off Chelsea Creek and down Broadway, blue tarpaulins still cover roofs across Revere, and residents wonder when insurance claims will be processed and paid.Revere Beach Parkway resident James DePaulo said his home “got whacked” by the July 28 tornado and received an estimated $100,000 damage. On Wednesday, he supplemented his insurance claim for the damage by filling out an application for help from the Revere Tornado Relief Fund. The fund includes almost $200,000 in donated and pledged money, said mayoral aide Miles Lang-Kennedy, and Mayor Daniel Rizzo said application processing will start in two to four weeks.?We hope to meet all unmet needs. We?ve got people on fixed incomes paying for college and with other expenses. They are in a bad spot having to come up with $3,000 or $4,000 for repairs. This is where we are hoping to help,” Rizzo said.Boston law firm Nixon Peabody announced on Aug. 1 that former Middlesex County District Attorney Gerry Leone will manage the fund and help process applications.Lang-Kennedy said requests for assistance range from $500 to $10,000. He said about 800 people donated or pledged money to the fund.?These people are giving from the heart,” he said.The mid-morning tornado preceded by torrential rains that struck the city did not kill or seriously injure anyone, but it significantly damaged more than 60 local buildings and left 13 homes uninhabitable.Lang-Kennedy said the city list of uninhabitable buildings now stands at nine. Luis Fonseca said he only returned to the 28-30 Taft St. home he shares with his sister five days ago. She stayed during the last month in a hotel, but Fonseca said he was homeless for the first few days following the tornado.?We are waiting for the insurance so we can find out when we can get windows again,” he said.In addition to tornado damage, Taft residents have endured break-ins in two homes left empty in the storm?s aftermath. Police arrested two Chelsea men on Aug. 18 after a woman living in 34-36 Taft?s basement heard footsteps on a floor above her in an unoccupied apartment.Police surrounded the building and officers, according to a Suffolk District Attorney?s statement, saw a man run out of the building?s front door and chased him to Fenno Street, where the man got in a car and drove off – narrowly avoiding hitting a police officer.Nelson Rodriguez, 20, and Christopher Rivera, 22, were arrested and charged with breaking and entering at night with intent to commit a felony and other charges. Not guilty pleas were entered on their behalf during arraignments last week.Taft Street parallels Revere Beach Parkway, where a half dozen homes, including DePaulo?s, remain damaged and unrepaired. DePaulo recalled being blown across his bedroom by the wind that slammed into his home on July 28.The tornado pushed toppling trees into 849 Parkway?s walls and damaged its porch and roof. After initially being told he could not stay in the 100-year-old house, DePaulo made emergency repairs and got city permission to return.He said he needs to resolve differences with his insurer over how to repair the home?s roof and fix the walls before winter.?The hard part is finding a contractor who can supervise general work,” he said.Lang-Kennedy and Rizzo did not offer precise dollar estimates for tornado damage, but Lang-Kennedy said damage to public property is “in the millions of dollars.” Rizzo estimated nearly 400 trees on public property damaged or downed by the tornado will cost $400,000 to repair. The cost of a new City Hall roof could approach $1 million.Rizzo said the city can ask the state Legislature for money once city officials “get hard costs” for tornado damage.Rizzo?s brother is currently running the family insurance business Rizzo oversaw prior to his election as mayor. He said the firm has reserved $1.5 million to pay tornado damage claims and said other agents are taking similar steps to prepare for claim payments.?It?s amazing s