Sport
1News

Auckland Tuatara manager re-lives near miss from American tornado

April 15, 2020

Living in North Carolina, coronavirus was the least of Steve Mintz's worries.

Back in his American home of North Carolina, the coronavirus has been the least of Auckland Tuatara manager Steve Mintz' worries in recent days.

While he may live in New Zealand due to his role as the manager of the Auckland Tuatara, Mintz and his family are still largely based in North Carolina, right in the middle of one of the nation's tornado hotspots.

Even though North Carolina residents are currently observing a state-wide 'stay at home' order due to the ongoing battle against Covid-19, it was the natural phenomenon of tornadoes that proved to be the worst of the Mintz family's worries.

"Yesterday morning, we had all those tornadoes and everything come," Mintz told 1 NEWS from his home.

"We had one come right over our house. Luckily, it didn't touch down.

"They call this tornado season, because of April and everything that's coming."

The storm was so bad it forced the Mintz family into evasive action.

"I was standing at my front door, and we were watching in the direction. All of the sudden, I've got a home in the front of my property that's a brick house - maybe a couple of hundred [of] yards away. It disappeared.

"We just ran and dove into the closet, we thought it was on us. It was pretty intense."

With the new season of the Australian Baseball League to begin in November, Mintz is hopeful he'll be able to return to New Zealand after Covid-19 restrictions ease up.

SHARE ME

More Stories