Watch: Drone video shows recovery process a month after deadly Mississippi tornado
MEMA says state crews have removed over 535,000 cubic yards of debris so far, with the process still underway. "It’s a long road to recovery but the strength and perseverance of these communities are evident," MEMA officials wrote in a post accompanying the video's release.
Drone video shows recovery efforts one month after deadly Mississippi tornado
Crews have removed over 535,000 cubic yards of tornado debris in the month since an EF-4 tornado tore through the towns of Rolling Fork and Silver City, Mississippi. (Video courtesy: Mississippi Emergency Management Agency.)
ROLLING FORK, Miss. – It's been a month since a deadly tornado tore through Mississippi, killing 21 people amid a 100-plus-mile path of destruction.
One of the hardest-hit towns was Rolling Fork, where entire neighborhoods were left destroyed by the EF-4 twister.
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But the town has begun the healing and cleanup process. Mississippi's Emergency Management Agency (MEMA) released drone video filmed Tuesday showing what the damaged areas of Rolling Fork and nearby Silver City look like today, compared to the destruction in the immediate aftermath of the tornado on March 26.
MEMA says state crews have removed over 535,000 cubic yards of debris so far, with the process still underway.
A truck is seen driving down a street littered with debris after a deadly tornado in Rolling Fork, Mississippi.
(Robert Ray / FOX Weather)
About 625 storm victims are still living in hotels, and FEMA has provided $7.1 million in disaster assistance to those affected, MEMA says.
"It’s a long road to recovery but the strength and perseverance of these communities are evident," MEMA officials wrote in a post accompanying the video's release.
Radar analysis by FOX Weather showed that one twister had been on the ground for at least 53 miles, from the first debris detection near Rolling Fork about 8 p.m. CDT to just after 9 p.m. CDT northeast of Tchula. By 10 p.m. CDT, the tornado had been on the ground for about 80 miles.
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Radar indicated the tornado may have weakened as the storm reached Winona, but a second tornado appeared to form from the same supercell before slamming into Amory and Smithville and moving into Alabama, likely pushing the overall path of tornado damage to more than 100 miles.
Radar scans estimated debris was tossed as high as 20,000 feet into the air over a 1.5-mile-wide swirl that tore across the state at 65 mph.