TUPELO – St. James Parish experienced major damage from the rash of tornados that swept across the state on Monday, April 28. The church, offices and center suffered roof and other damage.

According to Father Lincoln Dall, pastor of St. James, a tree now occupies his office. Many businesses familiar to parishioners in Tupelo were destroyed, including Vanelli’s Restaurant.

As of press time the Deanery V confirmation scheduled for May 3, at St. James was still expected to be celebrated in the parish life center. A final decision was to be made on Wednesday, April 30, after emergency personnel restored power to the facility.
Other areas around the diocese suffered major damage due to a reported dozen tornados which touched down across Central and Northeastern Mississippi.

Winston County and the city of Louisville was hit very hard with unfortunately several fatalities reported. Even the local hospital was not spared from nature’s wrath. Sacred Heart Church did not sustain damage, however, two parish families lost their homes during the outbreak of violent weather.

Columbus Annunciation School was closed on Tuesday, April 29, because of lack of power. Debris littered the property, but buildings only sustained minor damage.
As another round of storms was predicted for Tuesday afternoon, the diocese has asked the faithful to keep those affected by the storm in their prayers and to continue to pray for safety from violent weather during this spring.