ELKHORN, Neb. (KMTV) — Nearly a year and a half after an EF-4 tornado damaged their Elkhorn home, the Peringer family faces a new challenge: black mold forcing them out.
- The mold is now forcing the Peringer family to find temporary housing, a process that could take up to a year before the home is safe to live in again.
- The nonprofit COPE is helping the family find a place and help with costs.
- The family anticipates moving in the next couple of weeks.
BROADCAST TRANSCRIPT:
It's been nearly a year and a half since an EF-4 tornado blew through this Elkhorn neighborhood. Many have rebuilt here in Ramblewood, but some are still struggling with repairs. Now, one family is being forced out of their home.
It's been a long journey for the Peringer family to get to this moment with repairs finally being made on the exterior of their home.
"It's been a big battle to get here, you know, you've been here since the beginning," Nichole Peringer said.
I met Peringer shortly after the 2024 spring storm. At first glance, her home didn't appear to be damaged, but the foundation had shifted, the roof was damaged and the gutters needed to be replaced.
A year and a half later, progress is being made, but a new problem has surfaced.
"And not having any sort of water mitigation from your home provides the perfect environment for water damage and water intrusion and so unfortunately for us we had a lot of mold in our house that has grown," Peringer said.
Mold, including black mold, is now forcing Peringer's family to find temporary housing, a process that could take up to a year before the home is safe to live in again.
"We've got 4 kids, 2 adults, a dog. It just, it's a lot emotionally to not feel like you have anywhere to go to be on your own," Peringer said.
With a big family, finding somewhere to rent hasn't been easy. But with the help of the nonprofit COPE, things are starting to move in the right direction.
"You've got two homes now. You're paying utility bills and mortgage payments and you're paying utility bills and a rent payment and trying to sort of walk alongside them in navigating that," said Nancy Lary, COPE executive director.
Even with a damaged foundation at the Peringer home, the family's true foundation has yet to crack.
"We will have a new house in the end and that's gonna be a blessing, yeah," Peringer said.
Peringer says things are still being finalized with their temporary housing, but they expect to move in the next couple of weeks.
