Tornado-Tossed Mississippi

By CBSNews.com staff CBSNews.com staff

February 25, 2001 / 2:09 PM EST / CBS

The buzz of chainsaws and the whir of tractors could be heard throughout the city of Pontotoc Monday as families picked their way through shattered homes, trying to salvage possessions that were not swept away by the storm that left this community twisted and torn.

"I've seen bomb devastation from wars, those types of things, man-made. But this type of thing, it's nature," was how Pontotoc resident Bobby Forman described the scene.

The tornado that killed five people here and destroyed or damaged hundreds of homes around the city was part of a vast storm system that swept across the eastern half of the nation late Saturday.

A 2-year-old boy was killed by a tornado in Arkansas, a man died in a flooded creek in Kansas, and four more perished in northwest Texas. In all, the storm system killed 11 and injured dozens more.

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The major damage occurred when a twister cut a 23-mile path across north Mississippi's Pontotoc County, the National Weather Service said. Former county supervisor Keith Herring described the area as looking "like an atomic bomb hit it."

Officials said it could be days before power is restored to the hardest-hit areas.

Although tornado season doesn't officially begin until Friday, reports CBS News Correspondent Mark Strassman, violent storms have already stalked the South this year. Weather experts say it's a return to a traditional winter weather pattern: cold air from the north colliding with warm air from the south and spawning tornadoes.

Damage was also reported in several other areas of the state, including Tallahatchie and Bolivar counties in the Delta, where dozens of houses, farm buildings and other structures were damaged or destroyed. No serious injuries were reported.

The same storm system also dumped more than 20 inches of snow on northern Minnesota. Blowing snow closed hundreds of miles of highways in Minnesota, South Dakota and Iowa, and heavy rain caused flooding in Missouri and Kansas.

The twisters left nearly 300 homes in tatters, reports CBS News orrespondent Lee Cowan.

Pontotoc's hardest-hit area. (AP)SIZE>

The twister that hit Mississippi packed winds of at least 150 miles per hour, at one point cutting two paths through a densely populated area near Tupelo, with very little warning.

"I called the fire department and asked if there was any sirens," said twister victim Barbara Marsh. They told her the sirens "went off 8 minutes ago - you need to seek shelter!"

"We're all alive, and that's all that matters," said Tina McGregor, another Mississippi resident who got a visit from the terrifying funnel cloud.

Authorities and emergency crews worked until dark Sunday, clearing a twisted mass of toppled trees and power lines near downtown Pontotoc.

"There are power lines everywhere," said Police Chief Larry Poole.

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Gov. Ronnie Musgrove left a national governors' conference in Washington Sunday to see the damage. He declared parts of the county a disaster area and was calling for federal assistance.

"It's a tough time for families who have lost loved ones and have had property and homes destroyed," Musgrove said.

Five people were dead on arrival at Pontotoc Hospital. Hospitals in Pontotoc, Tupelo and Memphis treated at least 48 people for injuries.

Len Grice of North Mississippi Medical Center in Tupelo said 11 injured remained at his hospital, including two whose condition had improved to satisfactory. Grimes said one person remained at Pontotoc Hospital and two others were hospitalized in Memphis.

In Arkansas, a 2-year-old boy died Sunday of injuries suffered when a twister destroyed the family's home in Fulton County on Saturday. His parents and a brother were injured.

In College Station, Arkansas, 75-year-old Ira Akins managed to avoid serious injury but saw his home flattene. It's a familiar feeling for Akins, whose home was destroyed by a 1997 twister, and then rebuilt.

The weekend twisters were part of the same storm system that tore through central Texas, uprooting trees, causing electrical fires and closing many roads.

Some of the winds that accompanied the Texas thunderstorms were so fierce, a steel billboard was ripped from its mooring.

Something hit me in the seat and pushed me forward," said motorist Cal Brundett, who was nearby when the billboard came loose. "It must have been the Hand of the Lord to get me out of the way!"

In Pontotoc, Claude Jones surveyed the foundation marking where his home once stood. But he was among the lucky. Though his house was one of the first hit, Jones was spared the fate of his neighbors. Five deaths occurred within a 200-yard swath in his neighborhood.

Said Jones: "Everyone from this point to the curb is dead."