Madison Alderman is in a coma after suffering a stroke

Madison Alderman Warren Strain suffered a stroke Monday and is in a coma.

Strain won an alderman at-large seat in Madison in 2014; however, he has been a well-known public figure in Mississippi for many years.

In 2000, Strain became director of public affairs for the Mississippi Department of Public Safety, which includes a diverse group of agencies including the Mississippi Bureau of Investigation, the State Crime Lab and the Mississippi Highway Patrol among others. He was instrumental in bringing the Amber Alert system to Mississippi in 2002.

Prior to his tenure with MDPS, Strain was public affairs director for the Mississippi Gaming Commission starting in 1994 after a successful 18-year career as a television journalist.

Sandra Strain, his wife, wrote on Facebook Tuesday that her husband was scheduled for “simple back surgery,” but had a stroke before they went to the hospital.

“And just like that in a split few minutes everything in my life that’s right that means the world to me fell apart in a blink of an eye,” she wrote, adding, “Please please pray with all you have because it’s your prayers and your love that will see us through.”