The common sight in Sullivan's south-side neighborhood; new builds popping up amidst lingering rubble and debris.
(Devan Ridgway - WFIU/WTIU)
Life is starting to return to normal in Sullivan, with new homes popping up in what was once the path of destruction of an EF-5 tornado.
But the scars of the disaster that took place last March 31 are there. In some areas, debris is still piled up. In others, trees stand broken and bent.
The biggest scars, though, remain in the minds of those who lived through the disaster like Rich and Kelli Cole.
“I was having nightmares for so long afterwards,” Kelli Cole said. “We have a bedroom downstairs, and we just go sleep downstairs. There's days that I just have to. And I know most of it's just mind over matter, but I can't quite get past it yet, you know?”
The Cole family, like others in Sullivan, lost everything last year. While sheltering in their basement, their home collapsed on top of them, leaving only a small gap for escape.
When they got to the surface, they saw that everything on their farm was destroyed.
The window the Coles had to climb out of to escape their basement. (Courtesy of Kelli Cole)
The next day, volunteers started showing up to help everyone they could.
“I think at one time we had like six skid steers, three excavators, over 200 people out there,” Rich Cole said.
“Yeah, over 200 people came to help go through stuff,” Kelli added. “People we didn't know, some of them we just didn't even know.”
And after dealing with nine different insurance adjusters for their home, their farm business and all the related equipment, the Coles had most items replaced or rebuilt by last October.
Salvaged items that couldn’t be replaced, such as photos and other mementos, went into totes which Kelli said were fully unpacked just last week, bringing back reminders of what they lived through as they head into the upcoming storm season.
“It helped to get through those totes,” she said. “And going through the final…I think I was dreading it. I think that kind of helped a piece of it. But now just getting through the storms now, I think it's gonna be the other part.”
Sullivan’s new mayor J.D. Wilson also reflected on all the emotions he and other residents went through in the days immediately following the storm that caused $8 million of damage to the town.
“You had moments where tears would start pouring out and, and then other times you just had to say ‘Okay, I gotta toughen up, and we got to do this job,’” he said. “’And we’ve got to continue moving forward and getting this done.’”
Wilson said the town held a reflection and remembrance ceremony on the anniversary of the tornado. Three benches at the town park were dedicated to the names of the three residents who died that night.
One of the three benches dedicated to those who died to the tornado. (Devan Ridgway, WFIU/WTIU)
The mayor was thankful to FEMA, the various congressmen and government officials, and state agencies who arrived quickly and got to work for residents.
“They brought departments down to set up here at the city hall, and made new identification cards, birth certificates, everything that you really don't think of when you lose everything,” he said.
Wilson said that some folks like the Coles are nearly back to their pre-tornado lives.
“People are getting settled back in, but they'll never get back to that point they were before,” he said. “But they're getting close to it. We still have those that are out there far from being comfortable.”
The Sullivan County Long Term Recovery Coalition was formed in the months following the event to keep helping those in need to get to that point. To date, $1.2 million has been donated, and connections have been made with businesses to donate furniture, lumber and other necessary items to survivors.
The executive director of the coalition, Troy Orwig, said that today, 31 cases remain open, down from 162 in the immediate aftermath. Needs range from “still need a place to live” to “I still have debris in my yard.”
“Our first and main goal is to get people back into safe, secure, and sanitary homes,” he said. “Well, we want to get all that done before we come and clean up some trees out your yard. But we've told them ‘We’ll keep your case open’ in the meantime.”
The street view of Sullivan's most affected area in recovery. (Devan Ridgway, WFIU/WTIU)
Orwig said they’ve been able to assist in the direct rehoming of 22 cases; five of those, the coalition acted as construction manager. For others, they helped residents purchase new homes.
Others may have received money from FEMA or their own insurance companies to pay for the cost of recovery.
“I think we've had excellent progress,” he said. “I'm not satisfied, because we're not done. But I believe that we have made tremendous strides.”
A gift of 490 trees from the Arbor Day Foundation and the Indiana Department of Natural Resources will be planted throughout the town on Arbor Day. Orwig says it will help bring life back to non-residential areas that were affected by the tornado.
By his estimate, if recovery efforts continue at the same rate as they have been, the coalition will have all remaining cases closed by July 25,2025.
“My goal is to be done much more quickly than that, because that's means we've got the people taken care of,” he said. “So is that a realistic goal? I think it is.”
Maybe by this time next year, the physical damage will be healed, and the true moving on can begin for those who need it most.
