Mayor Domenic J. Sarno and city officials observed the 12th anniversary of the June 1, 2011 tornado with a moment of silence and reflection on the front steps of City Hall as the bells in Old First Church and the Campanile Clock Tower toll at 4:38 p.m., the time the tornado touched down in Springfield.
Commenting on the twelfth anniversary of the June 1, 2011 tornado that left a 6.2 mile long scar through the city of Springfield, Mayor Sarno stated, “Twelve years later, Springfield is again showing our resiliency and strength as we continue to recover from the COVID-19 pandemic. This year marks the twelfth anniversary of the EF-3 tornado that devastated our neighborhoods. The reminder I want to take away from this is that even during what may seem as our darkest days, we stood strong and recovered with hard work, belief, compassion and unity. Please join with me as we take a moment of silence to pause and reflect on our ability as a community to join together and work so diligently on making our city whole again. It has been a long and arduous recovery process, but the resiliency of the entire city of Springfield has shined bright time and time again.”
“The city of Springfield like much of New England is used to nor’easters, blizzards, and hurricanes, but never in our wildest dreams would we ever imagine taking a direct hit by a major tornado,” said Mayor Sarno. “As I reflect upon my call to action as Mayor and the immediate response from my dedicated city team, which is tested and true, during and immediately after the tornado touched down, I am truly humbled as I recall the heartfelt responses from our residents, first responders, business community, nonprofits, the private sector, and my colleagues in government during these states of emergencies. The compassion and support we have seen during these challenging times are a testament to the patience, strength, and fortitude of our city of Springfield and we all should be proud.”
