Long Beach, Pass Christian residents clean up damage from tornadoes

LONG BEACH, Miss. (WLOX) - As Tropical Storm Claudette made landfall in South Mississippi, confirmed tornadoes left a path of damage behind in Harrison County.

The National Weather Service confirmed two EF-0 tornadoes with winds between 70-75mph spawned Saturday morning in Long Beach and Pass Christian.

On Saturday, the sounds of chainsaws buzzing could be heard on Yucca Dr. with residents cleaning up and making repairs following the storm.

About 2:30 a.m. Mark Treadaway got a rude wake up call.

“I could see the walls move and when I came outside I could tell,” said Treadaway.

Treadaway just got finished repairing his roof from Hurricane Zeta and now he’ll have to do it all again, but he did have help. Associate Pastor at First United Methodist Church Long Beach Ben Barlow, along with several church members, spent their Saturday putting a tarp on Treadaway’s home.

“When I got here I was shocked to see the damage, I had no idea,” said Barlow. “We came over and a couple of guys from the church were ready and willing, they’re up there tarping the roof. We follow Jesus and he serves people and we feel like we should do that and so that’s what we do.”

According to NWS, the tornado dropped down near Twin Lakes Boulevard.

Along with the roof damage, Treadaway’s neighbor’s camper blew into his yard and a large tree fell on those neighbor’s house. Retired firefighter Scott Dubuisson who lives in the neighborhood got up early to put his chainsaw to use.

“Everybody on the street had tree damage so I was out here this morning helping the power company get the right away cleared so they could get the power reinstalled,” said Dubuisson. “It’s what neighbors do. Unfortunately, we don’t all know our neighbors until sometimes like this we all get to come together, neighbors help neighbors.”

Even though Mark Treadaway would rather not have to clean up from another storm, he knows it’s part of life and he’s thankful for his neighbor’s help.

“Anytime you deal with bad weather, welcome to South Mississippi,” said Treadaway. “It’s just part of what we deal with.”

Across Pineville Road from Yucca Drive, a giant hole was left in the roof and the chimney shifted at a home in the Mossy Oaks subdivision.

The owner was out of town during the storm and just moved into the house this past March. Neighbors were able to cover the hole using their own plywood and tarp.

“This is a very small street,” said Philip Wright, Long Beach resident. “There’s 12 houses on this street. We all know each other, we all have security cameras, and we talk. We just make sure everyone is informed and that everyone knows what’s going on. We take care of each other, that’s what neighborhoods should do.”

Also in Long Beach at Reeves Elementary School, an awning covering the student drop-off area was blown off.

Emergency officials conducted damage assessments throughout Harrison County on Saturday.

Not only did Long Beach residents feel Claudette’s impact, but residents in Pass Christian were also left with a lot to put back together.

The roof ripped off of a home on Debbie Circle in the Camille Village apartment complex. The porch awning collapsed. Decorative porch columns got tossed into the yard.

The tenants are on vacation in Florida and learned about the roof, porch and window damage through a FaceTime call. We were there when April Barnes made that call to her sister.

“So if I was at home, I would probably have had a heart attack,” said Barnes. “Yes you probably would have because I’m telling you, it’s down. Like your window is out. The whole porch is down. The last time it was just posters. This time it’s the whole porch. Literally the whole porch. Your whole top is gone.”

Storm damage in Pass Christian also included a handful of flooded roads. That EF-0 tornado also damaged a home across Pineville Road in the Mossy Oak subdivision.

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