Eden, N.Y. (WBEN) - It has been seven weeks since the remnants of Hurricane Beryl made its way through Western New York, leaving in its wake damage caused by four confirmed tornados to touch down across the region.
The strongest, and most damaging tornado to come from the remnants of Beryl was an EF-2 tornado that touched down in the Town of Eden in Southern Erie County. That tornado produced estimated peak winds of 115 mph, and it cut a 3.2-mile swath through the rural community.
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One of the hardest hit areas in Eden was along East Eden Road, where Don Mammoser Farms, a fourth-generation business, took a direct hit from the tornado before it dissipated a short time later in a nearby field.
Catherine Mammoser was in Buffalo working when she got an unexpected call from her brother working on the farm that day.
"My brother called me and he let me know that a tornado had hit the farm. I kind of thought it was bluff and that he was messing with me, and then he really told me that I needed to get here," recalled Mammoser with WBEN. "I drove from the city, and I came right up here. About a quarter mile down the road, I was welcomed by some firefighters. I talked my way and I got through, and coming here and seeing the damage was just breathtaking. Just all the hard work that has gone in over the last numerous years has really just felt like it was washed away instantly."
After reaching the farm, Mammoser says she will never forget the first thought that went through her mind upon assessing the situation: Where was her grandmother, who lives in the house in front of the farm that sustained little-to-no damage?
"My grandma's 83-years-old, nobody could find her. I'm looking in her bathtub, I'm looking under the table, and I could not find her. And being who she is, she does not have a cell phone, so there's no way of getting a hold of her," Mammoser recalled. "Finally, we did get a hold of a friend that she was actually with. They were drinking wine and having lunch."
As for Mammoser's brother, he was actually in one of the barns impacted by the tornado when it hit the farm,
"When it came through, it was just complete chaos," Mammoser said of her brother's experience. "The cattle were running around him, actually one even jumped in his lap in the piece of farm equipment that he was in when he was cleaning the barn out."
The farm, itself, sustained substantial damage to several buildings, including one barn containing extra hay and farming equipment collapsing, and another barn with cattle inside collapsing. Meanwhile, the original barn and the pole barn attached in the back suffered roof and other damage.
In all, Mammoser says the damages from the tornado are estimated to be in the range of $1.1 million on the farm.
While the initial prognosis for the cattle on the farm appeared good, Mammoser says there were some injuries sustained that the cattle did succumb to. In addition, with one barn uninhabitable for cattle at this time, the farm is facing some overcrowding issues.
"One of our larger barns was taken down by the tornado, so we had to put twice the amount of cattle in one barn that we normally would have. So we're currently working on getting that larger building back up-and-running and operational, and just hoping that once that is operational, we can move the cattle and we can get them back healthy," Mammoser said.
And being a cattle farm in Western New York, there is no rest for the work that needs to get done to keep operations ongoing.
"The day after the tornado happened, we're right back to feeding cattle and making adjustments where necessary, and really kind of just getting things back to operational," Mammoser said. "I've always been raised, like, the cows don't have holidays, the cows don't suffer through the these types of situations. They still need to be fed, they still need to be maintained and taken care of."
Prioritizing the health and well-being of the animals is always the top priority at Don Mammoser Farms. That is why work has already begun making sure cattle barns are either back up and operational, or making sure the cattle get to a different location or barn, if need be. This is especially the case with the seasons soon to change from summer to fall, and eventually winter.
"I think this is going to be a long process. I've been asked before, 'What is the timeline?' I just think we're always going to remember July 10 in the back of our head. I think it's always going to be a day that we remember, and will always reflect on. And really just making sure that we are getting things back operational, up to our standards," Mammoser said.
The farm has already been able to build a brand new calf barn where the old one stood, while a new pole barn is going up where the old storage barn once stood adjacent to the main barn on the property.
Perhaps what will stick with Mammoser in the long run from the tornado that damaged her family's farm is the community support her family received in the immediate aftermath of the storm seven weeks ago.
"There were individuals here that didn't even know us, know our family, that were here helping. They brought their own chainsaws, they brought their own electrical equipment and were undoing the power lines, and really ensuring everybody's safety and ensuring that everybody here was safe," Mammoser said. "We had numerous volunteers moving cattle for us, getting [them] out of a barn that was completely collapsed, that there was a barn sitting on cattle. We had individuals bring gates up to us so that we can go ahead and move cattle safely. And we had people running and getting waters for the cattle, just really ensuring their safety, as they've been our priority this entire time."
And with the barn needing immediate attention to keep the lights on for business, Mammoser says the family got some much-needed help from a local contractor in the area.
"The day this happened, we actually have a contractor that we utilize - Four Seasons Construction - and he was here the day it happened. And he was like, 'I'm dropping my jobs. We are getting you guys back going,'" Mammoser noted. "It was the following week, we actually were pouring concrete for that barn, that's where our little cattle live and are maintained. So we prioritized that barn specifically, knowing that if we didn't, we would have had more casualties."
Despite the efforts to rebuild and keep the business fully functional, Mammoser says it has been met with its challenges.
"It's been really expensive and very stressful financially. This is not something we were expecting, and we've had struggles with having insurance cover certain things, and then knowing this was not a FEMA emergency. We didn't get any support from them, so right now, it's going to be a long-term financial burden," she explained.
"The rising costs of everything, and obviously that's out of everybody's control at this point, but knowing we have plenty of bills that continue rolling in. We just want to prioritize ensuring the safety and the well-being of the cattle."
Meanwhile, a number of Mammoser's neighbors also took the brunt of the tornado, with some of the houses suffering significant damage. One of the houses, according to Mammoser, was condemned and is in need of a significant structural overhaul.
Mammoser is extremely thankful that despite some residents in the town being displaced from their homes, no one was seriously injured or killed as a result of the tornado.
"Luckily, we weren't displaced from our homes, our cattle were, but they're doing OK, it's beautiful weather. The only downfall is when it rains or in a few months when we have snow," Mammoser said. "I'm assuming individuals are working on their insurance and getting contractors in there. I drove down the road today and saw the neighbors are putting a new roof on their house and stuff like that, who were directly affected. So I think things are progressing, but I just think we all wish it would just happen a little faster."
Little did Mammoser know that not even a month after the tornado hit her family's farm in Eden, she'd nearly encounter another rare tornado, this time in the City of Buffalo in the Lower West Side neighborhood.
"That's right down the road from my work. I had some staff members reach out to me in the community, and they reached out, stating that there was a tornado. And again, I'm just like, 'Why? Why is this continue to happen?'" Mammoser said. "So close to home, on both occasions, one closer than the other. It's just completely bizarre and out of character for this area to have such significant tornado damage. It's just crazy."
What advice does Mammoser have for anyone that may still be going through a lot of what she has had to go through with insurance and the works?
"Just make sure everything is documented. That has been our saving grace," Mammoser said. "We had a cattle barn that went down with cattle on top of it, insurance was upset that we removed the remnants prior to them seeing it. But we had to to ensure that our cattle were safe. The pictures that I took, the pictures that other individuals around here took, really kind of saved us, in that sense. Ensure that everything is documented, and just know that you'll get through it, and this will pass."
As for other residents in Eden, the recovery is still ongoing, and officials in the town are doing what they can to help where they can.
"There are still some people that are not back in their houses. One lady down on Gary [Drive] just got power [last Tuesday], I believe. So it's still an ongoing thing," said Eden Town Supervisor Richard Ventry with WBEN last week. "A lot of the cleanup has been done through efforts of the homeowners, or we've had a lot of volunteers coming out. We had some volunteer cleanup days, we've had a couple of tree cutting companies come, and really, they did a ton of work. It was phenomenal seeing all the help that was given to these people."
Ventry says the response from the community to help those in Eden was rapid and swift, which included assistance from folks in neighboring towns, county government, as well as state and federal aid to cleanup efforts.
"We contacted the county, the county came, contacted the state, and then the rescue effort started. Our firemen and EMS were down there, and they were climbing over trees to get to people's houses just to see if anyone was alive, cutting trees so that they could open up pathways in case we need to get the ambulance in there and stuff. It was an amazing effort," Ventry said. "And just seeing [firemen from] Lake Shore here, firemen from Boston, Hamburg, I'm probably missing a couple. They all came in and just helped out. It was a terrible thing to see because of what happened, but it was an awesome thing to see of all the help that was here.
"It was quite extensive, the help that came, there was hundreds of people from different communities that came to help us out that day. It was well organized, and it was pretty impressive."
What stands out most for Ventry from that day seven weeks ago was seeing the extent of the damage.
"Probably seeing the destruction of some of the second story [buildings], just completely gone. Seeing some milk trucks flipped over, and the destruction. That was something I never thought in Eden, Western New York, you'd see. That was pretty surprising," he noted.
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Right now, Ventry says there's three homes that it will be a long while before they can all families to move back in.
"Two families are living with their individual families, and the other one is trying to find an apartment right now, they're living in a hotel. But those houses, most likely, are going to need to be completely rebuilt. At least two out of the three, I think all three should be rebuilt, but I'm no architect," Ventry said.
When it comes to possible issues he's heard from residents in recovery efforts, it's mostly been with homeowners insurance not being able to cover everything.
"You have an 8-year-old [set of] table and chairs, you might have bought it at $500 10 years ago. Well, but you can't buy a new one for $500. And all the things that are in your house, unless you have them all categorized and have receipts with them, you're not going to get the exact same amount of money back," Ventry explained. "When you lose a house, yes, you have homeowners and that does help, but it doesn't cover everything."
That's been one of the reasons for quite a few different businesses in Eden hosting fundraisers over the last several weeks to help residents get back on their feet.
"With homeowners, in the beginning, you don't get the money tomorrow. You have to fill out all this paperwork, and then how are you doing that when you don't have a computer or a home to do any of that stuff with?" Ventry noted. "There was a lot of hiccups, and a lot of things you don't normally think of in this area. We're used to snowstorms. Well, you stay inside, and a few days later, everything melts and you're good to go. All you have to worry about is having some food in your house, unless you're stuck out in the snow. But this was a lot longer time to get everything organized, and get some money and stuff like that, from what I've understood, just kind of learning about this stuff."
Another way the town has been working to help residents affected by the tornado seven weeks ago is with the establishment of the Eden Tornado Relief Fund.
"What was happening or what we were seeing, our people wanted to give money, they wanted to do things in the beginning, and they said, 'We don't know who to give it to, so we're gonna give to the town.' The town can't actually accept money, being a government, and give it to individuals. So I contacted our Eden Chamber of Commerce and the Eden Community Foundation, and asked them to create a fund that people could give to, and that we would have a few people on the board that people trusted, so that when they got the money, they would know that it was going to these individuals," Ventry said.
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The Eden Community Foundation and the Chamber of Commerce has also sent out solicitation letters to different businesses, more corporations, asking for money to assist residents.
Ventry also got word from New York Gov. Kathy Hochul's Office that the Small Business Administration (SBA) would be giving loans out to the businesses like the local dairy and cattle farms that were damaged in the tornado.
In addition, there's set to be another fundraising event coming up on Sunday, Sept. 29, leading up to the Buffalo Bills' matchup with the Baltimore Ravens on "Sunday Night Football".
"The Eden American Legion is donating their hall, and we are going to have kind of like a town-wide Eden event," Ventry detailed. "We have a couple of bands that donated their time to come in, a few restaurants that are donating their food. And we're just going to kind of gather there, show our support. I think the tickets right now are either $15 or $20 to get in, and it gives you food and the bands, I'm not quite sure the cost of the drinks or anything like that yet. But it's going to be a tailgating party."
For anyone that would like to donate to the Eden Tornado Relief Fund, links can be found on the Town of Eden website, as well as the Eden Community Foundation website.
"Please think about donating. The residents could really use it," Ventry said.
