KSHB 41 reporter Lily O’Shea Becker covers Franklin and Douglas counties in Kansas. Share your story idea with Lily.
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Two weeks after an EF2 tornado hit Ottawa, Kansas, residents and a family business are continuing the recovery process.
KSHB 41 Franklin County reporter Lily O'Shea Becker first met Randy McCurdy four hours after the tornado struck his family's auto service shop on April 13.
“This part of the building is standing, the other part is not," McCurdy said that night.
McCurdy said Monday marked the first in-person step in his insurance claim. A field adjuster was taking pictures of the damage.
"This is the first they’ve been able to come out and assess the property because of all the tornadoes and all the towns that have been hit around here," McCurdy said.
McCurdy says everyone in Ottawa knows McCurdy's Auto Sales & Services, located at South Main and West 17th streets. His younger brother, Jeff, owned and operated the shop until his death in 2025.
McCurdy said his brother was known to say, "I'd rather put a smile on someone's face than a penny in my pocket."
McCurdy also worked in auto repairs, but is now retired. He said he decided to put the family property up for sale two weeks before the tornado hit. Now, he's trying to figure out whether he'll sell the lot with a building or just an empty lot.
“Some of the damage we can physically see, it’s going to need to be knocked down, but what damage is in the main building, we don’t know yet," McCurdy said.
He said the adjuster's visit on Monday provided him with some clarity moving forward. It's possible a structural engineer will visit the property next, he said.
“The city of Ottawa has been great for us," McCurdy said. "They’ve come in and told us we need to secure this, this is code. I can’t thank the city of Ottawa enough for what they’ve advised me on doing, because when this hits, you don’t know what to do.”
McCurdy says the city advised him to put a fence around the most unsecured and damaged portion of his building.
“My wife and I, we first put up a caution tape on there, and they came out and assessed the property and said, ‘That’s not secure enough because if a young child comes in here, they won’t pay attention to that, and you don’t want to be liable for it. By putting up a fence, you’ll be more secure,'" McCurdy said.
Just down the road is Brian Luft's house.
He said his boat and car, which were parked in his driveway on the night of the storm, sustained catastrophic damage. Luft said he also has damage around his house.
Luft acted fast and called his insurance company the night the tornado happened. He said an adjuster was at his house within 48 hours.
He said the insurance process has been smooth and that he's just waiting on repairs, including his roof, which leaks when it rains.
"I’d prefer a new roof tomorrow, but it hasn’t been slow on their end at all," Luft said of his insurance company. "It’s just a part of life.”
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