A day after two tornadoes tore through the region, business leaders struggled to cope with the devastation that ripped rooftops off buildings, destroyed houses and shattered the lives of thousands of residents.

Throughout Greater Springfield, the story was the same – banking, insurance and real estate firms scrambled to assess the damage and respond to clients’ and employees’ desperate needs.

"It’s a surreal experience, that’s for sure," said Springfield Realtor and landlord Kevin Sears.

Luckily, none of the tenants in his 30-unit apartment complex at 147-155 Allen St. in Springfield were injured. But there was no power, trees were toppled on the property and a tree limb appeared to have fallen on the roof.

On a personal front, he said his children’s school was damaged, and a Realtor he works with had a tree fall on her house.

"It’s something we hear and see on the news, happening in the Midwest. We’re used to heat waves and hurricanes. Tornadoes are something that don’t happen here."

Efforts by Sears and other local Realtors and landlords to check on their properties were blocked by downed power lines, felled trees and building debris.

A drive downtown that normally takes Douglas MacMillan, a commercial real estate broker in Springfield, five minutes, took an hour and a half this morning.

"I’m still trying to figure out if my friends and family are all okay," he said. "It’s tough trying to figure everything out; the cell phone towers were out last night."

Vincent Walsh, 2011 president of the Realtor Association of Pioneer Valley, and a sales manager with Coldwell Banker in East Longmeadow, said some of the residential properties listed for sale have been damaged, but he was unsure of the extent.

Walsh said he was encouraging sales agents not to drive around to assess damage until cleanup crews get the debris off the streets.

It’s unclear how the damage would impact pending real estate sales and closings.  

Richard Vetstein, a real estate attorney and founding partner of Vetstein Law Group in Framingham, said these are situations where the buyer’s attorney has to be very vigilant. Otherwise, he said, the buyer may be liable for catastrophic damage that occurred after the sale, but before the closing. He said he normally recommends a clause specifying that if there is damage to the property over $10,000, the buyer has the right to walk away, a clause that is useful in the case of natural disasters.

Bruce Spitzer, director of communications for the Massachusetts Bankers Association, said the organization is also working to assess tornado damage.

"We’re trying to see if there’s any damage to bank infrastructure, and we’re reaching out today to see if that’s the case," he said.

Douglas Brunner, a real estate attorney whose office is located on State Street in Springfield, was in his office Wednesday evening when he noticed the sky was eerily dark.

"I looked out and saw these dark clouds; it looked almost like liquid," he said. "I went outside, and honestly thought it was birds flying in circles, but it was debris."

Although his office building was undamaged, windows in neighboring buildings were blown out.

"And if you go two buildings away," he said, "just about every car in the parking lot was damaged."

Brunner went into his office early this morning, but said several staff members were unable to make it to work because of damaged cars and other storm-related issues.

Although he has a commercial real estate closing scheduled for this afternoon, Brunner said he can’t go across the street to record it at the Registry of Deeds, because the registry building in Springfield is closed. He planned to drive to a registry in Westfield, he said.

"It’s a big commercial deal out of Boston," Brunner said. "They want their money."

Kathleen Conley Norbut, Monson’s emergency management director, said the tornado cut a two-mile swath through the town. The downtown was particularly hard hit, with catastrophic damage to the local IGA supermarket.

The Main Street area remained closed as of late Thursday. There was severe structural damage to the town office building, and schools were closed for the rest of the week, she said.

"It’s still not passable in certain areas, particularly the downtown section," Norbut said.

"Today’s work is clean up, clear up and assess for safety," Norbut said. A shelter that opened last night has housed up to two dozen people at a time before families found temporary housing with friends or relatives, she said.

Local business leaders were also helping out.

Karen Christiansen King, a Monson resident and a real estate sales team leader in Remax Prestige’s Wilbraham office, had gathered water and supplies in her home – supplied by Remax Prestige – to donate to neighbors, Norbut said.

One residential downtown neighborhood, the area of Bethany Road, Stewart Avenue and McCray Circle, was severely damaged.

Norbut said she knew of a dozen individuals who were treated for injuries, but that there were no life-threatening injuries.

Robert Hartwig, president of the Insurance Information Institute and a Massachusetts resident, said he thinks the property and casualty insurance system will work as it is supposed to in responding to the Massachusetts disaster.

"There’s no question the market will be able to function as intended," Hartwig told Banker & Tradesman. "Tornadoes are tragic … but in terms of actual damage done [here], it’s very small compared to what we have seen in Missouri and Alabama."

While insurers face financial and logistical challenges, he said, adjusters were likely on-scene on Thursday afternoon. "Obviously, we’re getting a lot of practice this year."

Gail Marengo, an agent with Zip Realty in Holland, said a tornado touched down about two miles from her house, knocking down telephone poles and destroying houses in its path.

Although her home was not damaged, she was without electricity. Because her office is in her house, she was unable to work Thursday. And it was unclear when she would get back to the business of selling homes.

"Nobody has called me," she said. "I can’t work, and my kids are out of school today and tomorrow."

Continue to check back throughout the day as Banker & Tradesman covers the devastating storms in Western Massachusetts. We will have comprehensive coverage of the storms’ impact on banking infrastructure, lending operations, insurance impacts and home sales and appraisals. Also check bankerandtradesman.com for multimedia presentations from our award-winning editorial staff, including video, photos and interviews.