The city of Greenwood dropped its mask mandate last week, and the Leflore County Board of Supervisors decided in a 3-2 vote Monday to do the same, effective immediately.
“We want to follow through with the city with lifting the mask mandate, but we are no way over with the pandemic,” said the board’s president, District 2 Supervisor Reginald Moore.
Noting that the COVID-19 pandemic is an ongoing situation, Moore said people can still wear masks at their discretion. He also recommended continuing social distancing.
Although masks no longer are mandatory within county buildings, temperature checks will still be conducted at the courthouse.
District 3 Supervisor Anjuan Brown and District 5 Supervisor Robert Collins voted against lifting the county’s mask mandate.
“We’re not getting vaccinated,” Collins said.
According to Mississippi Today, only 32% of Mississippians have been fully vaccinated, ranking last in the nation. In Leflore County, 29% of the population has been fully vaccinated, according to the Mississippi State Department of Health’s COVID-19 vaccine tracker.
In other business, the supervisors discussed matters pertaining to recent flooding.
The board voted to approve a $10,000 donation to the Christian Pastors Coalition for Change, a group working to assist flood victims.
Dr. Montrell Greene of Sycamore Street Church of Christ, a member of the coalition, told the board that the group has worked to raise funds to purchase sanitary items and snacks for residents of east Greenwood and Glendale subdivision, where some of the worst flooding occurred and residents had to evacuate their homes.
Dr. Pamela Gary, director of Central Mississippi Inc., told the board that within Leflore County that the organization had purchased around $3,000 worth of goods, such as cleaning supplies and food, to give to Fred Randle, the county’s emergency management director.
Gary also said Central Mississippi Inc. has applied for a $20,000 disaster relief grant, which can pay for hotel stays, housing deposits or rent for displaced people.
To qualify for this grant money, Gary said, evacuated residents must have received letters with a Mississippi Emergency Management Agency letterhead documenting that they had been evacuated due to the flooding.
For more information, residents may contact Leflore County’s Central Mississippi Inc. office at 453-1988.
Carla Williams, a resident of Glendale subdivision since 1994, spoke to the board about the flooding that occurred at her residence.
Williams, who is 5 feet 2 inches tall, said water reached up to her waist outside her house and up to her knees inside. She said she was informed that it would cost about $10,000 to fix her home and added that she has lost all of its contents. Other residents throughout the subdivision face similar problems, she added.
“A lot of us can’t afford to start over and fix our homes because people don’t have the money and jobs are not around for people to afford it,” Collins said.
She asked the board what is the next step for residents like her.
Randle said that the board voted to issue a local emergency proclamation, allowing county workers to enter private property as well as to evacuate residents.
He added that the declaration has been sent to Gov. Tate Reeves’ office and that he continues to send his assesments of flood damaged homes in Leflore County to the Mississippi Emergency Management Agency.
Moore said he has reached out to U.S. Rep. Bennie Thompson, whose Second Congressional District includes Leflore County and other counties affected by the flooding.
Collins informed Williams that beginning 7 p.m. Thursday at East Elementary School, 208 Meadowbrook Road, a community “call-to-action” meeting will be held to allow residents to discuss how to help those affected by the flooding.
Shane Correro, the county’s engineer, told the board he is still working on a report to present to the board regarding the flooding situation. He said he has used drones to get aerial views of the flooded areas and will determine where more levees or pumps can be added to mitigate flooding in the future.
Road Manager Jerry Smith told the board that 15 to 20 roads in the county have been affected by the flooding, and in some cases, roads are still covered in water or have developed holes 2 to 3 feet deep because of the water. He said his department is beginning to fix these roads as they dry up.
- Contact Gerard Edic at 581-7239 or gedic@gwcommonwealth.com.
