LOUIN, Miss. – At first light, residents emerged from their homes to understand the widespread destruction of a suspected tornado. The storm hit just before midnight on Sunday.
One person died and nearly two dozen more were injured from the tornado, according to the Mississippi Emergency Management Agency.
The drone video shows home after home reduced to piles of rubble. Some brick buildings remain standing but without roofs. The potential tornado pulled doors and windows from the homes, leaving the contents of lives spilling from the empty openings.
1 DEAD AFTER LIKELY TORNADO CAUSES DAMAGE IN LOUIN, MISSISSIPPI, SUNDAY NIGHT
Winds blew away a chicken farm. The white dots covering the brown sections in the video are actual chickens, many of which survived.
SEVERE WEATHER THREAT CONTINUES IN SOUTHEAST ON MONDAY AS FLOODING CONCERNS GROW
The drone follows the path of flattened homes. Trees appear to have been snapped at the trunks and lofted acres away. Any trees still standing were stripped of leaves.
Several confirmed tornadoes hit the state overnight in Rankin and Jasper Counties, said Governor Tate Reeves in a statement. The hardest hit areas were Louin to Turnerville and Florence.
“Emergency crews are doing additional SAR (search and rescue) missions and damage assessments in both areas now – with drones in those areas where it is impossible to get by vehicle due to downed power lines,” announced Governor Tate Reeves over social media. “Multiple damaged homes and road closings in both communities.”
The NWS is surveying the damage to determine if it was caused by a tornado or straight–line winds.