PEARL, Miss. (MEMA) – The Mississippi Emergency Management Agency continues to respond to Ida, which made landfall Sunday, August 29, 2021, near Port Fourchon, Louisiana, as a Category 4 hurricane with sustained winds of 150 mph.
Local officials are conducting damage assessments on the county level. Initial, unconfirmed reports indicate that 164 homes were impacted, six were “destroyed,” and 42 had “major” damage. Additionally, preliminary reports show the hurricane impacted 184 roads and 53 bridges. MEMA is working alongside county EMA officials to help expedite the assessment process, but at this time, damage numbers have not officially been validated.
If residents need immediate resources, they are encouraged to contact their county EMA director. Impacted individuals can also call MEMA’s Hurricane Ida hotline at 1-888-574-3583 from 8 AM to 7 PM on weekdays for assistance. Louisiana residents sheltering in Mississippi can call 1-800-621-3362 for FEMA assistance or 1-800-755-5175 for additional shelter and resource information.
“Roadways are reopening, power is being restored and the supply chain is reenergizing after Hurricane Ida. Mississippi is bouncing back. But, we are hosting a number of our neighbors and we will live up to the name as the Hospitality State to help those that don’t have homes to go back to,” says MEMA Executive Director Stephen McCraney.
MEMA is working directly with impacted counties to assess immediate needs. In addition to the 4,000 bottles of water, 15,000 additional sandbags and 400 tarps sent to impacted counties yesterday, MEMA is distributing 61,488 bottles of water and 200 tarps today.
Through coordination between MEMA’s Business Emergency Operations Center and the private sector, Anheuser-Busch donated over 47,000 cans of water to Mississippians in need. MEMA transported the donated water to Wilkinson county yesterday where it was distributed to impacted residents. Video of the water distribution can be found here.
Mississippians who experienced structural damage to their homes are able to submit damage reports online using MEMA’s self-report tool. Please note that this is strictly a data-collection tool to help conduct damage assessments and NOT an application for financial assistance.
Currently, counties are reporting damages to MEMA, as we work to determine if the state is eligible to request an Individual Assistance Disaster Declaration.
Additional resources and information regarding storm response and recovery can be found on MEMA’s website.
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