T-L Photos/CARRI GRAHAM A home along Culbertson Drive in New Athens is destroyed after a tornado touched down Thursday evening. Homeowners John and Deb Ledger sit outside the home with family and friends as they await a response from their insurance company or Red Cross to be provided a place to stay for the evening while the damage to the property is assessed.

NEW ATHENS — Numerous homes were damaged and power lines downed Thursday evening after tornadoes touched down in New Athens and Wintersville.

One home on Culbertson Drive in New Athens was completely destroyed after the tornado ripped through the property, taking the roof with it. Homeowners John and Deb Ledger said they were in the middle of eating dinner around 5 p.m. when they received a tornado warning alert on their phones. It was only moments later when the twister began tearing away the roof of the structure. John said they began running through the home into the back of the house as the roof continued to rip away from the building. It was thrown into their backyard.

“As I was reading the alert on my phone, the wind kicked up and took our patio furniture up over the hill then the roof started peeling off,” he said.

The majority of the roof was completely gone, along with a shed that once stood in the backyard. Multiple trees were also scattered around the front of the yard. Although the property was severely damaged, no one was injured, which John said is the important thing.

“At least we’re safe and that’s what matters,” he said. “The worst part is over. We have neighbors and people helping us, the fire department and everyone else. That’s what America is about.”

The Ledgers have lived at the residence for 11 years and were unaware of anything like this occuring in the area previously.

As of Thursday evening, the couple along with their two dogs, Pika and Bella, were awaiting either the American Red Cross or their insurance company’s assistance to provide lodging for them as the damage to the property is assessed. A neighbor who offered to provide a generator to the Ledgers said a tree had fallen into his home, causing damage.

The Ledgers and more than 100 other families in the village were left without power following the tornado’s destruction — 143 outages to be exact, according American Electric Power Ohio. As of 10 p.m., the estimated restoration time was set for 11 p.m.

Another home located along North Main Street also lost a portion of its roof. Dawn Carson, the renter of the home, said half of her roof was torn off and thrown into a neighbor’s vehicle. Carson said she was in Cadiz at the time of the tornado but received a phone call just before 5 p.m. alerting her to the damage to her home.

Carson said her electric was knocked out and she had heard it could be days until it is restored. She said she and her father, Don, who also resides in the home, were waiting for first responders to get to the property to cover the opening in the building with a tarp to prevent further damage to the interior of the home.

The tornado went along Ohio 9 then made its way to Ohio 519, where multiple power lines were knocked down, witnesses said. According to the Ohio Department of Transportation, the road that leads to Harrisville will remain indefinitely closed due to “extensive damage to power lines and trees.” Crews were on scene working to clear the roadway late Thursday.

The Harrison County Sheriff’s Department took to social media to ask residents to use caution in the area.

“If you pass through New Athens please take it slow. Crews are working hard to clean up the damage caused by the tornado,” the department posted on Facebook.

The Harrison County Emergency Management Agency shared a similar message.

“Please use caution in the New Athens and Harrisville areas to allow emergency crews to work,” the agency wrote. “SR 9 near the water tower in New Athens as well as SR 519 between New Athens and Harrisville have tress, power lines and debris blocking roads. Please watch for downed power lines in the area that may be live. Fire/EMS crews, Sheriff’s Office, power company and ODOT are all headed to the area.”

The National Weather Service issued a tornado warning for the area shortly before 5 p.m., saying radar indicated rotation within a storm passing through the region. It later confirmed touchdowns in both New Athens and Wintersville, where additional damage was reported.