KENTON, Ohio — Dozens are in the process of cleaning up their yards, sidewalks, and streets after five tornadoes made their way through areas of central Ohio over the weekend.
The majority of reported damages are in Kenton, where an EF-1 tornado was confirmed.
Chirs Jones, a Kenton resident, said he and his wife rushed to the basement when they started hearing sirens Saturday afternoon.
"I would've never expected it, and I don't think anybody does until it hits, until it's there,” Jones said.
As the storm blew through town, Jones said they were worried about what might happen next.
"We put a lot of time and effort into this house as long as we've been here and you keep thinking, 'I hope we have a house to come back to',” Jones said.
Jones’ 3.5 acres of land is now filled with down trees and branches from the tornado.
"It looks like a bomb went off back there now. We've had a lot of help from friends. That's who a lot of these people are right now, just friends coming up to help out,” Jones said.
Jake Burgbacher, director of the Hardin County Emergency Management Agency, said the county has been in the process of developing a disaster mitigation plan as storms seem to be more severe in their area now than they have been in the past.
"I've seen a few tornadoes come through, but I don't believe any of them have made it to the status of what this has been,” Burgbacher said.
Burgbacher added when you hear a weather alert in your area, it's important to take it seriously.
"It can happen anywhere, and it can happen so fast,” he said.
Despite the many time-consuming clean-up efforts and repairs underway, Jones said he is grateful.
"I see so much going on right now, you know, with everybody else with the fires, the floods and stuff. We're awful lucky, you know, it could've been worse,” Jones said.