CECILIA, Ky. — Monday morning, homeowners in Hardin County, Kentucky began assessing the damage done by Sunday's storms.
Hardin County Emergency Management Director Joey Scott said several homes were damaged, mainly in the Cecilia area.
After surveying the damage, the National Weather Service of Louisville confirmed a "preliminary EF-2 tornado" touched down, with estimated 115 miles per hour winds.
Neighbors near Basham Lane, where two homes were seriously damaged, were just settling in for the night when the storm hit.
"Everybody that has showed up asked if I heard the train, I didn't hear the train," John House, who lost 20 or 30 trees in his yard to the tornado, said.
"Everybody says it sounds like a train, but I never heard a train that sounded like this. And then the house just exploded. Insulation, glass, everything was flying everywhere," John Key described. "It was like being in a blender almost. Then ten, twelve seconds and that was it, it was over."
At Key's home, the tornado ripped apart the roof, damaged the garage and even managed to toss a truck and gazebo.
"Me and my wife are fine, and that's all that matters. God wasn't ready to take us yet, we have more time together," Key said.
Across the street, Jody Basham, whose family the lane is named for, was in bed when the storm hit. He said he was lying just on the other side of a brick wall that ended up toppled.
"I thought maybe just lightning struck, but I walked outside and was like 'eh that's a little more than just lightning,'" Basham said. "Just lucky. The good lord was watching over us last night."
Monday, officials with the National Weather Service pointed to the flattening patterns of the nearby corn fields and the odd directions in which debris was thrown as signs of a tornado.
Even before getting the official word, neighbors like Key were certain of what they'd lived through.
"There was no time for sirens or any kind of warnings," Key said. "I always see storms on the TV and people and send out a little prayer for them, that's all we can ask for now is some prayers."
Hardin County Emergency Management said they haven't received any reports of injuries from the storm.
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