Looking Back: Group helps with continuing recovery efforts in Moss Point

Looking back one year later at how help continued to make its way into the City of Moss Point.

WXXV News 25’s Austin Lindsey went out to Moss Point in November 2023 to get the story on how a group traveled 17 hours to help the citizens of Moss Point in their recovery efforts.

Help in Moss Point continues after the June tornado.

“2023 has been really hard so I know 2024 got to be better. Didn’t nobody get killed, that’s a good thing because with both of those incidents, we could have had five funerals in one year.”

Loria Adams lost her Moss Point home in the June tornado and then tragedy struck again months later when she lost her childhood home after a house fire.

Disaster can sometimes bring unity as one Amish group months later is helping Moss Point residents settle into their homes. “We’re here, going to be here for about to March 31st. They’re rebuilding houses. We got several houses that we’re rebuilding and remodeling. So, we’re working really hard trying to get people back in their homes.”

Mennonite Disaster Services along with the Jackson County Long Term Committee connected Loria with the Amish of Eastern Ohio.

They arrived Monday afternoon after a 17-hour drive and they’ve been working ever since clearing the property and rebuilding her home from the ground up. David Brown said, “The homeowner provides, if they’ve got FEMA money or any insurance money, they turn it over so that we can buy the material and all that. Then, if they are short there’s funds that have been donated to help buy the rest of the materials for the home. That’s pretty much all a homeowner has to do.”

“Oh, I was so happy. I said ‘thank you, Lord.’ They sent some help. I guest they’ve gone put it back and it’s all gone work out and we’ll move back over here and start our life. Now, we staying from house to house now.”

The MDS plan to stay until March 2024 as they rebuild several homes working free of labor.

Donations are still needed to close the funding gap for the remaining families in case management.

You can assist the Jackson County Long Term Recovery Committee by donating through the United Way of Jackson and George Counties.