Update: The levee in the Eastbrook subdivision has been compromised.
HAPPENING NOW: The Levee in the Eastbrook Subdivision over in Yazoo City has breached here is what it looks like!@NWSJacksonMS #mswx pic.twitter.com/M4U9SEpQsT
— Chase Franks (@ChaseFranksWx) April 10, 2024
A possible levee breach in Yazoo County has stirred a whirlwind of unrest in the area, but clarification has been provided by leaders to keep everyone on the same page as to what is actually going on.
Amid the severe weather rolling through Mississippi on Wednesday, the Yazoo County Sheriff’s Office took to social media to call on residents of the Eastbrook subdivision to evacuate their homes in the event that the levee of a nearby lake happened to be compromised.
That notification proved to be preemptive, and an update was later issued by the sheriff’s office informing the public that emergency management officials are continuing to actively monitor the conditions of the levee.
According to Mississippi Emergency Management Agency executive director Stephen McCraney, minor flooding has been spotted in the subdivision with water covering portions of roadways in the area. However, the levee is still intact.
“We’re dealing with an overflow there coming over the road,” McCraney said on MidDays with Gerard Gibert. “[The levee] is not broken at all at this time.”
According to McCraney, one home downstream of the lake could be harmed if the levee is breached. An additional eight houses on the opposite side of the one in the line of possible floodwaters do not run the risk of being flooded, but residents would have a difficult time accessing their homes or leaving if the levee happened to be compromised.
Local emergency management directors and law enforcement have since encouraged the occupants of those homes to avoid their residences for the time being. No mandatory evacuations have been issued.
McCraney reminds individuals to follow the advice and updates of official emergency management employees both at the local level and statewide, and not rely on posts from unofficial accounts on social media.
“I know on social media, it gets grip and then we see pictures of dams from other states,” McCraney said. “Your emergency services folks are out there and they are doing a great job.”
