The wind howled, the rain fell hard and Clarksdale took a beating Sunday afternoon.
But as skies cleared about 8 p.m. that night, it was discovered that no one had been seriously hurt in a storm packing sustained winds of 69 miles an hour and gusts up to 74 mph.
Coahoma County Emergency Management Director Charles Hale said Wednesday that power was still out to more than 280 residents, but roads had been cleared and the cleanup had begun.
“We have done our initial assessment and we’ve got 29 businesses and residents with damage,” said Hale. “We are still putting the numbers together and are urging people who have had damage to call our office at 662-624-3041 and speak to EMA coordinator Yolanda Lester.”
Coahoma County Supervisors declared a state of emergency on Tuesday, and Hale said paperwork turned into his office will help the county recoup expenses of disaster relief and the cleanup.
“As of Wednesday, we have only had two catastrophic incidents and they were two unoccupied trailers that were turned over on Richie Street,” said Hale. “The National Weather Service has called it high winds and we did experience a down draft.”
It appears the Brickyard took the worst hit with power still out mid-week.
Linemen from Clarksdale Public Utility, Entergy and Coahoma Electric were working around the clock to restore power. Contract linemen were also brought in to assist with repairs.
Thunder clouds could be seen coming out of the Northwest Sunday afternoon and the weather was hot. As the clouds built up, they touched cold weather aloft. It appears as the storm front moved across The River the clouds collapsed on Clarksdale.
There were reports of corn field damage in Arkansas and south of Clarksdale, but only minor damage to crops locally.
“The sirens were not turned and that is the county’s policy,” said Hale. “We don’t want to turn the sirens on every time the wind gets up. We only turn them on when a tornado is eminent or has been spotted on the ground.”
Hale said the county will now face a heatwave this weekend and cooling centers have been opened at the Expo Building on Wildcat Drive and the City Auditorium downtown.
Hale said the cooling centers will be open 24-hours a day as long as the heatwave continues. He did point out the cooling shelters do not have beds and, as the name implies, they are places people can come to cool off, get water, charge their phone and get out of the heat.
“We’re sort of getting a one-two punch with the storm and now the heat,” said Hale. “Red Cross is on standby and we can help people deal with the weather.
“A lot of resources have been mobilized and we’ll get through this,” he added. “We just ask people to be patient and help their neighbor if they can.”
