COLUMBUS, Ohio — Tourists and locals packed Indian Lake on Saturday for the annual fireworks show.
This year, there’s extra meaning in the Independence Day celebration. It has been five months since a deadly tornado ripped through the town.
“We like coming out here supporting the local businesses. There is great people out here - very friendly,” said Marion resident David Gaertner.
Gaertner and his family have made a tradition out of coming to Indian Lake for the Fourth of July.
“It is pretty devastating to see what happened to the locals and the community and people's loved ones and family members," he said. "It impacted more than just this area [and] the areas around it... We live an hour away and we come up here multiple times a year other than just the Fourth of July."
In downtown Lakeview, business owners welcomed the extra holiday traffic.
“I am really glad to see people coming back here. We really need people to come back and support, not only all the tourists and vacationers, but even the local people, and it has been a great show of support,” said Carla Morris, who owns CJ’s Lakeside Tavern.
She rode out the storm at her bar in March.
“We were sitting at the bar when the front windows blew in. It was a very scary experience and something I never want to go through again,” she said. “Unfortunately, I did not have any insurance. The night of the tornado when I saw all the damage, I was pretty sure I was not going to come back from that.”
Thankfully, the community stepped up and helped her reopen her doors. Some of her neighbors haven’t been as lucky.
Across Lakeview, there are still signs of the tornado -- in the destroyed buildings and patched-up roofs.
For now, the community celebrates how far they have come.
“Everybody out there, remember, tomorrow isn’t promised, you got to be able to pick yourself up and live your best life and have a great Fourth of July weekend,” said Derrick Wilson, visiting from Anna.