Rescuers comb areas hit by Mississippi tornado

YAZOO CITY, Miss. - Rescuers spread out Sunday to find anyone who might be left behind in the rural Mississippi countryside hit hard by a tornado that killed 10 people a day earlier, while others returned to demolished homes to salvage what they could and bulldoze the rubble.

About 40 National Guard troops patrolled devastated Yazoo City in Humvees and in a Blackhawk helicopter. Dozens of volunteer state troopers and other law enforcement officers came from far-flung parts of the state to help.

High winds Saturday ripped roofs off buildings in Yazoo County, a county of about 28,000 people known for blues, catfish and cotton. Gov. Haley Barbour, who grew up there, described "utter obliteration."

Barbour said about 100 homes in Yazoo County and another 38 in Choctaw County are uninhabitable. State emergency officials were still trying to determine how many people had been left homeless, he said. It's unlikely the final tally of damage and other figures will be done before Tuesday.

Mississippi Emergency Management Agency spokesman Greg Flynn said at least three dozen people were hurt and nearly 200 homes damaged in Attala, Holmes, Monroe and Warren counties.

Many people were focused on cleanup, with the buzz of chain saws and tractors rumbling across the region. The scent of splintered pine trees permeated hard-hit Choctaw County as people tried to salvage what they could from mobile homes torn from their blocks. Utility workers in cherry-pickers hovered over police officers directing traffic on a two-lane highway busy with relief workers and volunteers. About 20 student volunteers from Huntsville, Ala., arrived in Yazoo City to help cut away fallen trees.

Not far away, about three dozen members of Hillcrest Baptist Church prayed among warped metal and broken boards. They dug through the rubble to pull out a few chairs and other items. The group stood in a circle and sang. Some held Bibles, some held babies and some held one another.

Meteorologists said it was too soon to tell whether a single long-lasting tornado - or multiple shorter ones - carved the path of destruction from northeastern Louisiana to east-central Mississippi. Hundreds were still without power, and officials said some may be without it until even Wednesday.

The storm killed four in Yazoo County and another in adjacent Holmes County. Farther northeast, in Choctaw County, another five died, including children ages 3 months, 9 and 14.