DOOR COUNTY (NBC 26) — Fox Valley neighbors are facing downed trees and major structural damage after tornadoes and severe thunderstorms Monday.
To help, Door County Emergency Management director Jeb Saelens will go down there on Wednesday and Thursday to take a look at the damage alongside other departments across Northeast Wisconsin.
"It all depends on what they need," Saelens said when asked what he does on these trips. "One of the things we've been requested for is damage assessment, how much has been damaged."
That will help the Fox Valley figure out how much state and federal funding they need.
Saelens also mentioned that no requests have come through for Door County first responders to head down there.
Sarah and Josh Sawyer have experienced that damage before. We interviewed Sarah in 1998 and 2018 about her house being destroyed during the EF-3 tornado in Door County. While Sarah was at the Egg Harbor Lodge— which she and her husband, Mark, owned at the time— Josh and his siblings were in the basement waiting out the storm.
"We were eating a pizza joking around, and just like that, we could see the wind pick up," Josh said. "When they say a tornado sounds like a freight train coming through, I can honestly admit that's what it sounded like."
Just like their situation 28 years ago, the Sawyers hope that the Fox Valley can rally around each other to help neighbors in need.
Saelens encourages Door County neighbors to donate to the American Red Cross to help those in the Fox Valley right now. You can also donate to our Community Impact Campaign.
