COLUMBUS, Ohio (WSYX) — Central Ohio residents are grappling with the aftermath of severe storms that swept through the area, leaving behind a trail of debris, downed power lines, and damaged trees.

One family experienced the full force of the storm firsthand.

Nelda Walker was preparing dinner on Saturday when the storm hit.

"All of a sudden we heard this whistling," she said. "Whistling came through real fast, trees fell down and it went away."

In an instant, her backyard was transformed into a scene of chaos.

"When I first came out, all I saw was a couple of little branches," Walker said. "That's all I had seen, and then he was upstairs and he heard the big old crack. And then I looked back out here and there were trees everywhere."

The storm left Walker's wooden and chain-link fences crushed by a fallen tree, her car covered in heavy branches, and the grill she had planned to use for dinner smashed to pieces.

"We just got it last year, now it's smashed all to pieces," she said.

Despite the extensive damage, Walker and her family were fortunate to retain power.

"The only limb that hit the power line was that one down there," she said. "It was up here and then the wind blew it that way."

As friends and neighbors assist with cleanup and repairs, Walker expressed gratitude for her family's safety.

"It's just material things," she said. "We can get it again."

In light of the storm's impact, AEP has urged residents to report outages immediately and to treat all downed lines as energized and dangerous. They advise maintaining a distance of at least 10 feet from power lines, whether they are above or below ground, and to keep equipment like ladders and scaffolding away from them.