WASHINGTON COUNTY, Ill. — Washington County Illinois is slowly getting the power back on, but the cleanup is far from over.
Washington County EMA Director Matthew Bierman said trees and buildings were heavily damaged throughout the county.
Fans are working overtime and so is Kurt Kesel whose Nashville hardware store was ripped open by the storm.
“Somebody was at the state theater called us and said that our roof had blown off and into the street,” Kesel said.
He rushed over to the store only to find the storm had made its way inside.
“It was raining inside the store,” Kesel said.
Products were damaged and the store needs a new roof, but that didn’t stop this 33-year-old business from staying open and helping others.
“One of the ambulance guys came over and said the Friendship Manor Nursing Home needed fans. Otherwise, they're going to have to evacuate all the residents there. So we loaded up whatever fans that we had put together and extension cords and took it to them,” Kesel said.
The damage extends far beyond the store into Washington County but it’s been hard for county emergency management to see it all.
“We can't do any damage assessment and bring any teams in until we get some of the debris out of the way so we can actually see the buildings to see what it is we've got. There's a significant number of buildings that are damaged throughout the county,” Bierman said.
The village of Venedy had lots of trees snapped and tossed onto buildings.
And in a small town a mile away, the center of Johannisburg was torn to shreds.
The 186-year-old St. John’s United Church of Christ took most of the beating. The storm ripped off the steeple and brought it right back down to the church destroying most of the roof.
“Pretty devastating damage to the exterior," Parishioner Jason Doelling said. "Thankfully, the interior seems to have survived. We were able to rescue all of the unreplaceable items. And we're just right now in kind of salvage mode, trying to keep as much as we can. It's the oldest church in Washington County.”
Doelling said they are hoping all they need is a new roof.
His family is deeply rooted in this sacred space that is still standing.
“You can trace the entire lineage back to 1837 original members. I have so many memories, grandparents, parents, events, family, friends, all tie back to this church. So it's like a part of the family in and of itself,” Doelling said.
If you'd like to donate to the church restoration, you can send a check directly to the church: St. John's United Church of Christ, 11360 Main Street, Johannisburg, Illinois, 62214
If you live in Washington County and need help with debris removal, you can call the emergency management agency at 618-327-4800, ext. 340.
They hope to have power restored to the county by Tuesday night but it has been difficult to get exact estimates.