CRLC replaces first house destroyed by tornado
Everything changed overnight for Columbus native Greg Mixon, when the Feb. 23, 2019, tornado hit his house on Seventh Avenue North.
“One day you have a house, and the next day you don’t,” he said.
Easter storms sweep South, killing at least 20 people
Strong storms pounded the Deep South on Sunday, killing at least six people in south Mississippi and damaging up to 300 homes and other buildings in northern Louisiana. Storms continued to batter the South overnight, with much of the region under flash flood, tornado and thunderstorm warnings and watches.
Tornadoes hit Tennessee, killing at least 19 people
Tornadoes ripped across Tennessee early Tuesday, shredding at least 40 buildings and killing at least 19 people. One of the twisters caused severe damage across downtown Nashville, destroying the stained glass in a historic church and leaving hundreds of people homeless.
‘It still ain’t quite right yet’: Shady Street slowly bounces back from 2019 tornado
It was cold Friday afternoon, but Willie Peterson was glad to be back to work all the same.
Climbing to the top few steps of a ladder leaned against the side of a house on Shady Street, he surveyed how well the roof work had held up to recent days of significant rainfall that finally ceased late Thursday afternoon. Then coming down from the ladder, Peterson began preparing for his next tasks.
Officials reflect on devastating Feb. 23, 2019, tornado
Cindy Lawrence said the night of Feb. 23, 2019, is one she will never forget.
Lowndes County was under a tornado watch that Saturday afternoon, and as director of the county’s Emergency Management Agency, Lawrence was at her downtown office at about 5:15 when the EF-3 tornado first touched down.
Residents in west Lowndes reflect upon Columbus tornado, express need for storm shelter
When a storm passed through Crawford in the 1990s, Lucy Henley had nowhere else to hide.
Staying in her mobile home on Tolan Street with seven children at the time, she said, she could feel the bottom of her home lifted off the ground by the gusty winds.
Storm recovery projects making progress on Northside
It’s been almost a year since Greg Mixon got to go home to his house on Seventh Avenue North.
The house, which had been in his family for decades and belonged to his mother before him, was destroyed beyond repair in the February 2019 tornado that roared through central and northeast Columbus.
Determined to rebuild in Northside: Homeowners apply with available aid programs to replace homes destroyed by February storm
It’s been seven months since an EF-3 tornado swept through the north side of Columbus damaging or destroying an estimated 300 homes and businesses. Mississippi Emergency Management Agency inspectors ruled 117 of those homes were in an “unlivable” state.
For every new roof that dots the landscape, there are a half-dozen more homes that remain, battered and abandoned.
FEMA to allocate funds for individual assistance after tornado
Five months after initially ruling there would be no federal funds provided to private property owners in Lowndes County whose homes or businesses were damaged by the Feb. 23 tornado and flooding, the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) announced that those funds will be available after all.
Six months on: Long-term recovery efforts still underway after Feb. 23 tornado
Deundrae Cockrell stepped onto the front porch of his parents’ home on Shady Street, shaking his head sadly as he looked at what was left of the brick pathway and low brick wall that fronts the home.
Storm claim hikes CMSD insurance by $35K
The total annual premium for Columbus Municipal School District’s property and casualty insurance rose about $35,000 due to the insurance claim the district filed after a Feb. 23 tornado severely damaged the former Hunt High School and caused minor damage at a few other buildings.
Local committee responds to tornado
Community Recovery of Lowndes County has begun taking applications for assistance, as well as volunteers, to help those affected by the Feb. 23 tornado that did millions of dollars of damage to public and private property in Columbus and Lowndes County.
City to issue bond for storm recovery
Columbus city councilmen voted unanimously to begin the process of issuing a $5 million general obligation bond to fund recovery from a Feb. 23 tornado and subsequent flooding that did $9.3 million worth of damage to city property.
MEMA appeal for federal aid to private property owners continues
Some delays are better than others.
Last week, the Mississippi Emergency Management Agency (MEMA) was granted an extension on its planned appeal of a Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) assessment that denied financial support for people who lost private property during the Feb. 23 tornado in Columbus.
Unlicensed workers injured when house collapses
Two people were taken to Baptist Memorial Hospital-Golden Triangle after a house they were working on collapsed Friday morning.
Local architect Major Andrews thought in-kind services would earn him no-bid contract for Hunt
For the past six months, architect Major Andrews has worked with the Columbus Municipal School District planning improvements at the Hunt campus, giving him the impression he would continue those services after a Feb. 23 tornado badly damaged the building on 20th Street North.
‘We haven’t given up on getting individual assistance’: MEMA plans to appeal denial of federal relief for private property affected by tornado, flooding
Two months after the EF-3 tornado that cut a swath of destruction through north and east Columbus, blue tarps still dot the landscape in some of the poorest neighborhoods in the city. They are telltale signs of a waiting game property owners are playing before repairs can be made.
‘Devastation’ as tornado rips through Louisiana town
A tornado killed two people as it tore through the northern Louisiana city of Ruston early Thursday, sending trees into houses, ripping roofs off buildings and causing a local public university to cancel classes, officials said.
Lowndes County declared federal disaster area in response to Feb. 23 tornado
President Donald Trump has declared Lowndes and six other counties in Mississippi federal disaster areas in response to a Feb. 23 EF-3 tornado and subsequent flooding, according to a Mississippi Emergency Management Agency press release issued Tuesday.
Tornado debris cleanup begins despite lack of FEMA funding
Columbus city councilmen voted during a special-call meeting Tuesday to begin storm debris monitoring and cleanup following a Feb. 23 tornado that damaged parts of north and east Columbus.