Sherwood Township faces debris, unrepaired homes a year after the May 7 tornadoes

SHERWOOD TWP. — One year after two EF-2 tornadoes struck Sherwood, most of the seven destroyed homes remain in disrepair.  

A few of the other 24 damaged buildings have been repaired or replaced.  

The National Weather Service confirmed at least two parallel tornadoes moving southwest to northeast from the Colon area toward Union Lake with winds up to 130 miles per hour. 

The total path, 950 yards wide, covered 19 miles across two counties.  

A year later, along Arny Road, where much of the damage occurred, piles of trees remain.  

Only one of the severely damaged homes on Arny Road received a building permit and is almost ready for occupancy.  

Township Supervisor Toren Stanton does not think most homes can be rebuilt, especially on the south side of Arny Road, where five of the seven mostly destroyed structures are located. 

“These people did not have insurance,” Stanton said.

The structures, built before the zoning and building codes passed in 1992, complied with the code.  

Monday night, the township Zoning Board of Appeals compromised with resident Cheryl Burns.  

Burns insured her trailer at 1043 Arny Road, but the company would only replace a 720-square-foot trailer the storm destroyed. The new building codes require a residence to be at least 940 square feet.  

Burns sued the township in Branch County Circuit Court.  The ZBA compromise allows Burns to put in a non-conforming rental trailer but she must increase its size to meet the new minimum by Jan. 1, 2026, Stanton explained.  

Stanton said the township wants to clean up the Arny Road area and help the owners.

“There’s not a ton we can do other than enforce the junk ordnance,” he said.

Dilapidated buildings are not covered.

“We also want to be careful and not kick these people down. I understand a lot of these people are in a tough spot and and can only do so much,” Staton said.

Branch County Emergency Manager Tim Miner said FEMA surveyed the area, but Sherwood did not meet federal standards for help.  

Township Property Assessor Marcia Ball said 31 buildings were damaged or destroyed. Ball estimated the township’s lost property value at $500,000. 

Ball said state law allows for reconstruction with a 5% increase in size for those who rebuild, maintaining the same taxable value as before the storm, no matter how old the damaged building was.   

Stanton said, “Things are slowly redeveloping out there. We’ll see things really work our way this next year and get cleaned.” 

No one is sure who or what can be done about the downed trees toppled in the St. Joseph River, where the storm left piles of destruction. 

Contact Don Reid: dReid@Gannett.com 

This article originally appeared on Coldwater Daily Reporter: Sherwood Township faces debris, unrepaired homes a year after the May 7 tornadoes

Reporting by Don Reid, Coldwater Daily Reporter / Coldwater Daily Reporter

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