South Delta seniors react to deadly tornado, uncertainty for spring athletics

The internet going out was the first clue of severe weather for Trevon Brown. The South Delta baseball senior was in his room watching a movie when the connection cut out. He peered out of his window and saw lights flickering from neighboring houses.

A deadly tornado was heading toward Rolling Fork and would touch down within a few minutes. The tornado — categorized as an EF4 with wind speeds up to 170 miles per hour by the National Weather Service — was responsible for 21 deaths in four counties across the state.

Brown and senior Daniel Hall were working out at South Delta less than an hour before the tornado arrived March 24. It was the last time the Bulldogs baseball players would be able to use the weight room this spring.

The South Delta athletic facilities, auditorium, cafeteria and buses were heavily damaged, according to athletic director Roy Watson. The softball and football stadiums took most of the damage with completely destroyed press boxes, stands and dugouts.

There is uncertainty on whether South Delta sports will return this spring, as recovery efforts continue more than two weeks since the tornado.

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There were continuous lightning strikes as Brown watched from his window. The flashes were accompanied by the howling winds, which sounded eerily like a train barreling toward the town, along with flying debris and uprooted trees.

Brown left his bedroom and waited in the kitchen as it landed. The contents of the cabinets were emptying onto the floor.

"I thought I was going to die," Brown said. "That's what I had in my head.

"There were trees falling on the house. We have holes in the roof. Leaks everywhere in the house. Windows are busted."

The tornado only lasted a few minutes, but the resulting damage made Rolling Fork nearly unrecognizable. The town looked like a junkyard, according to Hall.

Brown remembers hearing powerlines snap and fall to the ground with trees and other debris, and smelling gasoline when he was walking around after the storm.

"When I looked outside, it looked different," Brown said. "It looked like we were somewhere else but that really was our neighborhood. That really was Rolling Fork."

The destruction of homes was only a part of the unsettling nature of walking through the streets that night. Hall and Brown couldn't hide from how deadly the tornado had been.

"We were just walking around town seeing people laying down dead," Hall said.

"I couldn't believe it. I was in shock."

Thirteen of the reported 21 deaths were in Sharkey County. Anyone walking around Rolling Fork would have seen a dead body on Friday night, according to Brown.

"It's traumatizing," Brown said. "I know a whole lot of people are still traumatized from it. They'll be traumatized forever but they really aren't going to say anything about it though. It's stuff you have to live with."

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'They want to compete'

Watson knows that his baseball and softball programs want to continue their seasons. However, the school's damage might be unsurmountable. Watson is still searching for answers.

"They want to compete," Watson said. "They want to finish the season. They want to walk across that stage. They want to experience everything that seniors can experience, but it's going to be hard for them to do it. Our facilities were hit pretty hard."

"There is a lot of uncertainty for the spring sports. I think we'll be able to come back next year, be fine and operate normally. But it's just hard this year."

South Delta students still haven't returned to in-person or virtual schooling since the tornado due to the tornado's damage. The roof of the high school received extensive damage.

The MHSAA will allow the option to resume activities and athletics before virtual and in-person instruction returns, according to executive director Rickey Neaves. That still may not be an option for the Bulldogs.

"We're trying our best to get the kids back to class," Watson said. "At least let them finish the year but that's looking kind of hard as well."

Hall knew his last baseball season with the Bulldogs was over walking through the town after the tornado. There were other priorities. Hall's home experienced roof damage and leaks.

South Delta had its possible final game the night before the tornado hit. The Bulldogs lost 9-5 but the experience holds a new meaning to senior Amarion Bee. It was likely the final game of his high school career.

"We should have cherished that moment if we knew that tornado was coming on Friday." Bee said.

This article originally appeared on Mississippi Clarion Ledger: 'I thought I was going to die': South Delta still reeling from tornado