Officials working on assessments of tornado damage in Mercer and Auglaize counties

MERCER AND AUGLAIZE COUNTIES, OH (WLIO) - It's been less than 24 hours since a tornado touched down in Mercer and Auglaize counties, where several homes, buildings, and farmland in both counties were damaged or destroyed.

The storm system started around the Indiana-Ohio border and touched down in Mercer County around 7:45 p.m. Tuesday night, moving along State Route 219.

First responders rushed to the damaged areas last night and provided aid as well as checked homes for buildings for any injuries. Officials say there have been no deaths reported from the tornado. The Auglaize County EMA says New Bremen was one of the hardest-hit areas in Auglaize County. Wabash and Fort Recovery had a lot of damage in Mercer County.

"We actually saw it coming from the west, and we went downstairs immediately and obviously got in the corner, got blankets, you know, our tornado area, but it was just a very loud noise, a very scary loud noise. You could feel the house shaking; you knew we were hit. I mean, you just knew it. And then it was the most deadly silence. You know thankful to be alive. Thankful for all of our friends and neighbors, and everybody. We had a lot of people here last night, and the neighborhood came together everywhere. I mean, there's destruction all over. Just everybody wanting to help. I just can't thank people enough," said Lisa Brackney, a New Bremen resident.

"We got damage assessments done today. I sent my emergency management specialist out today, Cassidy, she went out and did damage assessments. We'll submit those to the state; the state compiles them, and they take a look at them. One additional thing I'd like to add is we did have a power outage. It was Midwest Electric that affected that area, and it was pretty much that main area that we were focused on. I talked to the rep from Midwest about a little bit before 11 o'clock, and she says as of that time they had 225 residents or customers out in Mercer County, and she couldn't really give me a timeline, but she did recommend to go to the Midwest Electric Facebook page to get that update," stated Chad Willrath, Mercer County EMA director.

The National Weather Service is still investigating the tornado damage in both counties, using drones to assess damage.