KNOX COUNTY, Ohio — The brutal heat has returned, and some families in our viewing area are concerned about potential power outages, again. But for the Anderson family in Fredericktown, they say last week’s terrifying natural disaster has prepared them to tackle any situation, including the unbearable heat.
"For a moment I didn't know we were going to make it, I was terrified,” James Anderson said. “Probably the most terrifying experience I've had.”
Last week, he and his wife awoke to two thunderstorms.
“Then next thing you know, a boom hit,” James said this time, it wasn’t a storm. It was a tornado.
"And this one was a lot worse than the first one, it started shaking the whole house. It was like a freight train. it was very intense,” Anderson said.
The tornado ripped the siding off of the west side of his house, caused trees to smash both of his cars in, destroyed his swingset and collapsed his barn.
“We were just praying to God, just protect us and he did and we were grateful it was still a small tornado, not a big one,” Anderson said.
Anderson explains his biggest concern was his mother-in-law in the intense heat. Sheila Beck already suffers from a health condition, and he says Beck wouldn’t be able to withstand the heat.
“She’s very sensitive to heat, so if she didn’t have it [power], she would have been in the hospital,” Anderson says.
So the family moved fast and went to a local Amish store to buy a generator. Anderson said it costs about $1,000 a week, but saved his family’s life
“That’s what kept our fridge going, and then we got two fans. Without that, it would have been 10 times more miserable,” Anderson said.
They had to get creative with their water, turning to neighbors and church friends for help.
“We have a friend a couple of doors down that had a hand pump. So we had to hand pump our water, and then we had to boil it, so it was a long process just to get a drink of water,” Anderson said. “Luckily, we had friends in Mount Vernon that we got baths from, so luckily we didn’t stink too bad.”
Andersen hopes his family doesn’t have to experience another outage again but is prepared to handle the next one if it happens. He recommends everyone stay calm, try to have ice packs on hand, and share resources with friends, family and neighbors.
Meanwhile, in Mount Gilead, the cleanup continues as folks were hit hard by last week's storm. Most were without power for four days, some closer to a week
Mayor Jamie Brucker said the city came together to withstand the heat, and they are prepared to do it again.
When the storms rolled through, firefighters immediately completed evacuations. Businesses came together to provide free food to the lineman and those helping with the cleanup and the town opened up a cooling center to keep everyone cool and safe during the heatwave. He says they are thankful for the swift action taken by Ohio Edison and although they don't plan on losing power again, they are prepared to handle it.
“As a mayor, it just makes me really proud as a community, that everybody, even though we're in a tough situation, everyone was willing to give up their resources, but little we had left at the moment to help those who came to help us and it just gives me hope that if we're ever in that situation again, that we'll see that same hospitality,” Brucker said.
Brucker explains the town still has two to three weeks left of cleanup from the storm damage and recommends residents contact their insurance companies for any potential reimbursements.