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Seven tornadoes, including an EF3, landed in Mississippi’s Pine Belt region between May 6 and May 7, state officials reported on Friday.
The Mississippi Emergency Management Agency in an updated on Sunday said 26 people in the state suffered injuries from the storms. Most of those, 22, were in Lincoln County, with injuries in Lamar and Franklin counties as well.
Over 1,000 people in the state were without power as of Sunday, down from a high of about 20,100, MEMA said. The agency is still assessing the number of properties damaged, and said there are no outstanding resource requests from local officials. Groups including The American Red Cross, The Salvation Army, Samaritan’s Purse, MS Baptist Relief and Temple Baptist are assisting recovery efforts.
Initially, Gov. Tate Reeves last week said the storm damaged 275 homes and 50 apartment units in Lamar County, as well as over 200 homes in Lincoln County. MEMA said its assessments are ongoing, but on Saturday provided a breakdown of residential damages so far: 18 homes were destroyed, 22 received major damage, 32 received minor damage and 29 were affected. Two businesses were also destroyed, and another six received major damage.
Eight roads in Lincoln County were still unpassable as of Sunday, MEMA added. A donation intake center opened at the Lincoln County School District Building at 702 Saints Trail NW in Brookhaven.
Shortly after the storm hit Mississippi, a Trump administration panel released a report recommending the federal government shift its role in disaster recovery from “leading to supporting” local and state efforts. Former Mississippi Gov. Phil Bryant is a vice chair of the FEMA Review Council, which authored the report.
In addition to recommending a more “lean” FEMA that “puts Americans first,” the council also called for accelerating and streamlining disaster assistance funding.
