Hattiesburg American from Hattiesburg, Mississippi • 3

TUESDAY, FEBRUARY 12, 2013 LOCAL NEWS EDITOR ERIN KOSNAC: (601) 584-3070, ejkosnachattiesburgamerican.com 1 HATTIESBURG, LAMAR SCHOOL DISTRICTS 3A odd Districts face transportation, weather issues By Ellen Ciurzcak American Staff Writer Damage caused by a tornado that hit the Pine Belt on Sunday continued to cause problems for the Lamar County and Hattiesburg Public school districts on Monday. Hattiesburg Public School District remained closed for a second day today due to transportation problems. Classes also were canceled for a second day in the Lamar County School District due to the weather and transportation problems. Oak Grove High School was to remain closed on Wednesday as well. The tornado damaged the gym there, the new cafeteria and the athletic facilities.

HPSD's bus barn was damaged, as was its baseball stadium, according to district spokesman Jas Smith. "The bus barn got hit," he said. "The baseball stadium got hit pretty good. The metal roofing on one of the bleachers is damaged, and one of the walls got blown down." But it was not damage to school property that closed the district down, but downed pow er lines and trees on the roads around the district. Smith said it was impossible for some buses to travel their routes.

"The buses couldn't go over a lot of their roads and routes," he said. "A lot of the neighborhoods around our schools got hit." Smith also said there were continuing power outages at some schools. But he said fortunately there was no damage to any of the district's schools. Smith said district officials will assess the transportation and power situation today to See SCHOOLS, Page 4A The Hattiesburg High School baseball stadium was damaged by a tornado Sunday, bryant hawkinshattiesburg American Petal residents escaped with lives jlj By Mary Lett American Staff Writer PETAL Itaska Broom has lived in Petal since 1969. Roy and Catherine Sanford moved to the Friendly City about six years ago.

Broom and the Sanfords found themselves in similar situations today. Their homes were both destroyed when a powerful tornado touched down Sunday afternoon in the Pine Belt. "I got home from work about 4 p.m. and was just able to make it to the bathroom with my husband, Robert, before everything went crazy," said Broom, who lived at 103 Meadowbrook Drive. "My husband is dis ik 1 -5 Residents drag scrap metal through MOORE7HATTIESBURG AMERICAN the yard of a destroyed home along Main Street in downtown Hattiesburg.

ryan Residents, businesses clean up after tornado Some houses, businesses can be repaired; others a complete loss abled, and we got mto the bathtub. We didn't hear anything and everything was over in less than a minute." The Brooms' three-bedroom brick house though still standing, barely was gutted by the tornado. The two-car attached garage was lying on the concrete slab. "We've lost a lot, but we're lucky. A lot of people in similar situations have not been as lucky," Broom said of the tornado that flattened the house across the street as well the home of Joey and Marsha Lee.

Broom said she was "Everything happened so fast, and we didn't hear anything. When we looked out, all we saw was daylight because the roof was gone." GEROLENE HARDGES DONTGETSCAMMED Christy Strickland, director of accreditation at the Better Business Bureau of Mississippi, warns disaster victims to not be taken unaware by "storm chasers," fake contractors who look to cheat consumers out of money by accepting payment for services they then fail to provide. Here are some things to remember when dealing with contractors or cleanup crews. Never pay in cash or up front. Do not make the final payment until the job is done.

Ask about warranties. Trustworthy businesses will offer information about how they plan to handle any repairs covered under their warranties. Avoid door-to-door solicitations. Contractors who make "cold calls" may not be from local, established businesses, but may be just passing through and trying to make a quick buck. Do not make hasty decisions.

Take the time to check references, verify insurance and licenses, get written estimates from other workers, and contact the BBB. If you believe you have been the victim of a scam, contact the Better Business Bureau of Mississippi at (800) 987-8280. Source: Better Business Bureau able to save some of her most valuable possessions a picture her granddaughter made for her that was still hanging on a kitchen wall and, of course, family photographs. Some things that were blown away also were returned. A neighbor mentioned he found a punch bowl in his yard.

"I went over and looked, it was my punch bowl that had been in the attic," Broom said. "It didn't have a scratch on it." The home of Tom and Gerolene Hardges on Meadowbrook Drive also sustained severe damage during the storm. "We hid in the bathtub and just waited," Gerolene Hardges said. "Everything happened so fast, and we didn't hear anything. When we looked out, all we saw was daylight because the roof was gone in some places." The Sanfords, who live in east Petal in Tropical Gardens subdivision, were still in shock, said Kevin Sanford, Roy Sanford's brother.

By Haskel Burns American Staff Writer Pine Belt residents and business owners are picking up the pieces and trying to move on after the devastation caused by Sunday's tornado. Joby Bass' house on North 22nd Avenue in Hattiesburg was severely damaged, but everyone made it out safely. Bass said he was on his back porch when the tornado hit, and he quickly took refuge in his back bedroom. Despite the damage, Bass said he plans to remain in the house until the insurance company can get around to assessing the situation. "It's just a matter of cleaning up now, and I have a generator for electricity, so I'll be alright," he said.

"If nothing else, all (these fallen trees) will make a good bonfire." Steve Chunn also was home when the tornado hit. He said he heard the storm approaching his North 23rd Avenue house and took shelter in the bathroom. "It sounded like an earthquake coming through," Chunn said. "We'd seen it on the news where the storm had hit in Oak Grove, and it was headed this way, so we got ready and just hunkered down." Chunn's home was destroyed in dows. "I've never been so scared in my life," Rachel Graves said.

"I was sitting on the floor, texting my sister, telling her, 'Please, please pray for because I didn't think I was coming out of that building." The Graves said the employees were more than accommodating owner Scott Martin even donated the restaurant's food supply to See CLEAN, Page 4A the storm, so he said he will stay with relatives until repairs can be made to the house. Collins residents Rachel Graves and her daughter, Beth, were on Hardy Street traveling west when they saw the tornado approaching. They quickly turned into Bop's Frozen Custard and were ushered into the building by three of the store's employees. All five took refuge in the restaurant's bathroom while the storm blew out the building's win The couple, with their son, sought refuge in their master bedroom closet as the torna- See PETAL, Page 4A i CLICK IT Check out these videos at hattiesburgamerican.com: Lamar County School District Superintendent Ben Burnett discusses damage at OGHS Raw footage of Sunday's tornado Joe Paul talks about tornado damage at USM Tornado destroys Papa John's on U.S. 49 Resident Michael Pierce describes aftermath of tornado You can also find hundreds of tornado-related photos at hattiesburgamerkan.com.

Lisa Lofton stands in the bedroom of her house at 722 E. Seventh St. on Monday as Hattiesburg residents and volunteers start to clean up. BRYANT HAWKINS HATTIESBURG 1 AMERICAN Power company workers tackle fallen lines and power outages in Petal on Monday, the day -after a powerful tornado roared through area, keuy pricehattiesburg American 02 Q2.