By Baptist Message staff
SIMSBORO, La. (LBM) – For the second time in eight days, a powerful line of thunderstorms caused power outages, wind damage and flash flooding in Louisiana on Wednesday, March 30.
Louisiana Baptist Disaster Relief state coordinator Stan Statham told the Baptist Message teams were assessing the damage Thursday.
First Baptist Church, Simsboro, lost a section of the roof and some shingles off its children’s building, and had some awning damaged, according to Pastor Jason Cole.
First Baptist Church, Simsboro, lost a section of the roof and some shingles off its children’s building, and had some awning damaged. FBC Simsboro photo
“Pray that God opens the hearts of people to receive the Gospel as we share the Gospel with them,” Cole said.
Elsewhere in Simsboro, a tree crushed three cars and damaged a house, according to John Cowling, ministry director at Rolling Hills Ministries in Ruston. Assessors from the DR team at Rolling Hills said two individuals inside the home escaped injury.
The National Weather Service in Vicksburg confirmed a tornado was responsible for severe structural damage to Tallulah Academy.
The Academy lost its roof, and the gymnasium was exposed to the elements, according to the Vicksburg (Mississippi) Post. No one was inside the school when the storm struck.
The weather service said the tornado touched down at 1:55 p.m. between Monroe and Tallulah, near U.S. 80. The tornado moved east, damaged the academy before jumping the Mississippi River and wreaking havoc in Mississippi.
Donations are being accepted to help with repair efforts at Tensas State Bank in Tallulah.
KNOE-TV in Monroe reported that the Dollar General store in Hodge was blown apart. Though customers were inside, no one was injured.
Near Powhatan in Natchitoches Parish, a family was trapped inside their mobile home when a tree fell on it. None of the family members suffered any injuries, according to the Natchitoches Parish Sheriff’s Office.
Damage also was reported at the St. Francis of Assi Catholic Church Rectory in Powhatan.
In Melrose, a tree fell and blocked La. Hwy 484 just south of St. Augustine Catholic Church.
High winds ripped a home off its foundation in Roseland, but everyone in the home was unharmed, according to WAFB-TV in New Orleans.
The National Weather Service reported a tornado was spotted around 8:15 p.m. Wednesday moving northeast in the New Orleans East area toward St. Tammany Parish.
A number of down limbs and power lines for a possible tornado closed U.S. Hwy 190 for several hours according to WWL-TV. The highway was reopened by Thursday morning.
The strong storms with 50 mile-per-hour winds pushed through the state on Wednesday as part of a long line of storms that wreaked havoc on the Midwest and South.
