Memorial Day Tornadoes 2 Years Later: The Recovery

It’s been two years since the Memorial Day Tornado Outbreak, a terrifying night that left parts of southwest Ohio devastated, and some businesses and homes are still recovering.

Chief Meteorologist McCall Vrydaghs walked through some of the hardest hit areas and spoke with the people who live there to see how the rebuilding is going. She says the long-term recovery process continues, but there are clear signs of progress being made.

For Northridge Wesleyan Pastor Scott Ritz, Memorial Day 2019 is a date he’ll never forget. After hearing the warnings and seeing the largest of the tornadoes, an EF-4, was headed towards his church, he rushed to see the damage.

”You could see the roof was gone, the offices were in the parking lot,” said Pastor Ritz.

His story, like so many others, is of a journey to bring back what was lost. Although the tornado severely damaged his church, he said it was a blessing in disguise.

He said, “This church was built in the early 1940′s, so there is a lot that needed to be done here at the church.”

It was the tornado damage that allowed him to update and rebuild his church, all covered by his insurance.

Storm Center 7 spoke with storm damage analyst Bryan Wood about the insurance damage costs. He estimates up to 1 billion dollars in damages was caused by the storms, but there is a lack of data for uninsured properties. That could mean we’ll never really know how many without insurance lost possessions or property, and may never recover.

From Northridge to Trotwood, Ohio, the story is the same. A city hit hard by the tornado is working to bring the community back together.

“This tornado has really changed the body of Trotwood,” Mayor Mary McDonald said.

According to the Miami Valley Regional Planning Commission, the tornado impacted more than 1,000 Trotwood properties. More than 700 of them, group leadser say, were single family homes.

To help with the Miami Valley recovery effort, a new project called the Tornado Survivors Pathway to Ownership Project will provide tornado impacted renters and opportunity to become homeowners.

“It will help the community tremendously, not only the family that’s being affected,” Sammy Deacon, Long Term Project Leader for Brethern Disaster Ministries, said.

Brethren Disaster Ministries is a national volunteer network, and is one of several relief groups helping out.

Eleesha Moore, a former Dayton resident, is the first approved applicant of the Pathway’s Project and is excited to move into her new Harrison Township home soon. Her Dayton apartment was destroyed by the Memorial Day EF-4 twister two years ago.

“Well I’ve never seen a house built from the beginning, but it’s even better knowing it’s going to be mine,” Moore said.

Not only family homes, but hundreds of miles of trees, torn apart two years ago. With a partnership between the Miami Valley Regional Planning Commission, (MVRPC,) and a non-profit called RETREET, thousands of trees will be replanted in some of the hardest hit neighborhoods.

“The scars are so prevalent out there. It’s just really important to get new trees in there,” MVRPC Executive Director Brian O. Martin told Strom Center 7.

Harrison Township’s Sinclair Park is just one Miami Valley tree loss example. Brown patches of grass and rows of logs inside the park are all that’s left two years after centuries old trees were destroyed.

Trotwood resident and former councilman Rap Hankins says the loss of trees was devastating, even minutes after the tornado struck.

“And I remember a neighbor said to me ‘You okay’, Hankins remembered. " And I went, the trees are gone.”

Hankins personally lost roughly 15 to 20, 50 year-old trees. The deeply rooted personal connection he felt was ripped away in a matter of minutes.

“You would come home to Trotwood and it would actually smell different because the trees were here,” he said.

RETREET Director Grady McGahan said up to 1,000 new, native trees, ranging between six to 10 feet tall, will be planted across the Miami Valley, from Perry Township to Beavercreek, over the next two years.

On planting day, up to 200 trees could be planted in a single neighborhood, according to McGahan.

“At the end of planting day and you can look around and see all the new trees, it’s such a joyous occasion.” he said.

It will be a celebration of life, something so many are grateful for.

If you’re a renter whose home was destroyed by the tornadoes, and want to become a home owners, you can apply here.

And, if the tornado destroyed your trees, and you would like a new one, or to donate to the TREECOVERY Campaign, click here.

Cox Media Group