- The FSU Flying High Circus is looking at months before the complex is ready to host shows again.
- Costs are estimated to be over $1 million.
- Watch now to find out how you can contribute to repairs.
BROADCAST TRANSCRIPT:
A tornado that passed through College Town on May 10 has left the FSU Flying High Circus with no choice but to rebuild.
"When this happened, I wanted to jump up on the spot and offer anything I could do to help out."
I'm Alberto Camargo, your neighborhood reporter in College Town.
I'm digging into how the circus plans to move forward and how the FSU community is involved.
It could be several months before the circus is back up and running on campus.
Nearly a month after the storm, circus coach Allie Hetherington says they're still wrapping their heads around replacement costs.
WATCH DRONE VIDEO OF THE DAMAGE DONE ON MAY 10:
"It's hard to figure out how much something from 10, 20 years ago costs compared to back then and what it would be now. We don't have a set number yet but I know it's definitely in the millions."
And there's still work to be done.
I spoke with two recent circus graduates who were cleaning up Wednesday morning.
Jonathan Sullivan and Saralynn Premer say offering help was a no brainer.
"When this happened, I wanted to jump up on the spot and offer anything I could do to help out."
"It really was the whole cast kind of immediately were texting the coaches like what can we do, what can we do to help? It really is like a family here."
And the circus family extends to the larger FSU community.
Hetherington says several tens of thousands have been raised to help cover costs.
It's come from official channels like the FSU Foundation and even over two thousand dollars from two local kids lemonade stand we told you about before.
If you want to get involved, consider buying a t-shirt from Madison Social or Alumni Hall.
Assistant manager Dewey Hooks says his store sold out of the first batch in a matter of days.
"To be able to see how quickly and how much people were willing to just jump at the opportunity to help out in any way whatsoever to help bring the big top back to Tallahassee was just a little overwhelming at how fast it happened."
Both shirts are available to buy online now.
The road back to normal is long, but Hetherington says, "we're not going to let this stop us, we're here to stay. As the circus says, the show must go on."
The circus says a large amount of the old tent fabric was able to be preserved and there are plans to use it in a future project.
In College Town, Alberto Camargo, ABC27.
