The Dhanapal family. From left: Chanders, Tia and Shirley.
TWO years after the devastating tornado, a young Tongaat woman shared her harrowing first-hand account of surviving the devastation and how it motivated her to pen a book.
Tia Whitney Dhanapal, 22, a software developer, from Naidoo Road in Fairbreeze, was at home with her parents when the tornado hit on June 3, 2024.
“I was off from campus on that day and planning my 21st birthday party with my mum. I was lying on my bed, scrolling through my phone when my dog Zoe began whimpering. I just thought that she was just being dramatic. Then a violent wind suddenly started,” she said.
“Then I heard my father shout my name from the lounge. I ran to him. He was frozen at the window. I looked outside. A massive tornado was spinning in the distance, tearing trees from the ground like they were paper dolls. But, I did not realise was that it was heading straight toward us."
