Looking back on 2011 Louisville tornado and moving forward
Just like that their lives were changed. "I couldn't go back to work because I fractured my back and just to see my grandmother's house gone. She didn't have anywhere to live," Jones said.
LOUISVILLE, Miss. (WCBI) – It was a day that changed everything in Winston County.
With the storm on the way, Kenisha White Jones and her grandmother took shelter.
Their house took a direct hit.
“I looked out the window and saw everything get white. So I got in the closet and as soon as she closed the closet door seemed like a sweep, everything in the house just started hitting me in the back, just hitting us. And when it all quit, we were out in the yard and a truck had rolled over and if it had rolled over again it would’ve been on top of me and her,” Jones said.
Just like that their lives were changed.
“I couldn’t go back to work because I fractured my back and just to see my grandmother’s house gone. She didn’t have anywhere to live,” Jones said.
That is where recovery groups stepped in.
Long-term Community Recovery Committee Winston Strong was formed.
“We started Winston Strong during the recovery period and we started training case managers to help people and for the next 2 years, we were in the rebuild,” Dowd said.
They were instrumental in the rebuild process, including for Jones. They built an addition to her home for her grandmother to live in.
Former Winston Strong Executive Director Reverend Mike Dowd said he thinks the community has come back stronger.
“I’m proud to live in the community of Winston County where we rebuilt. This community came back stronger than it went into it and that just says a great deal about the character of the community and the people that live in it,” Dowd said.
Reverend Dowd said Winston Strong helped rebuild 23 homes and repair over 60 others.
