USA TODAY International Edition
4 killed as tornado rips through Mississippi
Many injured; thousands lose power in area
“This won’t stop us. In fact, we will have feeding trucks on our campus feeding lunch to those in the area who are in need.”
Patrick Connelly, Hattiesburg ( Miss.) Salvation Army captain, whose campus was hit hard by the storm
At least four people were killed in southern Mississippi early Saturday when a destructive tornado roared through the Hattiesburg area, leveling homes, ripping off roofs and tossing trees into roadways across the region.
The city of Hattiesburg on Twitter and Forrest County emergency management confirmed the deaths. Numerous injuries were reported in the city of 48,000.
Authorities had not released the names of the four people who died. But at least one family had already gotten the horrific news, the Associated Press reported. Monica McCarty said her father died in the same trailer park where she and her boyfriend live; her son, who lived with McCarty’s mother, was apparently crushed to death in his bed.
Standing amid the carnage the tornado had wrought, McCarty wept as her boyfriend, Tackeem Molley, comforted her.
“They couldn’t get him out of the house. They said he was laying in the bed,” McCarty said of her son.
The tornado ripped through the area at about 4 a. m., with strong winds that caused extensive damage in several blocks of Hattiesburg. At dawn, trees, massive limbs and poles wrapped in power lines littered the streets next to severely damaged homes. Nearly 15,000 homes and businesses were without power.
“The total debris cleanup will be weeks at this point,” said Lee Smithson, executive director of the Mississippi Emergency Management Agency.
At the Hattiesburg Salvation Army, Capt. Patrick Connelly began assessing the damage. “Before first light, I could tell there were windows blown out and standing water in the buildings,” he said.
Connelly said the destructive winds peeled back the roofs on nearly every building of the organization’s campus, which in- cludes a homeless shelter, church sanctuary, administrative offices and a Boys and Girls Club for after- school programs.
“This won’t stop us. In fact, we will have feeding trucks on our campus feeding lunch to those in the area who are in need,” he said.
Forrest County Emergency Management Agency Director Glen Moore said there were multiple reports of people trapped in homes. State and local emergency responders coordinated rescue missions in the pre- dawn hours Saturday as another line of severe weather swept through.
Mayor Johnny DuPree signed an emergency declaration for the city, which reported significant structural damage, AP reported. Smithson said Gov. Phil Bryant was traveling back to Mississippi after attending President Trump’s inauguration and will sign a state of emergency declaration.
Lamar County, just west of Forrest County, and Perry County and the city of Petal to the east were also hit hard. Petal Mayor Hal Marx urged residents to stay home. Emergency personnel were out working to clear roads, and there were multiple areas of downed power lines and gas leaks. “Stay off roads in affected areas,” he said. “No sightseeing.”
Interstate 59 north of the city was closed due to debris and downed power lines. Search- andrescue teams were dispatched to help local authorities, who urged residents to avoid traveling.
William Carey University’s Hattiesburg campus closed and students were being escorted from the area, the school announced on Twitter. Arrangements were being made for students who couldn’t make it home. Some residence halls were damaged in the storm, and some students reported minor injuries, the university said.
At one point, students at the Hattiesburg campus of the University of Southern Mississippi were directed to take cover. The university also reported extensive flash flooding at several locations on campus. The National Weather Service said 3 to 5 inches of rain fell.
The weather service said more severe weather was expected in the area Saturday night. Meteorologist Latrice Maxie said there is the danger of more tornadoes, but the greatest risk is farther north.
The line of storms was expected to push east across parts of Alabama, Georgia, northern Florida and far- southern South Carolina, bringing the chance of damaging winds, hail, flash flooding and tornadoes.
On Sunday, the thunderstorms were expected to form into a squall line, with a high risk of damaging winds and the potential for a few tornadoes, AccuWeather reported.