At the time the EF-4 tornado hit Rolling Fork in late-March of 2023, roughly 40% of residents in Sharkey County were renters, according to data compiled in the 2020 Census.
Without insurance to pay for damage to their homes themselves, many were left in the lurch, traveling as far as Greenville or Vicksburg to live out of hotel rooms, or to stay with relatives.
One such survivor is Cortez Gates, who was found lying under a nearby tree after his Anguilla home was destroyed by the storm.
Michael McEwen
Anguilla
Now nearly two years later, he and about a dozen others have finally been able to return home to the Dukes Mobile Home Park, just off the historic Highway 61, thanks to donations pooled by several private citizens and community organizations.
And for the first time ever, they're now homeowners.
“It means everything because he lost everything,” said Barbara Gates, Cortez’s aunt. “It gave him back everything he lost, and is the end of a long process.”
The donation of several pre-fabricated, brand new mobile homes was made possible by a large contribution from retired Brigadier General Samuel Nichols, Jr. and his wife, Linda, as well as the Community Foundation of Northwest Mississippi and Pam Chatman, executive director of the community group Boss Lady Economic Planning and Development.
Conducted through the Federal Emergency Management Agency, which is still leading recovery efforts in the region, the donations allow the seven households to own the new homes permanently.
Chatman says it's a key step in the long, sometimes complicated process of recovery from such a destructive storm.
“We’re also providing them with clothes and food, paying their utilities, and it’s just great to be able to help them get back on their feet,” Chatman told MPB News. “In a rural area like this, it takes a lot of evaluation of what their needs are – do they have a place to sleep? Trying to find stoves, refrigerators and beds. It takes a lot of work on the ground to make sure this recovery is successful.”
So far more than 20 homes, valued at close to $1.2 million total, have been provided to displaced families in Rolling Fork and Anguilla.