Clean Up Process Begins After Bridge Creek Tornado

Clean up is finally underway in tornado-ravaged Bridge Creek. The storm hit in early May, and victims have been living with a mess.

“In ’99, it took all of our debris to Moore,” Henry Keller said.

But not this time around. The debris was picked up and dumped right in many people's front yards. It may have been better if it had been carried off again, because each day this pile sits out front, it is a reminder of the 45 years of  this couple's life that is now a heaping mound out by the road.

“It smells really bad, too,” Bonnie Keller said.

News 9 spoke with the Kellers just after their home was hit. Volunteers have torn down what was left of it.

“Our home was there where all that is,” Bonnie Keller said. “Right there, where the cars are parked was the garage.”

The Kellers have been living in a camper ever since and waiting on the arrival of their new mobile home.

“We’re just patiently waiting, not so patient, I have to admit,” Bonnie Keller said.

5/31/2015 Related Story: Bridge Creek Residents Feel Forgotten As Debris From May 6 Storm Remains

Just like most people out here, it's not easy living out of a makeshift place, but it will have to do for just a bit longer.

“That’s the house. That’s the shop. That’s the coop. That’s the barn,” Amy Fowler said.

That's home or what's left of it.  Amy Fowler and her husband have picked up a lot, but it's a view that's getting really old really fast.

“I don’t want to look at it anymore,” Fowler said. “I’m just tired of looking at it.”

Grady County officials said a metro company is handling the cleanup. Monday was the first day in a long process.

“They made a dent in it. We can see that they were there,” Keller said. “We are really thankful to get rid of it because we were so afraid it was going to be a health hazard.”

News 9 was told the county had to be approved for disaster assistance and work began as soon as funding was available.