Holley Cochran / The Prentiss Headlight—County engineer Les Dungan begins the process of opening bids for the storm debris monitoring and removal at the board of supervisors meeting.

President Donald J. Trump has approved a major disaster declaration for Mississippi

Federal disaster assistance is now available to the state of Mississippi to supplement recovery efforts in the areas affected by severe storms, straight-line winds, tornadoes and flooding from March 14-15, 2025.

The President’s action makes federal funding available to affected individuals in Jefferson Davis County. Assistance can include grants for temporary housing and home repairs, low-cost loans to cover uninsured property losses and other programs to help individuals and business owners recover from the effects of the disaster.

Federal funding is also available to state and eligible local governments and certain nonprofit organizations on a cost-sharing basis for emergency work and the repair or replacement of facilities damaged by the severe storms, straight-line winds, tornadoes and flooding in Jefferson Davis County.

After the federal declaration, the Jefferson Davis County Board of Supervisors was able to move forward with debris removal and monitoring. A total of five proposals was submitted to the board for debris removal. Looks Great Services from Columbia was selected.

Six proposals for monitoring were submitted and Mapco Services from Gulfport was selected.

The cleanup process is expected to begin next week.

The Jefferson Davis County recovery center is located at Granby Volunteer Fire Department on 957 East St. Stephens Road in Prentiss.

This location will be open Monday through Saturday from 8 a.m. until 6 p.m.

Individual assistance, as well as assistance for business owners that might have been affected will be available.

The Small Business Administration will also be at this location. Homeowners with small businesses are eligible to apply for a small business loan.

Residents and business owners in Jefferson Davis County who sustained losses during these storms can also apply for assistance by registering online at www.DisasterAssistance.gov or by calling 1-800-621-3362 or 1-800-462-7585 (TTY) for the hearing and speech impaired. The disaster number is DR-4874.

“Even if you have applied online, please come in person as more in-depth answers can be provided,” said Jefferson Davis County Emergency Management Director Jocelyn Ragsdale.