NATCHEZ — Hurricane Gustav started quietly but came to a Katrina-like roar across Adams County and Southwest Mississippi Monday night.

At approximately 8:30 p.m. all five electrical transmission lines that power Adams County were lost, Entergy Customer Service Manager Stephen Caruthers said.

“This hit us worse than Katrina,” Caruthers said. “We are like south Louisiana trying to deal with Katrina three years ago. People just need to be patient.”

Work to restore electricity did not begin Monday night, due to high winds. Caruthers said it might begin this morning.

At least 20,000 customers were without power in the area.

Downtown, the facade of an unused building on Commerce Street collapsed and the roof of a house on Union Street landed in the street.

But crews worked through the night to remove limbs from roadways, and Police Chief Mike Mullins said he expected the city to be drivable today.

Still, Adams County Civil Defense Director Stan Owens urged any non-essential personnel to stay off the roads today, unless absolutely necessary, so that cleanup of downed lines and limbs could begin.

“If you see a power line down stay away from it,” Owens said.

The Southwest Mississippi Electric Power Association also reported 5,250 outages in Wilkinson, Adams, Franklin and Jefferson counties.

Caruthers, and a spokeswoman with the Southwest, said it could be up to three days before power is restored to the impacted areas.

Meteorologist Ed Agre with the National Weather Service in Jackson said heavy rains and high winds will continue throughout the early morning hours today.

However, Agre said the winds should be rapidly diminishing in the afternoon — but not the rain.

Agre said the Natchez area could receive as much as an inch of rain in the evening on Tuesday and up to a half inch on Wednesday.

Mullins and Adams County Sheriff Ronny Brown both said the fallen trees accounted for nearly all of their calls on Monday evening.

Mullins said one large tree closed both eastbound lanes on John R. Junkin Drive.

Mullins also said fallen trees closed a section of Auburn Avenue and Martin Luther King Jr. Street.

The Mississippi Department of Transportation also reported road closures on U.S. 48 West in Amite County, U.S. 556 in Franklin County and U.S. 552 and 550 in Jefferson County.

Mullins reported no injuries.