MADISON COUNTY, Ind. — Emergency management officials are seeking a disaster declaration following severe damage caused by a recent storm.
We visited Bodenhorn Farms which has been in the Lapel community for over 150 years. And now, not only is a family home destroyed, so are major pieces of farm equipment.
Joey Bodenhorn just closed on his house a month ago. It had belonged to his grandmother. Now there is hardly anything left. Along with Joey's home, barns, semis, and tractors were also destroyed. All vital parts of the family business.
"You know planting time coming up now we've got to do a lot of clean up," David Bodenhorn Joey's dad said. "So there's a lot of good people out here helping so we will manage. "
The family just built a brand new barn which hold expensive tractors and their office. This was the first season they were able to use it. A portion of the roof was torn off and other damage was done. On top of that, there are holes in their grain silos which are full of product. If the product gets wet that could be another loss for the family. However, the family remains focused on what truly matters
“Not that this is stuff it’s not just stuff, but all of this is replaceable," Joey said. "It’s the people that we care about. That’s what makes the family farm so special. As you can see, we’ve got people from counties over farmers that just showed up. That’s what it’s about. It’s about the people.”
Just down the road, the damage was not as severe at Justin Walker's house. However, he described the experience of being in the storm with his family as scary.
“So we huddled in, and I got on top of the girls, and my garage doors were really going and I thought, ‘Okay this might be it.’ So we kind of just prayed and waited,” Walker recounted.
While his property fared better than others, first responders have issued a warning, especially with the possibility of more severe weather.
“That’s going to maybe lead to some potential flooding concerns," Tom Marvel, fire chief of the Lapel Stony Creek Township fire territory, cautioned. "So we will be cleaning up from damage with road closures that could also lead to some flooding issues with our farm fields and other things. So be safe, be cautious, and don’t go out if you don’t have to.”
As for Joey and his family, he knows he has a place to stay while they sift through what’s left of their home.
“37 years old and back in the basement. So pretty cool,” Joey joked, while David added, “I thought we got rid of him once,” eliciting laughter amid the somber situation.
The National Weather Service is expected to survey the area tomorrow to determine if a tornado was responsible for the damage.
