It’s hard to regain normalcy during a pandemic. It’s even harder after having to endure a natural disaster, too.
That’s what Best Buy General Manager Alex Trufin is facing after a tornado flattened his Jonesboro, Arkansas, store in a matter of seconds while 17 employees and two customers sheltered inside.
“I’ve been there 13 years. That was like my home,” Alex said. “I felt like we had built a dream team. The day before the tornado, we finished first in the company for sales.”
On the afternoon of June 14, 1981, a tornado slammed into the Minneapolis suburbs, mere miles from where the Best Buy corporate headquarters now stands.
The twister churned for 26 minutes, all wind and fury, cutting a swath north and east for 15 miles. When the skies cleared, scores of homes, businesses and trees were damaged. One person died and 83 more were injured.
It was the most significant tornado to hit the Minneapolis-St. Paul area in 20 years — and its wake would change the path of our company.