By Hubert Yates
Director, Mississippi Baptist Disaster Relief
From Columbus/Lowndes: Effects of last night’s storms have left trees and powerlines down. However, damage to homes and businesses is minimal. Power and road crews are currently working to restore power and clear roadways. Additional response is not needed from Mississippi Baptist Disaster Relief (MSBDR) at this time.
From Rankin County: Completed drive through assessment in Pearl and Brandon. Trees/limbs down with minimal home involvement (three noted with tree on home). Road and power crews working to clear and restore. Homeowners, neighbors, and friends/families are already working at many sites. Do not expect deployment of teams. Will handle any request with local MSBDR teams.
Waiting on Team Lead/assessments reports from Florence, Clarke County, and Bolton/Hinds County.
Update:
After completing initial assessments of identified damaged areas, MSBDR will not be deploying teams in an organized effort. Most damage falls within the capability of local teams and so response will be kept to a Local Team level. Contact has been made with AMS and EMA leaders in each area (Rankin County (Pearl, Brandon, Flowood), Clarke County, Hinds County, and Lowndes County (Columbus)) and MSBDR stands ready to assist if additional needs are identified.
