Tornadoes and high winds plagued Attala County last Tuesday, and this week can potentially produce even more severe weather. Three tornadoes hit Attala County last week, according to Attala County Emergency Management Director Danny Townsend.
The tornado that damaged parts of Goodman and Holmes Community College stretched 14.5 miles and traveled across Highway 19 North. A second tornado stretched 1.6 miles, passing along Attala Road 4110 over Highway 12, just west of Sallis. A third tornado traveled 3.4 miles, going over Attala Road 4203 to Attala Road 3015.
There were 16 houses and mobile homes that received damage, along with five agricultural buildings.
Townsend said the latter tornadoes could have been secondary storms, branching off from the first one.
“With tornadoes, what they will do is build up strength and the tornado will touch down. Then, it will weaken. As the storm progresses along, it will build strength again until it can produce another tornado,” said Townsend. “It will keep going right up the line. So, it looks like what might have taken place there.”
While subject to change, Townsend said storms this week are expected to occur between 2-8 p.m. on Wednesday, March 30, and the county will be under enhanced risk.
“Of course, that’s subject to change as time gets a little closer, but we are under enhanced risk which could be heavy winds and possible tornadoes.”
Townsend said the warning siren on the Highway 35 bypass is not working and failed last month’s test. The siren did not sound last week during the storms.
“We are on the waiting list to get it repaired, so just as soon as folks can get up here and get us repaired, we will get it back online. But people have got their phones, TVs, radio, The Star-Herald website. They’ve got all sorts of ways, so they should be able to know what’s going on, but we need to let people know that (the siren) is not working.”
Townsend said individuals and families need to have a plan in place and know what actions to take before storms hit the county. There will also be a public location for people to take refuge.
“Most times, we usually have anywhere from 30 to 45 minutes in advance notice. We will open the shelter here at the chancery building, so people can go there," he said. "If they have kids in school and whatnot, they need to think about where they are going to be, who they’re going to be with, and if they’re staying in a substantial structure or not.”
Townsend said he has met with city and county schools to determine if students should be released early on Wednesday, and said he understands it can be difficult on parents.
“We've talked with the superintendents of both county and city schools to try to make the determination whether to let schools out or what time they need to dismiss. We realize it puts a hardship on parents because most of them work five days a week,” he said. “Again, we’ll have to look and make the call. Last week, (schools) let out for weather and it actually came. I remember one day we closed, and the sun shined the whole day.”
Townsend said sometimes schools can be safer for students than their home, but crowd congestion can be a problem. He emphasized that parents should have a plan prepared.
“A lot of times they will be much better in a school building. The only thing about that is the concentration with a large number of people in one place. But you never know where the storm is going to hit. It might hit their home and miss the school. If they stay at school, it may hit the school and they would be safer at home. That’s just stuff we can’t control, and we have to do our best to do the best we can to make the proper decision. Of course, we try to err on the side of caution,” said Townsend. “But they need to have a plan and know how to contact one another if something does happen. Cell phones are not really dependable as far as emergency communications. The network can get busy and can’t get calls through. They need to have a meetup place, or a place designated where they can make contact with children and parents. They need to know where to go and what to do, in other words.”
