The West New York, New Jersey, man told news outlets that he and his sister were watching television in an apartment on the 11th floor of the Champlain Towers condominium complex in Surfside, Florida, when they heard the building shake sometime after 1 a.m.
When they saw dust and debris rising up over the balcony, they went out into the hall and saw two holes where the elevators once were, and saw the next-door apartment was gone.
He said he didn’t look back at the building until they had reached the beach safely because he was focusing on getting out.
“It just gives you a new sense,” Willis told The Hartford Courant.
Willis, a right-handed pitcher, was 4-0 this season for UConn and helped pitch the Huskies into the NCAA tournament with a win against Xavier to clinch the Big East title.