High Winds Cause Havoc in Ferndale
(Crystal A. Proxmire, April 18, 2024)
Ferndale, MI – A storm on Wednesday caused significant damage in Ferndale, particularly in the 9 Mile and Hilton area where roofing material was ripped off several buildings. The wind also took out trees and electrical poles. Materials came down on vehicles, causing further damage.
Incubizo is in the area with the most damage. Their security camera captured the moment the storm hit, and roofing materials flew off the nearby Tire Shoppe and onto Voyager restaurant as well as cars in their parking lot.
Autumn House, a five story apartment building for low income residents, including seniors and those with disabilities, was also impacted as a large sheet of roofing was ripped away and left hanging like a large sheet over the side of the building.
Reggie Sutherland, President of the Ferndale Housing Commission said that a team of people responded to the emergency incident. One resident was taken to the hospital for a minor injury and several apartments were damaged due to water intrusion.
Several housing commissioners came to the scene, as well as the fire department including the fire chief and fire marshal. He said that the Mayor reached out to share her concern and get updates, and the city sent someone from the economic development department as well.
Work has already begun on temporary roof repair.
“There were only a few people who were displaced the Red Cross was here and they provided meals for us and they provided temporary housing for anyone that needed it. I think there were maybe one or two people who needed to leave the building because there was no power but power was restored last night and hopefully everything can get back to something close to normal,” he said
Sutherland also lives in the building. “It sounded like a tornado,” he said. “It hasn’t been confirmed but being in the building when it happened it sounded like a train, a freight train hit the building.”
He added that he and fellow commissioners are glad that it was only property damage and that no major injuries occurred. “It could have been worse,” he said.
Voyager also shared photos of the damage. They shared photos of the damage on Facebook, as well as a statement. “Earlier today, Voyager sustained damage when a passing storm ripped the roof clean off the neighboring auto shop, destroyed the electrical & gas infrastructure behind our building, and landed on our roof & staff’s cars. First and foremost—I’m thankful that everyone is safe, if not a li’l shaken. @dte_energy_official was able to cut power to the downed power lines, clean up the mess, and secure several poles that snapped or bent severely. Unfortunately, our block’s transformer now lives on (or possibly in) our roof, which is under another entire roof. In the process of falling from its pole, the transformer also severed the gas line to our restaurant. As I type, @consumersenergy is on-site jackhammering in two spots, searching for the gas main so they can cap the line and eliminate the leak. Only then will it be safe to get inside, assess the damage and plot our path back.
The City of Ferndale shared information on Facebook for residents, stating:
As a reminder, do NOT approach a downed power line. When in doubt, reach out to our emergency responders—that’s what they’re here for. In an emergency, always call 911.
To report downed trees or water and flooding issues, please call the Public Works Department at 248-546-2519 or report them to SeeClickFix at ferndalemi.gov/contact/report.
On Thursday morning, Fire Chief Theresa Robinson shared an update with Oakland County Times, stating “At least three buildings had significant roof damage including Autumn House, large trees were down with some blocking roadways, and some power lines were impacted. One person was transported to the hospital with minor injuries from debris. Ferndale’s Department of Public Works deployed quickly to start clearing trees blocking roadways with only the area of Vester and Burdette still needing to be cleared this morning. DTE had crews in the area very quickly addressing impacted power lines.
