Tornado cleanup effort underway in Celina

UPDATE @ 12:40 p.m. (Nov 7)

Celina has been able to re-open all but two streets in the city. Schools were back in session Tuesday and ninety percent of the city has had power restored.

[ Celina Tornado: 911 calls describe moment the tornado first hit ]

NewsCenter 7’s Sean Cudahy will have more on the tornado cleanup effort starting at 5 p.m. on WHIO.

EARLIER REPORT

The tornado that hit about a mile south of Celina on Sunday afternoon, injuring eight people, was an EF-2 that produced top winds of 120 mph and was on the ground for more than 5 miles, National Weather Service investigators confirmed Monday evening.

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According to the statement the weather service released this evening:

Law enforcement observed a funnel cloud near Main Street and Schunk Road. Just to the northeast of this report is where it appears the tornado first touched down, where multiple tree limbs between Main Street and West Bank Road were knocked down.

Survey team members said they believe the tornado then skirted Grand Lake St. Marys, producing minor tree and structural damage near Lake Shore Drive at Elmgrove Avenue.

The tornado then likely moved back over a small portion of Grand Lake St. Marys before knocking down a fence and a few small trees at the back parking lot of Wendy's on East Market Street. A one-story home on Vine Street also had shingles removed from about 10 percent of its roof.

Further east on East Market Street, the tornado intensified as it destroyed the roof at Lakeshore Auto Sales. Along Lake Street, several large branches were knocked down. Further east, another business had a significant portion of its roof removed and windows at the front of it were broken.

Celina Twister Damage Dollar General in Celina.

Onto the 1100 block of East Livingston Street, tree damage was common and the roofs of several of the homes were damaged. A large hardwood tree was knocked onto the second floor of one of those homes, producing significant roof damage.

To the northeast, an outbuilding associated with a business on Grand Lake Road was destroyed. On the other side of Grand Lake Road, significant debris wrapped around a fence on Montgomery Field. Trees were also uprooted on adjacent May Street.

The most significant damage occurred at the Crown Equipment Corporation. A significant portion of the roof was removed and exterior walls on the southwest side of the building also collapsed. Damage was also noted on the east-facing side of the building.

Businesses along Havermann Road were also affected, most notably C-Town Wings. Front windows were blown out there. At the Dollar General, considerable structural damage -- including roof collapse and exterior wall failure -- occurred. The damage to both businesses was consistent with EF-2 tornadic winds.

Several businesses within a strip mall along Havermann Road also were damage, particularly a sports store where the front doors were blown in and a portion of the roof collapsed.

Some trees were downed near Howick and Riley roads.

The end of the tornado appears to have occurred near the 8000 block of Riley Road.

EARLIER REPORT

A severe thunderstorm that slammed into the Miami Valley on Sunday produced two EF-2 tornadoes in as many communities in Mercer County, the National Weather Service confirmed Monday afternoon.

One touched down in Celina, the other a continuing twister that touched Wabash-St. Anthony and Western Mercer County.

EF-2 tornadoes produced a maximum winds of 120 mph and a path length of 8 miles, NWS officials said after conducting a storm survey earlier in the day.

>> WHIO Doppler 7 Interactive Radar

Hours after the storm, Burville Road, located south of Ohio 29, remained closed, as well as parts of Mud Pike Road in Celina, Mercer County Sheriff Jeff Grey said.

Many farms and turkey barns in the county were destroyed, he said. Area farmers brought out their equipment to help neighbors in need, added.

Celina Mayor Jeff Hazel said Grand Lake and Havemann roads in Celina also remain shut.

Power is restored to about 90 percent of the city. A total of 40 businesses are without power.

Late Sunday, Hazel declared a State of Emergency for the city.

Two of Sunday’s strongest hit the east end of Celina’s business district. The National Weather Service initially said preliminary reports indicated an EF-1 tornado caused the damage.

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