Mississippi town picking up the pieces after deadly tornado causes catastrophic damage
Families were left reeling following an EF3 tornado that shredded houses, snapped trees and cut power to thousands in Mississippi.
A deadly EF3 tornado caused damage to central Mississippi, particularly Jasper County, on June 18, where winds were up to 150 mph.
Damage and debris are littering the landscape across Louin, Mississippi, in the wake of a deadly twister that roared through central Mississippi during the recent outbreak of severe weather. At least one fatality has been confirmed, while another 25 were injured due to the tornado in the small town, located about 55 miles southeast of Jackson, Mississippi.
The National Weather Service (NWS), has given the twister a preliminary rating of EF3 with an estimated wind of 150 mph. It tracked on the ground for 7.6 miles, which included a section of the town of Louin.
“We’ll be here for the long haul to support these communities and help them recover,” Mississippi Gov. Tate Reeves said, adding that the state is supporting emergency managers to help the areas that were devastated by the tornadoes and severe weather. “Please continue praying for those affected.”
Storm Chaser Brandon Clement was one of the first to reach the scene of the damage. Clement shared videos of first responders and volunteers working together to rescue people from the rubble.
“First responders and volunteers did amazing rescuing people,” Clement wrote in a Twitter post. “At one point, they ran out of ambulances and started using a Humvee to transport injured to the hospital.”
A drone video shows the damage left behind after a tornado ripped through in Louin, Mississippi. (Storm Chaser Brandon Clement)
As the sun rose on Monday, the full extent of the damage could be seen. In a drone video shared by Clement, several homes were missing roofs, trees were ripped apart and knocked over and debris was strewn about.
"Our community took a direct hit from a destructive storm [Sunday] night," the Louin Volunteer Fire Department wrote on Facebook. "There are a lot of families out there that could use some prayers."
In addition to the homes that were damaged in Louin, a chicken farm also sustained substantial impacts. Video from Clement showed hundreds of chickens in rows where their homes once stood. Feed silos were knocked over and trees surrounding the property were snapped in half.
As a rotating thunderstorm approached the town of Louin, the NWS issued a tornado warning for the storm at 11:16 p.m. CDT on Sunday. Roughly 15 minutes later, the NWS confirmed the tornado was on the ground and urged residents to seek shelter.
As of 7:50 a.m. CDT Monday, 49,000 customers were without power in Central Mississippi, according to the Mississippi Emergency Management Agency. By 2 p.m. CDT Tuesday, the power outages across the state had fallen to around 24,000.
At least five other tornadoes were reported in Mississippi on Sunday, according to the Storm Prediction Center. Hail and damaging wind gusts were also reported.
Prior to the Louin tornado late Sunday night, the same supercell produced another twister in Florence, which is located 50 miles west of Louin.
Florence resident Terrell Owens told Clement that he had just gotten back from Alabama.
“Started getting the alarm stuff on the cellphones,” said Owens. “Two to three minutes after that, man, and it just got wicked. We just had to run for cover. It was scary. Me and my family ran to the pantry and it just happened so fast.”
Owens said that he didn’t realize how much damage the tornado had caused until he walked outside and saw it for himself. He told Clement that he was glad that no one was killed by the twister in Florence on Sunday night.
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