County officials continue the ongoing clean up and “make steady progress,” they said.
“Multiple local businesses and nonprofit organizations stepped in the very next morning and immediately began assisting with recovery efforts. Their willingness to mobilize so quickly has made a significant impact, and we are truly grateful for their support,” said Clark County Emergency Management Agency (EMA) Director Michelle Clements-Pitstick.
Moorefield Twp. Trustee President Joe Mosier said they are still in the cleanup stage and have the whole road crew working.
“They worked all day yesterday, working all day today. We’ve got all of our trucks running plus other volunteer trucks. It’s coming along. About as fast as we clean it up, they’re dragging more out to pick up,” Mosier said.
A few homes were damaged, but the main damage is downed trees, Mosier said.
The county doesn’t have an official estimate on the total damage yet, Clements-Pitstick said, but that EMA staff was out Monday with the NWS conducting the damage assessment and reviewing the path of the debris field.
“This will help us determine the storm’s classification and guide next steps for recovery and potential assistance,” she said.
Resident Richard Volzke said Monday afternoon he has lived in the area for only eight months and it was his first time experiencing a tornado. He said he was in Marysville with some friends when he got a call that a tornado hit his house, so he rushed back since his dog was still inside.
“We didn’t have any warning,” he said. “There were people trying to get in to find the dog (who they found). It was all blacked out, no power. There was a big tree right in the middle of the four-way. The window was blown out. Most of the roof was gone. It was disastrous. It was pretty bad.”
There have been no injuries reported to the EMA, Clements-Pitstick said, who is coordinating with the local fire chief to determine if any people or families have been displaced.
“As of now, no one has reached out to the EMA requesting shelter or additional support, but we remain ready to assist if that changes,” she said.
Volzke said although there was damage, it was great the community came together to help clean up the damage.
“It just came in, and it was there. I’ve never seen nothing like it ... (It’s) insane, how quick it is. No one got hurt, which is a great thing. It’s a bad experience but it’s a wonderful thing to see the community come together ... Stuff can be replaced, humans can’t,” Volzke said.
Moorefield Twp. Fire Chief Kevin Stevens said over the weekend, his department began receiving calls for service around 9:30 p.m. Saturday night. He said they originally got a call for wires down but more and more calls kept coming in for trees down and a possible tornado.
Some homes received minor visible damage, while others were more severely affected.
One home had its roof partially torn off with wood beams exposed and a garage had been demolished. A wooden shed in one yard appeared to have been lifted from the ground and was resting on its side.
Crews went door to door Saturday evening in the Northridge community, near Ridgewood Road West and Moorefield Road, checking on residents whose homes were damaged or had lost power. They continued assessing damage Sunday morning.
NWS officials said a final assessment including results of the survey are expected to be completed and released later today at www.weather.gov/iln.
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