It's been a summer filled with extreme weather events, including the recently confirmed F3 tornado that ripped through Lewis County, bringing dangerous wind gusts of 130 to 165 mph.
Some from the area are still recovering, struggling to return to normal.
“When we woke up the next morning, we were pretty floored to see what actually happened,” said Nick Mir, co-owner and general manager of the Snow Ridge Ski Resort.
What You Need To Know
- An F3 tornado ripped through the Snow Ridge Ski Resort in Turin last week
- The storm took down thousands of trees, and damaged buildings, machinery and chairlift cables and towers
- The resort's owner says it may not be running as full as it did before the storm, but will be open in some way on time this winter
It's been nearly two weeks since the tornado ran a buzzsaw through the Snow Ridge Ski Resort in Turin. Mir said he still does not know the full extent of the damage.
“It seems like it just gets piled up on top of itself,” he said of issues he’s come across.
Not only were buildings damaged, including roofs torn off, but a groomer was destroyed by one of the thousands of trees that fell down, many of which landed on chairlift cables, which is Mir’s biggest concern.
“Obviously, all four need to be assessed with a fine-tooth comb, just to make sure that everything is the way it should be. And that'll be done by both ourselves and inspectors,” Mir said.
The tornado is just one of a long list of things to happen at Snow Ridge within the last six years. There were two separate fires and, of course, COVID-19.
“The thought that crossed our mind was, you know, is this the end of it? Is this time, you know, is this a sign, that kind of thing,” Mir said, knowing his family would want to keep going.
But he and his family, with the help and support of the community, will push on, thanks to well wishes and financial support. Crews from Port Lyden’s Shue Brothers put other projects on hold to start work here immediately.
“We know it's important to so many people. It's important to us. You know, this will be, ah, a nice winter and we're looking forward to, to continue doing that not only for ourselves, but for everyone else who enjoys the property,” Mir said, adding the support means the world to him and his family.
Mir has given tours to several state officials to tour the damage. He said any disaster funding would certainly go a long way.
“Our base is incredible and has been absolutely amazing support-wise, but it's a very expensive process either way,” he said.
Mir says Snow Ridge will be open on time this winter, even though things may not be running at 100%.