MEMA responds to the winter storm

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Editor’s note: Please if you have storm related damages please submit photos and information to Tracy Porter at Warren County Emergency Management via email at Traceyp@co.warren.ms.us or contact her at 601-636-1544. Your cooperation is greatly appreciated.

The Mississippi Emergency Management Agency continues to respond to the winter weather event that began to impact the state around February 14, 2021. Statewide, there have been dangerous freezing temperatures, ice on roads and bridges and multiple power outages affecting a majority of Mississippians.  On February 19, 2021, Neshoba County Emergency Management Agency, reported to MEMA that one fatality occurred, earlier this week, due to a motor vehicle accident. We continue to ask residents not to drive on roadways until the ice has completely thawed and our temperatures reach above freezing, which should be this weekend.

The following official damage reports have been submitted to MEMA by the following counties:

• Copiah County – 2 businesses affected
• Grenada County – 10 homes affected; 1 business affected
• Marshall County – 1 home affected; 5 businesses affected
• Smith County – 1 business affected
• Warren County – 2 homes affected
• Washington County – 15,000 homes affected because of water supply issues

*These are preliminary numbers and could change throughout the assessment process

Because temperatures will reach dangerous cold levels again tonight, MEMA is asking residents that have experienced prolonged power outages this week to seek shelter at a county or city-run warming center in your area. The full list of those shelters and safe rooms is here.

As road conditions improve, MEMA will continue fulfilling supply requests from the counties.

These are the current resource requests MEMA has delivered or in progress:

• Water – 60,480 bottles of water
• Disaster Reservist Personnel – 14
• Generators to power public facilities – 2

If residents have an emergency, they are urged to call 911. If there are immediate unmet needs, MEMA encourages you to contact your county emergency management agency. A list of those county contacts can be found here. Resources must be requested through the county EMA to be submitted to MEMA for resource coordination.