Salina Community Rallies To Clean Up Damage From Strong Tornado

Storms swept across parts of Green Country overnight leaving behind lots of debris in Mayes County.

The town of Salina was hit hard. Downtown saw significant damage to several businesses in addition to downed trees and power lines.

Despite all the damage, the community quickly stepped up to help each other out. Chainsaws could be heard all over town in the morning following the storm as many were busy clearing trees from roads while electrical workers tried to restore power.

Many residents have lived here for decades, including police chief Larry Young. He said this storm was unlike any other that he can remember.

"I've been in Salina my whole life except for my career when I was in the military. This is the first time in 54 years Salina has ever been hit with tornados that I am aware of," Young said.

Business owners and homeowners saw a lot of damage to their properties. This includes Terry Phipps, a business owner who had his storage facility completely blown away.

"My neighbor called and said 'Terry, your building.' and I said 'Is it damaged?' and he said 'It's gone.' I said 'Gone?' He said 'Yeah.' So we jumped in the car, came down here and turned the lights on and couldn't believe it," Phipps said.

But the Oklahoma standard shines through as people like Dacia Nove, her church and many others volunteer their time to help Salina rebuild.

"This is our community. Mayes County. We love everybody, we serve everybody. If they're hurting, we're hurting. We help them," Nove said.

From young to old, everyone is pitching in, and Chief Young said that's what makes Salina a great community.

"Right now, it's more about helping, but we need all the helping hands we can get. We can see there's little kids picking up bricks. There are elderly people out there. That's our thing," Young said.

For more coverage on the May 25 storms, CLICK HERE.