The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
Ohio, Indiana folks clean up following spate of tornadoes
Early warnings credited for lack of serious injuries.
KOKOMO, IND. — Residents on Thursday began cleaning up destroyed or damaged homes and businesses in a Central Indiana city where trees were sheared off at their stumps by one of several tornadoes that struck the region the day before.
An EF3 tornado packing winds of up to 165 mph that swept through the south side of Kokomo, Ind., toppling a Starbucks coffee shop and tearing apart numerous homes.
Taking a break from campaigning as the Republican vice-presidential nominee, Indiana Gov. Mike Pence hugged and chatted with residents Thursday. Pence credited quick thinking and early warnings of the approaching storm for the lack of serious injuries. Howard County Sheriff Steve Rogers said only 10 to 15 residents in the city 40 miles north of Indianapolis had minor injuries.
“It’s a miracle and it’s a testament to good common sense,” Pence said.
The Kokomo tornado was one of several that swept through central and northern Indiana and northwest Ohio on Wednesday.
In Ohio, damage was reported in four counties, including Van Wert County, where officials said at least two tornadoes touched down about 2 miles apart, tearing roofs off homes and flattening barns. A tornado warning also briefly disrupted a show by the rock band KISS in Toledo, Ohio, but there was no touchdown there.
Weather service crews were still assessing the scope of the storms in Indiana. While the state’s Department of Homeland Security initially said 12 tornadoes were confirmed, it lowered that count to eight on Thursday.
About 220 people stayed overnight in a temporary shelter in Kokomo, Mayor Greg Goodnight said. Police were restricting access to storm-damaged neighborhoods, saying residents must show ID to gain access.
“The areas that have been hit the hardest, we’re asking people to stay away unless they absolutely have to be in those areas,” Goodnight said at a news conference, adding the was relieved no one was killed or seriously injured.
Heidi Otiker lives on a block that was hit Wednesday, as well as by a tornado in November 2013.
“It could have been far worse. God has a master plan. I believe this all happens for a reason,” she said.
At the Park Place Apartments in Kokomo, maintenance technician Mitchell Carlson described the post-storm scene as “a madhouse.” He said the complex has 16 buildings and “probably eight of them don’t have a roof.”