More Safe Rooms Coming to Forrest County

HATTIESBURG, MISS. - State officials announced a $1 million grant to construct a community safe room at the Forrest County Agricultural High School in Brooklyn on April 18.

The Federal Emergency Management Agency(FEMA) approved the Hazard Mitigation grant to construct a 5,000-square-foot safe room on Old Highway 49 in Forrest County.

“The Pine Belt is no stranger to severe weather conditions, unfortunately,” Mississippi Representative Steven Palazzo said. “We may not be able to control the weather, but we can provide our citizens with adequate protection in the face of these events.”

Despite this new addition, the President of the Forrest County Board of Supervisors expects ten more safe rooms to be built for several other Forrest County Schools.

“We actually put in three grant applications to FEMA,” Hogan said. “The first was Dixie, and it got approved. The second was Forrest County Agricultural High School, and the third is actually ten schools which include the Forrest County school districts and the Petal school district.

The board has the designs for the safe houses but is currently waiting for the approval of FEMA before moving into the construction part of the project.