Severe weather hit Vermeer Corp. at around 4 p.m. on Thursday and caused severe structural damage at several of its plant buildings in Pella, Iowa. No one was seriously injured.

In addition to Vermeer team members who were working at that time, Vermeer chief executive officer Jason Andringa explained that more than 400 dealers and customers were on site to celebrate the company’s 70th anniversary 2018 Customer Conference.

“This is a new major challenge, yet as we have survived and thrived after every challenge so far, we plan to do so again,” Andringa said in a news conference after the tornado touched down.

Significant structural damage and personal property damage were sustained across the Vermeer campus. Vermeer’s corporate office, Plant 1, Plant 2, Plant 3, Parts Distribution Center, Global Pavilion, Lely and Yellow Iron Academy Learning Center appear to have zero to minor damage.

Plant 4, Plant 7 and the Advanced Systems/Testing facility will need a structural assessment before the impact of the damage and the ability to continue operations can be determined. Plant 5 and Plant 6 both have significant structural damage that Andringa said he believes, at this time, will limit the ability to continue operations. The waste management facility is a complete loss.

Operations for the third shift were cancelled for the night of July 19. All operations, both office and production, have been closed for July 20.

Andringa said he is optimistic that a number of facilities will be up and running in the near future. He also said the outpouring of offers of help from a variety of other manufacturing facilities has been overwhelming.

“We will explore all of our opportunities to get back up to full Vermeer capacity as soon as we can,” he said.

On Friday, a small number of people were visiting the site to determine what can be done immediately to at least get some production going again on Monday, Andringa added.

Only seven individuals were treated with minor injuries and all had already been released from the local hospital. Andringa attributed the safety success to the many on-site tornado shelters and quick response once the sirens were heard.

Vermeer, which is known for its unique machinery, including balers, has been in the Vermeer family for three generations.

“We certainly are going to rebuild and come back stronger than ever,” Andringa said.