The Galion Line Department and Service Department are continuing to clean up the storm damage.
Electricity has been restored citywide. Crews are working to replace poles and reconnect secondary power lines that could not be addressed last night. At this point, 25 or less individual residences are without power. The Line Department expects most of those residences back on today.
If you see a power line knocked down, please do NOT go near the downed lines. Call the city at 419-468-1857 to report damage or possible live wires. You may also call this number if you are currently without power.
All streets are re-open but please use caution when driving. Barricades will temporarily be put up as crews work in areas with downed lines and debris. Currently Harding Way East (from Murray Street to First Avenue) is undergoing cleanup. East Walnut Street (from South Street to East Street) is closed due to low hanging electric wires.
"I want to recognize all city departments for the work they did last night and continue to do today," Mayor Tom O'Leary said. "Thank you to members of the Line, Service, Police and Fire departments, who are doing everything possible to ensure the safety of the community and helping affected residents."
The American Red Cross is assisting residents in the worst hit areas – 18 homes in total. Please call the agency at 419-989-7035 if you need temporary shelter or have other immediate needs.
TAYLOR ROAD
The Taylor Road composting facility will be open Tuesday from 7:30 a.m.-2:30 p.m. for residents to drop off limbs and yard waste. It is located at 545 Taylor Road in Galion. The facility will also be open on its regularly scheduled weekend, Nov. 17 and 18. The Service Department will do limited curbside pickup as man power allows. Limbs and yard waste ONLY will be accepted. Please have materials piled near the curb.
NO SIRENS LAST EVENING
All tornado sirens in the county are activated by the Crawford County Sheriff’s Office, which relies on three sources of information to justify sounding the sirens:
- Weather notifications from the National Weather Service
- A public service official (police officer or fire fighter) spots a tornado
- A SKYWARN-approved citizen spots a tornado
If there is justification, all sirens are activated from the Sheriff’s Office and the Crawford County Emergency Management Agency sends out mass notifications through Crawford Alerts and puts emergency messages on local radio stations, in order to warn as many residents as possible in a coordinated way.
On Sunday evening, high winds swept through Galion suddenly, primarily affecting areas near Grand Street, South Market Street and the southeast section of the city. The National Weather Service did not issue a tornado warning, and no public service officials or weather spotters reported severe weather activity.
City of Galion officials were in contact with the Emergency Management Agency following the storm. The indication was this severe weather was undetected by weather radar, and therefore siren activation was not justified.
After city officials voiced concerns about the amount of storm damage, the EMA contacted the National Weather Service. Officials from both agencies were on site this morning to assess the damage and they did find evidence of bidirectional winds and tornadic activity. The NWS will issue a final determination on how to classify this storm.
Officials from the Crawford County Emergency Management Agency and National Weather Service are assessing the storm damage this morning. They will determine whether or not there was a tornado last evening.
Residents can sign up for weather and emergency alerts through Crawford Alerts by clicking the link below.