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Heavy rains hit Marshall
• Storms kill four in neighboring counties By SUE WATSON
Staff Writer  | Photos by Hugh Hollowell
Road damage
This
washout on Roberts Chapel Road was just one of many over the weekend in
Marshall County that forced the closing of several county roads. |
Marshall County luckily dodged the bullet over the weekend. Tornadic-force
winds killed four in neighboring counties, but Marshall County was
spared – sustaining mostly heavy rains and flooding. One person was
killed in Lafayette County, two in Benton and one in Union, according
to reports. Hugh Hollowell, emergency management
coordinator for Marshall County, reported catching 10 inches of rain in
an empty bucket at his house over the weekend near Watson, while
supervisor Ronnie Joe Bennett reported his six-inch rain gauge overran
in Potts Camp.  | Flooding
This house on Cayce Road in Marshall County was flooded due to the torrential rainfall. |
Some homes had water in them, one
in the Cayce community taking on a foot of water inside, according to
supervisors. A house on Memphis Street in Mount Pleasant also flooded. Most
damage, however, was to roads and culverts in District 2 and a few in
District 3 and District 4. Storm water washed out several culverts,
causing roads to be closed. County school buses
did not run Monday, even though schools were open. Bennett said he
consulted with the superintendent of education, Don Randolph, and they
decided to take extra caution Monday and check all roads before letting
the buses run. Buses were to resume Tuesday. Some
roads closed due to washouts or standing water included: District 2 -
Loftin Lane near North Red Banks Road, a culvert washout south of 1771
Roberts Chapel Road, a road shoulder washout on Roberts Chapel Road, a
culvert washout on Rossville Road, flooding on Hogan Road and a washout
on Atway Road; District 3 - a culvert washout near 2189 Moore Road,
flooding near 370 Durham Road and flooding of homes and yards in the
3000 and 4000 block of Cayce Road; District 4 - flooding on Beale Road.
 | Photo by Barry Burleson
Too much water
Flood waters from the Coldwater River flow near the top of the bridge on Highway 311 North. |
Highway 309 in Marshall County, between Highway
302 and Highway 178 in the Coldwater River Bottom, was closed but
reopened Monday. Highway 4 between Ashland and
Holly Springs remained closed Monday due to flood waters which caused a
washout to the highway. It was scheduled to reopen Tuesday. Hollowell
requested a proclamation from the board of supervisors that could be
sent to the state in case several counties, including Marshall, have
enough damages to receive federal disaster relief dollars. The Mississippi Emergency Management Agency reported six people killed in North Mississippi due to the storms. MEMA,
in an update Monday afternoon, said the following counties are
reporting damages to the State Emergency Operations Center in Pearl: • Alcorn: One death; multiple roads flooded; homes and apartments were affected. •
Benton: Two deaths; four injuries; 11 homes and mobile homes destroyed,
six with major damage and 23 reporting minor damage; four injuries.
Three homes received major damage; five homes received minor damage.
Crews are working to restore power. • DeSoto: Flash flooding. •
Lafayette: One death; two homes and mobile homes destroyed, one with
major damage and 20 homes/mobile homes with minor damage. A shelter has
been opened in Abbeville at Abbeville Baptist Church, Long Street. For
more information, contact Pastor Randy Hope at 662-801-2697. Power is
being restored by the local Electric Power Association. Road clearing
and debris cleanup are being provided by local and private sources.
Immediate priorities are to restore power and remove debris. • Lee: One death; trees down throughout the county. • Marshall: Twenty one homes/ mobile homes with minor damage; 10 roads with major damage; 12 roads with minor damage. • Montgomery: Two homes and six roads with minor damage. • Panola: Several roads are closed due to flooding; water is getting inside of homes. • Prentiss: Thirty-eight roads are closed due to flooding; 10 roads have been damaged and are closed. • Tippah: Homes and buildings damaged; trees and power lines down; local roads impassable due to flooding. • Tishomingo: Several homes are uninhabitable; reports of numerous road closures and other damage due to flooding. • Tunica: Flooding; power outages. •
Union: One death; 11 homes/mobile homes with minor damage; three
businesses with minor damage; two bridges with minor damage; scattered
outages in Union County with work to restore in progress. Red Cross and
fire volunteers are available. • Webster: One injury reported; 60 roads with minor damage; three roads with major damage and one road destroyed. MEMA
personnel and the Mobile Operations Command Center have been deployed
to assist with the response in Benton County. Four pallets of tarps are
en route from the MEMA warehouse in Pearl to Benton County and one
pallet is headed to Lafayette County. The Red
Cross has opened two emergency aid stations for people affected by the
recent severe weather outbreak in Mississippi. The sites are staffed
with Red Cross nurses and mental health workers. The public can also
refer to the emergency aid stations to learn about additional agencies
that are providing disaster relief assistance. Help is available at the
emergency aid stations from 9 a.m. to around 7 p.m. They are located in
the following areas – intersection of Hwy. 370 and Old Hwy. 370,
Ashland, Benton County; and Harmony Baptist Church, 28960 Highway 15
North, Walnut, Tippah County. |
