NAPPANEE, Ind. — Mayor Larry Thompson opened Monday’s Board of Public Works and Safety meeting with a prayer of thanksgiving for all the work that has been done, lives spared and outpouring of support from other communities after Thursday night’s tornado.

A storm damage assessment was then provided.

The mayor said the state of emergency was still in effect for the city, and officials would be discussing whether and when to lift it.

“Except for a lot of congestion, all roads are open for the most part. We’re still encouraging people to stay away from the damaged areas” to allow utility work to be completed. The mayor also reported power was for the most part restored.

If property owners are still without power, they’re urged to contact Northern Indiana Public Service Co. Thompson said outages could be because of structural damage, in which case a permit will need to be obtained, or crews just possibly missed a home. Thompson said city officials will be discussing whether to call for another massive cleanup effort.

“Cleanup efforts have been a miracle. Our plan is working,” Thompson said.

Thompson said the biggest damage area by a single owner is Fairmont Homes and they were just released to start the cleanup. Thompson said city officials were working to put a team together to work on organizing housing assistance.

“The public assistance has been tremendous and many are faith-based organizations,” Thompson said.

According to Thompson, the Redevelopment Commission and Chamber of Commerce are working on getting the number of businesses and number of employees affected by the tornado. As soon as they get those numbers, Workforce One and Workforce Development will facilitate a meeting for those who lost jobs due to the tornado to determine what benefits are available through agencies.

Thompson said, “One complication as we put Nappanee back together creates a tremendous challenge for Don (Lehman) and Steve (building inspector).”

In light of all the work that needs to be done in Nappanee, a procedure for issuing permits has been formulated. Lehman said all permit fees have been waived. However, he feels it is still necessary to issue permits to ensure all building codes and zoning ordinances are being met. The board approved waiving the permit fees during this period of emergency.

The Building Department requirements for structures put into place is:

• For electric — If there is no structural damage, contact NIPSCO to have services restored at 1-800-464-7726. If NIPSCO will not turn on electric, contact the building department.

If there is structural damage, an electrician that is licensed with the city of Nappanee should be contacted. An electric permit and inspection will be required. The permit fee has been waived.

• For gas — If there is no structural damage, contact NIPSCO to have services restored. If NIPSCO will not turn on service, contact the building department. If there is structural damage, a pressure test, permit and inspection will be required.

The property owner or their contractor will be responsible for the pressure test. The permit and inspection will be obtained from the Nappanee Building Department, permit fee is waived.

• For building — Class 1 structure (multi-family, commercial) buildings that have structural damage will be required to file remodel plans with the Department of Homeland Security Building Safety Division.

Local building permits and inspections will be required. Local permit fees have been waived. To expedite the handling, Lehman suggests writing in red ink on top “Tornado Damage.” If the building is to be demolished, a demolition permit will be required.

For residential structures that have structural damage a permit will be required prior to work being started and if the building is to be demolished, a permit is required. Permit fees are waived.

“I want to thank the city of Goshen,” Lehman said. “They sent an inspector today so there may be some unfamiliar faces doing inspections. We’ve received lots of calls as far away as Auburn. The support for the city is there.”

Lehman said a lot of questions about whether the city would demolish a building and the answer is no. Property owners need to contact their insurance companies.

There have also been a lot of requests to allow recreational vehicles to be parked in driveways as temporary living spaces and the city is allowing that right now.

Board member Phil Jenkins asked who deemed a property unsafe.

Jennifer Tobey, director of Elkhart County Emergency Management, explained that Phil Brown of the damage assessment department of Homeland Security has assessed most of the buildings, rating whether the property is a total loss.

Tobey said she is working to compare the difference in numbers between the Red Cross and Homeland Security, but preliminary numbers for Elkhart County alone are that 199 residential properties and 53 commercial properties were damaged. Damage ranges from affected the least amount to totaled.

Tobey said the most important thing is for everyone to report damage, even if it is minor like a broken window or downed tree limb. The calls to report damage should be made to police dispatch and a name and address is all that’s necessary.

“This is a tight-knit community. Do this now and get the money back sooner rather than later,” she said.

Street Department

Wayne Scheumann, streets and parks superintendent, said work is progressing on the street side better than expected. He said that South Madison, South Elm and South Summit Streets have made amazing strides in 36 hours.

The street department facilities and garage (on Wabash Street) are a “total loss,” according to Thompson.

“The buildings were kept in remarkably good condition. A new facility would give the opportunity to sere another 100 years,” Thompson said.

A leaf vac is damaged or gone, the older Elder Haus van is laying damaged on its side and a pick up is damaged along with other equipment.

“The town of Wakarusa will be here tomorrow to leaf vac on the north end of town,” Scheumann said.

Scheumann said city officials were “taking a breather today” and will assess more volunteer effort needs.

Water Department

Gale Gerber, water and wastewater superintendent, wanted residents to know the precautionary boil order has been lifted.

“The water is safe to consume,” he said.

There was also damage to two radio controls on a water tower and there was damage to two lift stations. One lift station at Franklin Park and the other one at Dal Mar Way is a complete loss.

Gerber said it would take three weeks to get the necessary controls back and the lift stations would be operated manually until then.

Water utility employees are conducting a street-by-street search. Gerber said he appreciated the response by Goshen, Bremen, Elkhart and Wakarusa.

Clerk-Treasurer Kim Ingle said another priority was getting the properties that no longer exist off the utility listing so a bill is not created.

Fire & EMS

A fire department truck at the South Side Fire Station received minor damage.

Fire department officials, along with the school officials, organized volunteers.

Fire Chief Tom Angln also commended the outpouring of support from other departments. “We estimated 150 to 200 firefighters stationed at Nappanee Elementary waiting for an assignment,” he said.

Emergency Medical Services Director Jim Sumpter Jr. said that within an hour there were 21 ambulances staged. At that time they had no idea of injuries and all stayed through daylight. There were only five minor injuries and no fatalities.

Sumpter said EMS personnel were busy on Saturday and Sunday with injuries all directly related to the storm either with people coming into town or people working the clean-up effort.

If anyone should find medicine or valuables, they should turn them in to the police department.

Police

Police Chief Mike Anglin reviewed for the board the decision process to go on weather watch and to sound the siren. He reported that one of his officers was right in front of the tornado and there is some “great video” of the tornado.

Anglin said they’ve heard numerous times that “lives were saved because of the siren. We all feel fortunate that we hit the button.”

Anglin also complimented Brad Weaver of the Bremen State Police post and Mike McCloughen, Goshen assistant police chief, for all their work, allowing Nappanee’s officers to catch their breath.

Board member Tom Lehman asked if there was much looting going on, and Anglin replied they had one incident the first night and a couple caught trying.

The chief warned residents to beware of scams and to work with insurance company before hiring anyone to do work. He said there have been 95 different agencies in Nappanee offering assistance since the tornado hit.

In non-tornado related business, board members approved promoting police corporal Jeff Mashak to the rank of sergeant effective immediately.