Straight-line winds cause damage in Manchester, Sprigg Township

By Ryan Applegate

People’s Defender

Severe thunderstorms in the village of Manchester and Sprigg Township on Saturday, August 17 produced damaging straight-line winds that uprooted trees, toppled sheds and forced Hilltop Golf Course to close on Sunday.

Cleanup on August 18 was a community effort, with the owners of Hilltop Golf Course—Paula McIntosh, Rick McIntosh, Matt McIntosh, Logan McIntosh, and Jimmy and Carla Grooms—along with a host of neighbors and friends, ensuring the closure of the course lasted only one day.

“We worked extremely hard, and people from this community jumped in and helped,” Paula McIntosh told The People’s Defender on Sunday. “We’ve made amazing progress so far today. Amazingly, we’re thinking we will only have to be shut down today.”

Within the village limits of Manchester, several utility crews were seen assessing the damage and beginning repairs.

Downed trees, leaning utility poles, sheet metal and general debris were still visible Sunday along the streets of the village.

Adams County Emergency Management Director Karen Howelett said on Monday, “I was in contact with the National Weather Service shortly after the storms and sent them photos of the damage. Everything they could see from reports and photos indicated the presence of straight-line winds.”

The National Weather Service (NWS) office in Wilmington, Ohio, confirmed that the damage reported and the photos they reviewed had all the hallmarks of straight-line winds. According to radar at the time of the storms on Saturday, there were no indications of a tornado in the area