Highlights:
· On March 24th, severe thunderstorms developed across the Lower Mississippi Valley and into the Tennessee Valley. The Storm Prediction Center reported at least 12 tornadoes and 84 high wind events with most impacts occurring within Mississippi, Alabama, and Tennessee.
· The National Weather Service (NWS) Jackson Field Office reported that the Rolling Fork/Silver City tornado has received a preliminary EF-4 rating and the Blackhawk/Winona tornado has received a preliminary EF-3 rating.
· NWS Jackson deployed survey teams on March 25th to begin to confirm the strength of these tornadoes.
· The State of Mississippi has confirmed 25 fatalities and at least 55 people injured. The fatalities occurred in Sharkey, Humphreys, Carroll, and Monroe counties.
· Search and rescue efforts are continuing in the impacted areas.
· At least 2,000 homes have been impacted.
· Three emergency shelters are currently open.
· The Sharkey County Hospital is fully operational.
· The Sharkey County Issaquena Nursing Home in Rolling Fork is without power. All their patients were transferred to other healthcare facilities.
· State Response:
o The State Emergency Operations Center (EOC) is partially activated.
o The Governor issued a State of Emergency on March 25th for all the counties affected.
o The Mississippi State Department of Health has been activated.
o A mobile hospital has been established at the Sharkey County Armory by the Pafford Ambulance Service.
o The Mississippi Division of Medicaid has enacted its state of emergency to allow patients impacted by the storm to receive early refills and additional prescriptions above the monthly limit.
o The State’s Department of Mental Health has deployed the Region 6 Mobile Crisis Response Team.
o Five locations have been established to accept physical donations for survivors.
o Volunteers are being directed not to self-deploy but to register with Volunteer Mississippi here.
· Federal Response:
o The Region 4 Watch Center is at Enhanced Watch.
o The Regional Response Coordination Center has been rostered but not activated.
o The Regional Incident Management Assistance Team has deployed to the State EOC.
o A Major Disaster Declaration has been approved as of March 26th. Residents in Carroll, Humphreys, Monroe, and Sharkey counties can apply for assistance through the Individual Assistance program.
Sources:
· FEMA Daily Operation Briefing, March 26
· Mississippi Emergency Management Agency Twitter Page
· FEMA Twitter Page
· NWS Jackson Twitter Page
Resources
Mississippi Self-Reporting Links by Counties Website
FEMA, Mississippi Severe Storms, Straight-line Winds, and Tornadoes: DR-4697-MS