Branson, Mo. -- Branson-based crews are working hard to bring the glitzy lights back to the famous Highway 76 Strip. Sign company employees are restoring or replacing the town's famous neon signs damaged by the Leap Day tornado.
"We're stretched in all directions. The phone rings constantly for service, because all the theatres are opening up," said Greg Fuller, a sign installer for Native Signs in Branson.
Fuller is part of a company that creates, updates, and repairs signs in the Branson area. Spring is normally a busy time for the company, as they help businesses prepare for the busy summer season. With the tornado damage, Fuller said the company phone rings twice as often.
"We're trying to pick up more people, trying to accommodate all the work that's coming in now," Fuller said.
The work in Branson stretches beyond the commercial area. The tornado also hit residential areas, and now crews are busy working to rebuild in homes there. Construction companies are adding on extra workers to meet the demand.
"It just all came at once. It's not usual that everybody's home or business is damaged on the same day," said Tom Caruso, the owner of Masterpiece Design, a Branson-based construction company.
On a typical day Caruso operates with half a dozen crew members. Post-tornado he has two dozen people working on multiple sites.
"They're working again where maybe they weren't, so the storm probably has pulled some people back into the workforce," Caruso said.
One of the homes Caruso's crews are rebuilding belongs to Paul and June Depoto, retirees who moved to Branson from Connecticut.
