LOUISVILLE, Mississippi (AP) — Winston County’s nine tornado victims ranged in age from 31 to 85, with five women and four men.
County Coroner Scott Gregory released the names Wednesday, with bodies sent to local funeral homes. Gregory says that all of the victims suffered multiple trauma, and it’s hard to pinpoint a single cause of death for any.
Two of the dead, Terri Tucker and Sean Fowler, have been described as the parents of the missing 8-year-old boy for whom officials are still searching. They were found more than a half-mile from their home near Mississippi Highway 392 in an area of splintered pine trees and debris.
Buddy King, Winston County Emergency Management director, says authorities are using a GPS technology to try to make a more precise search.County coroners identified the dead as:
LEE COUNTY
— Cassandra Blansett, 39, of Lee County. Died when her car slid off Palmetto Road near Verona.
RANKIN COUNTY
— Sharon Pell, 49, of Richland. Died when a tornado threw her car about 200 yards off Old Highway 49 into a field near a fire station.
ISSAQUENA COUNTY
— Nicky Lee Painter, 56, of Greenville. Died when his minivan hydroplaned off U.S. Highway 61 and struck a pickup truck.
WINSTON COUNTY
— Ruth Bennett, 53. Died at the daycare center she operated in Louisville, Ruth’s Child Care Center.
— Dora Triplett, 64. Found on Eiland Avenue in Louisville.
— Catherine Ferguson, 55. Found in the rural community of Plattsburg southwest of Louisville.
— Gregory Jernigan, 60. Found at the Eiland Plaza apartments in Louisville.
— Sarah Massey, 85. Found in Louisville. No additional details available.
— Jerry Carter, 61. Found injured on Eiland Avenue and died later at the University of Mississippi Medical Center in Jackson.
— Leonard Carter, 38. Found at the Eiland Plaza apartments
— Terri Tucker, 31, and Sean Fowler, 44. Found blown into a wooded area a half mile from their destroyed home in Louisville. Their 8-year-old son is missing.
