Seven tornadoes, including an EF3, struck Mississippi’s Pine Belt region May 6-7, state officials said. The Mississippi Emergency Management Agency said Sunday that 26 people were injured in the storms.
MEMA said 22 of the injured were in Lincoln County, with additional injuries reported in Lamar and Franklin counties. The agency said more than 1,000 people remained without power Sunday, down from a peak of about 20,100.
Gov. Tate Reeves initially reported last week that the storm damaged 275 homes and 50 apartment units in Lamar County and more than 200 homes in Lincoln County. MEMA said its assessments are ongoing and on Saturday provided a residential damage breakdown showing 18 homes destroyed, 22 with major damage, 32 with minor damage and 29 affected. The agency said two businesses were destroyed and six others suffered major damage.
MEMA also said eight roads in Lincoln County were still unpassable as of Sunday. The agency said a donation intake center opened at the Lincoln County School District building at 702 Saints Trail NW in Brookhaven. MEMA said there were no outstanding resource requests from local officials and that groups including the American Red Cross, The Salvation Army, Samaritan’s Purse, Miss. Baptist Relief and Temple Baptist were assisting recovery efforts.
Shortly after the storms, the FEMA Review Council released a report recommending the federal government shift its role in disaster recovery from “leading to supporting” state and local efforts. The council, which lists former Mississippi Gov. Phil Bryant as a vice chair, also recommended streamlining disaster assistance funding and creating a smaller FEMA, the report said.
Jon Ross Myers is the executive editor and publisher of the Mississippi News Network, Mississippi's largest digital only media company. He can be reached at editor@tippahnews.com
