Wednesday, May 27th, 2020

Tornado Anniversary

Severely injured Celina woman says God saved her

By William Kincaid
Photo by Dan Melograna/The Daily Standard

Anita Fleming and her daughter Deb stand outside their home at 4038 Mud Pike on Friday afternoon. Fleming's home was destroyed by the Memorial Day tornado a year ago today.

CELINA - Anita Fleming of Celina has few memories of the Memorial Day 2019 tornado that ravaged her Mud Pike property and left her unconscious for nearly a month at Miami Valley Hospital in Dayton, where she was treated for severe injuries.
She credits God for sparing her life and seeing her through the ordeal, just as in 1997, when she recovered from a series of strokes that forced her to learn how to walk again before returning to work a year later as a medical office receptionist.
"I give the credit to God. It had to be him. Nothing else could have saved me," she told the newspaper. "I know there were a lot of prayers and a lot of people caring. I've gotten a lot of cards and phone calls so I know they were praying."
Fleming, 80, who lives in a new house on the same property, recalled her harrowing experience, pointing out most of the details were filled in for her a few days before she was released from Miami Valley last summer.
Late in the evening of Memorial Day 2019, Fleming and her daughter Debra, who has cerebral palsy, were both in the home on Mud Pike, where the family had lived since 1973. Her husband, Albert, who had farmed the land for many years, was in Briarwood Village at the time, recovering from hip-replacement surgery.
A storm was indeed raging, but other details remain scant from the night the EF3 tornado packing winds of about 150 mph raked the northwestern part of Celina along with neighboring areas in Mercer County, she said.
  Anita Fleming remembered that her daughter advised they should go to the bathroom in the middle of the house, as it had no windows. She said she made it into the kitchen and noticed the wind had really picked up.
"I remember coming into the dining room but I don't remember anything else after that," she said. "(My daughter) said a big board from our barn, which is about 150 yards (away), slammed through our patio doors, hit me, hit her."
Anita Fleming's blood was everywhere.
"She thought I was dead," the mother said.
Her daughter couldn't get through to 911 so she then called one of her two brothers, Fleming said. He went to seek help at the Celina fire station but learned all units were out.
"So they called Coldwater and one of their squads came," she said. "(My daughter) ended up with eight staples in her head when the board that hit me hit her."
Medical personnel found Anita Fleming lying on the floor between the dining room and living room, she said.
"They got me in the squad and went to Coldwater and decided my injuries were severe enough that they wanted me to go to Miami Valley," she said. "I don't remember any of this. When I woke up it was about a month later."
Medical professionals laid bare what had happened to her when she finally regained consciousness.
"I said, 'What injuries do I have?'" she recalled. "He said, 'It's easier to tell what you don't have.'"
Fleming suffered internal and head injuries. Her left arm was fractured in numerous spots, requiring a six-hour surgery that installed plates and screws, she said. Her ribs were fractured too.
"And my face. I've got a scar running from the top of my head down to my eyebrow," she said. "And then my nose, all that was broken, and across my top lip, my gums, my teeth were broken. I've got a nice scar down the front of my face, which looks better now."
After being released from Miami Valley, Fleming spent time at Briarwood Village in a room not far from her husband's. She also needed multiple trips to hospitals for follow-up care.
"So I've had quite a bit of therapy," she said.
Anita Fleming, who just recently had staples removed from her head, considers herself to be 97% healthy today.
What she believes to be a divine extension of life permitted her to spend additional time by the side of her husband of 61.5 years, Albert, who died Feb. 24 at Lima Memorial Health System.
Before he died, though, Albert Fleming got to see the new house built on the property.
"We had to have a new house put up after the tornado. He was here twice to see it, but there's no barn. (It) took all of our buildings," she said.
The tornado had laid waste to the couple's barn, where Albert spent much time; a machine shed; and a two-car garage. The house had been badly damaged and infiltrated with mold and mildew, forcing the family to rebuild.
"I've got good neighbors and friends," she said. "My kids are getting groceries most of the time. They don't want me going out with this virus going around."
Additional online story on this date
Tornado Anniversary
CELINA - Harner family members moved into their new home on Brooke Avenue over this past holiday weekend, almost exactly a year after their former house was destroyed by the Memorial Day 2019 tornado. [More]
Subscriber and paid stories on this date
One year later, Celina community rebuilds, heals
EDITOR'S NOTE: A year ago today, with little warning, a massive EF3 tornado ripped through parts of Celina and surrounding areas.
The storm brought a violent end to the Memorial Day weekend, left one man dead and damaged or destroyed dozens of homes.
COLDWATER - Village council members on Monday discussed whether to open park and pool facilities following mandatory state safety guidelines.
Peopl
CELINA - The number of cases of COVID-19 in Mercer County has reached nearly 200, as two new confirmed cases raise the total to 199.
Two new cases in Auglaize County have raised that its total number of confirmed and probable cases to 68.
ST. HENRY - Village officials at Tuesday's council meeting announced plans to open the swimming pool the first week of June.
Village administrator
ST. MARYS - Bars and restaurants will be allowed to serve food and alcohol outdoors as they reopen to allow for social distancing.
City council mem
NEW BREMEN - The village swimming pool will open for business this year, but many rules have been added to meet state-mandated guidelines.
The pool is managed and staffed by the local YMCA under the direction of Rob Fleming, head of aquatics at the local facility.
CELINA - The Lake Facilities Authority hopes to continue improving the West Beach area this year, including possibly opening a rental space for kayaks and updating boat docks.
Amazing Athletes
As a senior, Amanda (Schumm) Triplett was on Parkway's homecoming court.
She wasn't named queen, but she sure did rule the volleyball court.
Triplett was a back-to-back state champion, in fact.
Amazing Athletes
A gridiron star at Parkway, Bill Stober graduated high school and then starred for Louisiana State University.
LSU has its litter of recruits to pick from on a yearly basis. The Tigers found the player for whom they were seeking more than 900 miles away from campus.