Rolling Fork needs to be built back better - not simply rebuilt

This week, Rolling Fork, Mississippi, was virtually erased by a tornado hurling winds of up to 200 miles per hour.

- Jesse Jackson

“It’s bad out here,” Jourdan Hartshorn told ABC News, “It’s literally devastation, Ground Zero.” Twenty-five people are dead in Mississippi and one in nearby Alabama. More storms are forecasted for the coming days.

The scope and swiftness of the destruction were unprecedented. Residents only got a 20-minute warning, if that. The tornado was nearly a mile wide and carved a path of nearly 60 miles on the ground. Houses and gas stations were swept away. Power lines down. People are wandering the streets in shock.

Mississippi is the poorest state in the union, and Rolling Fork is one of the poorer towns in Mississippi. Now, many small farmers and small business people, workers, and retirees have lost virtually everything.

Crisis triggers response. First responders came to save those they could and care for the wounded. Police, fire, and rescue squads from the area rushed in immediately. Volunteers from churches and across the community helped those who were hit. Gov. Tate Reeves declared a state of emergency. President Biden mobilized the federal response. Once more, the Federal Emergency Management Agency was deployed to supply water, food, medicine, and emergency shelter.