Thunderstorms, possible tornado, damages area; Natchez-Adams Schools canceled

Published 6:01 am Thursday, November 1, 2018

NATCHEZ — A strong line of thunderstorms which included a possible tornado ripped through the Miss-Lou early Thursday leaving damaged houses, downed trees and shaken residents in its wake.

Damage was still being assessed before day break, but reports included a number of down trees, tree limbs and damage in the Morgantown community.

The Natchez-Adams School District canceled classes for today.

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At 6 a.m., Entergy reported more than 3,000 customers — mostly in the Morgantown area and northern sections of the city of Natchez were without power. Please use common sense and stay away from down power lines as they could still be energized.

Adams County Sheriff’s Office deputies had to rescue a child from a house that a tree had fallen onto on Magnolia Avenue and trapped the child in the child’s bedroom, Adams County Sheriff Travis Patten said. The child was later taken to the hospital by ambulance.

Entergy Customer Service Manager Tim Runnels said most of the power outages in Natchez are from College Street to Stiers Lane, along Martin Luther King Jr. and all of Morgantown Road with a few scattered outages in the county along U.S. 61 North.

“There are a couple rooftops that have blown off and trees and power lines down all over,” Runnels said.

Runnels said 4,186 customers are without power. Entergy had about 15 workers scouting for damages Thursday morning, and a crew of approximately 77 people working on repairs with more from outside the city coming to help.

“It’s hard to say how long it will take to completely restore power,” Runnels said. “Right now we’re in the identifying mode to see what repairs are needed.”

Runnels said the crew would have a clearer view of the extent of the damages and the time they would take to repair them by the end of the day Thursday.

He said the city’s water well is still running off a generator, but it is important that power be restored as soon as possible.

Runnels said people should exercise caution around any loose wires or downed polls and to notify the company if any damages are spotted.

“If you do come across a wire that is down, do not touch it,” he said. “Notify your utility company and stay away. We don’t want anyone getting hurt by this storm.”

 

“We are asking everyone to stay off the roadways for now in the Morgantown area so the crews can clear the roadways and work to get power restored,” Patten said. “We have deputies, the volunteer firefighters and the search and rescue team outstanding by at different locations all over the county with downed trees and power lines. We appreciate them all for their service during this time of need.”