LOUISVILLE, Ky. (WDRB) -- A town in southern Indiana is still recovering after storms moved through the area last month.

In Paoli, the historic Orange County Courthouse had damage to its bell tower and chimneys. The building was closed for several days for repairs and inspections. Homes were also damaged and some businesses in downtown Paoli lost brick walls.

The Braxton Building is 127 years old in the center of downtown Paoli. Fallen bricks, a staircase and glass are still scattered around the building that will likely come down.

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The Braxton Building in Paoli, Indiana was built in 1896.

For gas station owner Jeff Riley, the past 30 days have been difficult.

"Just overwhelming of the stuff and hurdles you have to jump to get back in business," said Riley, who owns Riley Oil.

Riley and dozens of other small businesses and homes were severely damaged during tornadoes that ripped through the area in August.

One of the tornadoes, an EF-1, set an August record for the longest track of a tornado in the NWS Louisville forecast area. It traveled 25.89 miles through Dubois and Orange counties. NWS said the tornado first touched down west of U.S. 231 in northern Dubois County and ended just southwest of Paoli.

The tornado had maximum winds of 107 miles per hour. A second EF-1 tornado near Paoli was on the ground for 8.73 miles and had maximum winds of 100 miles per hour.

"There was three inches of water here when I got here that morning," Riley said.

A month after the storms, clean up around the area continues.

"In August, it is rare to have these tornadoes anyway and then to have one cell come through your county with five tornadoes, it is just a very unique situation," said Rick Emerick with Orange County Emergency Management. 

The damage is still present in Paoli with tarps still covering roofs, branches and limbs lining the roads and windows remaining broken. The U.S. Small Business Administration was in town to talk with homeowners and their options.

"We always tell people not to wait for the insurance check to come in the mail because that will come eight or nine months down the road and now you have missed your ability to apply for funds," Sharon Gadbois with U.S. Small Business Administration said.

Orange County Emergency Management is not sure the total cost of all the damage yet.

"With tornadoes it's really difficult to come up with that precise number because so much of it is going to be covered by insurance so really the loss of the people is their deductibles," Emerick said.

A community information session will be held at the Paoli Town Hall on Sept. 11 at 5:30 p.m. offering additional resources to families and businesses that still need assistance.

Until then, the clean-up and rebuilding continues in the town.

"I just want to get back open," Riley said. "Get back to work and starting taking care of the community." 

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