WASHINGTON, Ill. — Having gone through an EF-4 tornado on Nov. 17, 2013, Washington, Illinois Mayor Gary Manier knows the recovery process for Mississippi and Alabama will be long after deadly tornadoes struck there over the weekend.
“It’s just a tragedy. Dealing with the loss of life is something that’s going to be harder than anything,” Manier told WMBD’s “Greg and Dan Show”.
25 people were killed in the the tornadoes in Mississippi, and another death was reported in Alabama.
Three people died in the wake of the Washington tornado in 2013. The city also rebuilt around 1,000 homes and businesses…a process that was hindered by disputes with FEMA over citywide recovery efforts.
According to the National Weather Service in Jackson, Mississippi, the tornado that hit Rolling Fork, a community of less than 2,000, received a preliminary EF-4 rating.
Manier said towns like Rolling Fork, Mississippi will be clearing debris from the tornadoes for quite a while.
“Until the debris is gone, you can’t recover…I can’t express that enough. So, we used that as a template for us, for all of our town hall meetings and everything. FEMA only allows you to do it for the first three days to get the roads open and things,” Manier said.
