State of emergency declared following Tropical Storm Cristobal, extensive damage evident across Miss. Coast

JACKSON, Miss. (WLOX) - Severe weather from Tropical Storm Cristobal brought destruction across the Mississippi Coast. And although Cristobal wasn’t classified as a hurricane, some South Mississippians said the heavy winds and rain made the storm comparable to a category one hurricane.

In response to the storm damage, Governor Reeves signed a proclamation declaring a state of emergency to assist in recovery efforts.

“As the waters have receded, we have been able to calculate that there was, in fact, extensive damage that this storm did,” Reeves said. “There was no immediate loss of life or immediate injury that we are aware of— or at least that I am aware of at this time— thank God. But, we do know that there is significant damage.”

“Initial county assessments estimate around $5.2 million in damage across Harrison and Hancock Counties,” according to MEMA. These estimates could alter in the next couple of days as damage assessments continue.

“It appears that based on precursory analysis, we will exceed the counties’ and state’s threshold for public assistance. Within the next weeks, we plan to request joint public damage assessments. We are hopeful that public assistance will become approved but there is much work to be done before those requests can be made,” says MEMA Executive Director Greg Michel.

Beaches, utilities, and infrastructure are still in disrepair after Cristobal blew across the Coast, and efforts are ongoing to restore these amenities. Animals were also affected by the storm such as the clipper rails and pelicans.

If you would like to report storm damage to county emergency management agencies, you can do so through MEMA’s self-reporting tool. The links for each county can be found, by clicking here.