SOUTHAVEN, Miss. — The roof and outer wall of a warehouse collapsed Wednesday afternoon as strong storms moved through the area.
The warehouse is on Marketplace in the area of Stateline Road and Airways.
Police said the building had been evacuated, and everyone was safe and accounted for at the Helen of Troy distribution center.
Several watches and warnings had been issued. It is not yet known what may have caused the roof to collapse.
Neighbors nearby said they heard the wind pick up and watched several power lines go down.
“We saw all the lights sparking up in the sky when they were falling,” said Caitlyn Carter.
Caitlyn Carter and Megan Hadley live on Hillbrook. They also heard the tornado sirens go off and hunkered down in a hallway.
“By the time I looked out the window, that tree had fallen over there, and then I saw a bunch of debris going by,” said Hadley.
That tree was in front of Christopher Taylor’s home. Several large limbs snapped and fell in his front yard.
“Thank God it didn’t hit my house,” said Taylor.
Most of the fence in his backyard was also flattened during the storm, and a small shed blown right off its foundation.
“I never thought the wind could be that strong,” Taylor said.
Down the street, a tree did fall on the house. No one appeared to be home when it happened, but a neighbor said it was scary.
“Trees start falling behind this house and this one collapses on the house,” said Tyler Tillman. “The wind is just whipping all the trees around really hard,”
Police have not said how many people were inside the warehouse when the roof collapsed.
