Staff photo / Dan Hiner A fallen tree knocked down a power line on Tudor Lane in Boardman during Sunday’s storm. The township, as well as Austintown and Canfield, sustained heavy damage in the storm, which the National Weather Service in Cleveland ruled as an EF-1 tornado in Canfield Township and a macroburst in other areas of Mahoning County.

BOARDMAN — Despite widespread storm damage, emergency management officials say Mahoning County seems unlikely to qualify for state and federal financial aid.

Zach Williams, emergency coordinator for Mahoning County EMA, told Boardman trustees Wednesday evening that Sunday’s EF-1 tornado and surrounding macroburst, while responsible for considerable chaos across the county, failed to generate enough damage to meet thresholds required for funding.

Williams said EMA and other local agencies continued to tour the county and assess damage this week. The federal standard is that there must be at least 24 uninsured homes that sustained at least 40% damage. Williams also said the initial dollar amount to meet was approximately $436,000, but that was soon elevated to $1.1 million. He said that even with road and bridge damage, the county will not reach that mark.

Williams said it seems unlikely the county will meet state benchmarks for funding either.

The National Weather Service confirmed an EF-1 tornado touched down for just over half a mile in Canfield Township in the area of Tippecanoe and Shields Roads.

A larger storm phenomenon, called a macroburst, ran across more than 10 miles of the county, was 3.33 miles wide, and had sustained winds of between 90 mph and 100 mph. Many are still without power, some roads remain closed and cleanup is ongoing.

“We’re continuing to work with the state, Red Cross, county officials, township officials, as far as trying to get everything cleaned up. We ask everybody to please give us time.

We’re still coordinating those efforts, but it’s gonna take weeks and possibly even a month or two in order to get all of that cleaned up,” Williams said. “We would ask that you direct any of your questions as far as the cleanup goes to your township officials because they’ve already started coming up with a plan as far as how they’re going to clean up all of the debris.”

Williams said the number of residents without power had dropped considerably as of Wednesday and more were expected to have electricity restored as soon as 11 p.m.

We’ve been in direct contact with FirstEnergy. We are down under 800 residents that are left in the county without power. So, we’re doing pretty good,” he said. “We started at over 23,000. We’re down to just under 800 and I believe just under 300 are Boardman Township residents.”

He said some homes in the area of Canfield struck by the tornado will likely not have power restored until the weekend because of the severity of the damage to electrical lines there.

Williams urged all residents to document their damage and send it to EMA to include in its total assessment of damages and costs.

He said all homeowners who can should submit claims to their insurance. He said the EMA provides information to help residents vet any companies they might hire for cleanup to help avoid frauds and scams, which have already happened to some residents.

He also reiterated that residents should assume all downed power lines are still live and avoid them, and everyone should obey road closures and not go around barricades. In addition to the obvious safety concerns, Mahoning County Prosecutor Lynn Maro has warned that running road barriers can lead to fines and other penalties.

Trustees lauded EMA for its efforts to coordinate emergency response to the storm across the county and in the township. They also took the opportunity to praise Boardman’s own departments.

“This Sunday was obviously a cataclysmic weather event that occurred in Boardman. It was something I’ve never seen before. I don’t think anybody sitting up here has ever seen something like that before,” said Trustee Steve Yacovone. “To see how the community has come together, to see how each of our departments, each of our employees…to see how everyone stepped up in a time of crisis, it was truly amazing.”

“We all drove around Sunday and Monday, and going into neighborhoods where people were cleaning out their yards, what I heard from pretty much everybody I talked to was how thankful they were for the work of the township employees, and the fire department, the police department, the road department,” said Trustee Larry Moliterno. “But also watching neighbors helping each other, just coming out in the street and saying, ‘What can we do? How can we help? Are you OK?’ Looking after each other. You know, it’s really easy sometimes to be cynical, but then you see things like this that really do bring people together, and it brings out what’s best in all of us.”

Township Administrator Mark Ragozine reminded residents that they can submit forms to the Mahoning County Auditor’s Office citing any damages they incurred from the storm and that they may be eligible to receive a corresponding reduction in next year’s tax bill.

Zoning Director TJ Keiran sought and received approval from trustees to waive any zoning fees associated with repairs or replacements of structures proven to be damaged by the storm.