HERNANDO, Miss. (localmemphis.com) – Local and state officials visited destroyed homes after two tornadoes ripped through DeSoto County over the weekend.
Lt.Governor Delbert Hosemann was on the ground in DeSoto County Monday morning.During a news conference, he reported 11 homes in the county were destroyedover the weekend. Another 150 homes had either major or minor damage, he said.
Oneof the homes destroyed was Larry Woods’ house just south of Hernando.
“Thereis so much to do, that we got to do, and so much to grasp, you just wondering,where do you start?” Woods said, more than 48 hours after a tornado rippedhis roof off.
Itwas Woods’ home that Hosemann made his first stop following the newsconference.
“Heis going to have to rebuild everything he’s worked for. He’s retired.Everything he and his wife have ever had. They have to start all over, so weneed to help them. That’s why I’m here,” Hosemann said.
Hosemannand Woods recounted the moments DeSoto County Sheriff’s deputies rescued himand his family from the home. Woods spoke about how he lived on the propertyhis entire life. He told the Lt. Governor he had no plans on leaving, even now.
Hosemanntold Woods the state would do what it could to help him.
“Intimes like this, when it’s so devastating. Just look. You need to know otherpeople care and we do care,” Hosemann said. “Mississippi cares andthe state and the county and the city is going to help them.”
Thevisit and gesture weren’t lost on Woods.
“It’s a wonderful feeling to know that people care. To know that people care about you and the community,” he said.
(MEMA NEWS RELEASE) – The Mississippi Emergency Management Agency (MEMA) received damage reports from 25 counties in response to the severe weather that impacted the state Saturday, January 11.
As of this afternoon, there are 9,169power outages statewide, with the bulk of the outages coming in Bolivar,DeSoto, Sunflower, and Washington counties.
The following damage reports serve only asinitial assessments from the county emergency management offices and can change(either higher or lower) as MEMA receives additional reports and assessments.
Initial damage reports by county(assessments ongoing):
- Bolivar – 107 homes damaged, three roads damaged, four injured
- Carrol – one home damaged, 10 roads damaged
- Chickasaw – one home damaged, 10 roads damaged
- Choctaw – 26 apartment units damaged, 10 roads closed due to debris,two closed due to flooding
- Coahoma – two homes damaged
- Copiah – one home damaged
- DeSoto – 210 homes damaged, five roads closed
- EF-1 tornado from Tate into DeSoto County
- EF-2 tornado
- Grenada – 10 homes damaged
- Hinds – 13 homes damaged
- Leflore – three homes damaged
- Leake – 10 roads closed due to flooding
- Lee – homes damaged, roads flooded
- Marshall – five homes damaged, three roads closed, one injured
- Monroe – one home damaged, 10 apartment units damaged, 15 roadsclosed
- Oktibbeha – 30 roads closed and/or flooded
- Panola – 50 homes damaged, 30 roads closed and/or flooded, oneinjury
- Prentiss – 54 homes damaged, five apartments damaged
- Quitman – eight homes damaged, four apartments damaged, one roadclosed
- Sunflower – homes damaged, five roads closed, six injured
- Tallahatchie – 30 homes damaged
- Tate – four homes damaged
- EF-1 tornado into DeSoto County
- Tishomingo – three homes damaged, three roads closed
- Tunica – four homes damaged, four businesses damaged, 17 farmsdamaged, two injured
- Washington – 20 homes damaged, 50 apartments damaged, 10 roads closed,two injured
- Webster – three homes damaged, 15 roads closed
Shelters open
- Washington – Washington County Convention Center; 1040 S. Raceway Road,Greenville
State Assets/Resources Deployed
- Bolivar
- 100 tarps
- Nine pallets of water
- Three area coordinators
- Copiah
- 20 tarps
- DeSoto
- 400 tarps
- Disaster reservists (five teams of two)
- Four pallets of water
- MEMA debris specialist
- Hinds
- 20,000 sandbags
- Panola
- Tarps
- One pallet of water
- Pike
- One disaster reservist
- Quitman
- One Area Coordinator
- One water pump
- Two generators
- Sunflower
- One Area Coordinator
- One generator
- Tarps
- Three pallets of water
- Tallahatchie
- 50 tarps
- One pallet of water
- Warren
- 30,000 sandbags from United States Army Corps of Engineers
- Washington
- One drone to capture video footage for damage assessments
- Webster
- One Area Coordinator
The State EmergencyOperations Center is activated and monitoring any requests or unmet needs fromthe county emergency management offices.
The public isencouraged to report damage to homes or businesses to their county emergencymanagement office. A directory of all the offices is online at http://www.msema.org/county-ema/
MEMA will providemore updates as information becomes available. The best way to get up-to-dateinformation during this event is to “Like” MEMA on Facebook, or “Follow” us ontwitter @msema.