Celina continues cleanup effort after Memorial Day tornadoes

Even as electric service has been restored to the entire city of Celina and 300 tons of debris has been picked up, multiple Celina locations are continuing to offer services and cleanup opportunities to residents, according to the Celina-Mercer County Chamber of Commerce.

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"There is a re-building process, still," Mayor Jeff Hazel told News Center 7's Sean Cudahy on Tuesday.

Grand Lake United Methodist Church is offering a laundry service to victims of the tornadoes. Laundry can be dropped off with your name and number Monday through Friday between 8 a.m. and 5 p.m.

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C.A.L.L. Food Pantry is distributing many items that have been donated such as food, toiletries, detergent and water.

“I think we’ve served the community very well,” Hazel said.

Two hundred National Guardsmen were willing to come help, but the city turned the offer down. The mayor said they were in such good shape by late last week, they didn’t need them.

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Eleven communities, including one from Michigan, have sent mutual aid to the city for restoring electricity.

Four miles of new lines were run and 35 utility poles were replaced before power was restored to everyone.

“I feel for my neighbors, I really do,” said Celina resident Brooke Poplaski, whose apartment was not damaged in the storm.

“Just kind of hard to walk outside and see all our neighbors’ damage, we got really lucky,” she said.

Areas outside of town are still in need of a few cleanup crews, according to the chamber of commerce.

C.A.L.L. and “The Purple Door Church” also have an abundance of cleaning supplies if needed.

The town is quite busy and there are a lot of dump trucks and workers cleaning up things, Poplaski said.

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The mayor estimates some people will be out of their homes for a year or so. Many members of the community are staying with family in the area. Some are in hotels, put up by insurance companies, or are in interim housing.

“We were praying all night, and I thank God for keeping us safe, answering our prayers,” said Carl Bowman, another Celina resident whose home also was spared.

Just after 10 p.m. on May 27, an EF-3 tornado with winds reaching 150 mph hit just west of Celina, near Township Line and Bunk Hill roads. It was on the ground 7 minutes, traveled roughly 6.6 miles and was at least 200 yards wide, a National Weather Service survey crew reported.

At least three barns lost nearly half their roofs and dozens of homes were severely damaged. One home was lifted from its foundation with its walls intact and dropped in a field about 70 yards away.

Homes in the Fairground Road and Touvelle Street area had significant damage. Multiple cars were lifted and displaced by wind.

Melvin Dale Hannah, 81, was killed in the Fairground Road area after an airborne vehicle hit his home.

Mayor Hazel anticipates millions of dollars in damage, although he does not know exactly how much.

The Celina Rotary Club has established a disaster relief fund for anyone who wants to financially help residents affected by the storms on Memorial Day.

More details and updates on cleanup and recovery efforts in Celina can be found on a Facebook group page called “CelinaStrong.”

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