GOSHEN TOWNSHIP, Ohio — Power outages across the Tri-State significantly improved by Friday evening, with fewer than 200 customers without power as 6 p.m.
Around 9,000 people in Clermont and Brown Counties in Ohio were without power Thursday night as the eastern parts of the area saw the most ice damage. In Goshen Township, a tree fell on four homes and two cars.
Family and friends helped each other dig out Friday.
“It was a lot of take in, if you want to know the truth,” Tyler Barker said.
Barker’s family was inside when the tree collapsed on their neighbor’s home Thursday afternoon.
“A young lady and her two boys, I think, live in this house. The boys were home when the tree came through,” Barker said.
The tree snapped their trailer in half.
Everyone escaped unscathed, according to Goshen Fire Department.
“It sounded like thunder going off, at least from the distance,” Barker said.
Tabbatha Reyes started a fundraiser in hopes of fixing the damage and finding a place for her and her children to stay.
In the Clermont County village of Bethel, some resorted to grilling food outside due to power outages. One person moved into their RV camper with a generator, while others were blocked into their driveways because of fallen tree limbs.
“My husband just got getting home from work, and he was taking the trash out, checking the mail, and it had cracked and it fell,” Hope Brown said. “He actually just jumped out right in time.”
Brown and her daughter spent most of Friday by the fire in their Hamersville home as her husband checked on their neighbors.
“He offered our kerosene heater to them if they needed,” Brown said.
Duke Energy crews hopped from problem spot to problem spot, noting several trees and power lines were coated in ice. Barker said he was concerned another large tree could collapse on his in-laws' home.
“If this actually goes down, we’ll lose this home completely," Barker said.
Crews are still out working to clear roads and fix power lines. To report an outage, click here.
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