It’s been a long week here in Winston County. The news obviously dominated by the weather. We have to realize that we have been blessed when we start making comparisons to our neighbors in surrounding counties; damages and injuries and death in almost every corner. Wednesday was the worst. The last count I saw was 165 possible tornados across the Southeast and approaching 300 deaths, more than thirty of those right here in Mississippi. The little town of Smithville was all but wiped out and across the state line, Tuscaloosa & Birmingham had the highest death toll and property damage.
We did have our problems right here. Wednesday morning brought damage to my neck of the woods as some neighbors in the Evergreen & Poplar Flat communities dealt with downed trees and the resulting damages to their homes. But it was the afternoon storms that dealt a heavy blow not only across the South but here in our immediate area. A significant tornado made its path through Neshoba, Kemper and into the southwest corner of Winston County. The storm devastated the small community of Preston where three sisters with Winston County ties were killed. The path of the tornado made its way along County Line Road and surrounding area, across Hwy 397 and along the Shuqualak Road. Multiple homes were damaged in the County and some injuries occurred - But - it could have been much worse as the community south of Nanih Waiya was sparsely populated. As I surveyed the area and the path of the tornado, I realized just how powerful this thing was and how bad it could have been if this had hit a few miles further north and west.
The wrecked homes and property were a hard thing to see. It’s difficult not to be moved when you think of people’s lives turned (literally) upside down. But I saw something that affected me even more than the debris piles, turned over vehicles and missing roofs.
The morning after the storm , I saw yards full of cars and pickup trucks, people swarming rooftops covered in blue tarps, the sounds of hammers, saws, tractors and backhoes as people helped their neighbors, friends and family start to pull their lives back together. I saw the utility crews working methodically to restore power and I even saw a few smiles as people waved as we drove by.
I didn’t see FEMA, the Red Cross or a news crew from CNN; just people helping each other without waiting for the government or an aid agency to do it for them. In a very short time, homes will be repaired or rebuilt, lives will resume and only a few scars on the landscape and some personal stories will remain from the 2011 tornado. It’s good to be from the South -It’s good to be from Mississippi & it’s good to be from Winston County.
William McCully
