Carol Johnson, Southern Indiana Business Report
PAOLI – Downtown businesses remain closed on the Paoli square after an EF-1 tornado uprooted trees, sheared off roofs and shattered windows early Monday.
“Devastation” is how Chelsey Thomas, project manager at Orange County Economic Development Partnership, described the downtown. The north and east sides of the square sustained the heaviest damage as 90 mph winds tore through the town.
“One business just opened a few weeks ago and now they can’t operate until the damage is cleaned up,” Thomas said.
The storm broke windows and knocked bricks off the side of the Braxton building. Other buildings had damage to signs and facades. Homes were also damaged from falling trees.
The town of Paoli remains without electricity. Crews from Electricom and IMPA are working to restore power. Orange County Commissioner President Richard Dixon said there is no exact timeframe for restoring power but power could be restored in some sections of town later Tuesday or Wednesday.
As of Tuesday afternoon, 2,400 customers were without power in Orange County.
Dixon said county highway crews and town employees were hard at work removing trees from power lines and roadways.
Courthouse clock tower damage
The Orange County Courthouse clock tower was knocked askew and the courthouse is closed for now. Dixon said an engineer is coming to inspect the building Tuesday to assess damage and will determine that the building is safe before county employees and the public are permitted to re-enter.
“The entire tower is out of plumb, but we were very fortunate that the damage to the courthouse wasn’t extensive,” Dixon said. “Once the damage is assessed, we will put a bid packet together to make repairs. What’s amazing, when you look at all the broken glass around the square, is that the courthouse didn’t lose a single window.”
The courthouse was repainted this summer and new windows were installed in 2014.
The Greek Revival courthouse, built in 1850, is the centerpiece of the Paoli downtown. It is one of the two oldest courthouses in the state still in use.
“Our courthouse is the focal point of Orange County,” Dixon said. “Between that and the West Baden Dome, they are probably the most photographed buildings in the county.”
Thomas said seeing all the damage was heartbreaking, but the town was pitching in to clean up from the storm.
“People are coming together to cut down trees, there are people out everywhere with chain saws to pick up debris,” she said. “All the businesses are helping each other out.”