– Mississippi hurricane survivor
– Mississippi Katrina victim located.
Accident – Death – Obituary News :
ST. MARTIN, Miss. (WJTV) – After nearly two decades, a victim of Hurricane Katrina from Mississippi has finally been identified.
According to DNASolves.com, a search and rescue team in St. Martin, Mississippi, uncovered the remains of an unidentified woman in September 2005, approximately a week after Hurricane Katrina wreaked havoc on the region. Investigators determined that the remains belonged to a Black woman, aged between 50 and 59 years old.
Despite rigorous investigative efforts, authorities were unable to ascertain the woman’s identity. She was laid to rest at Machpelah Cemetery in Pascagoula, Mississippi, under the name “Jane Love.” Details of the case were recorded in the National Missing and Unidentified Persons System.
In 2023, the Mississippi Bureau of Investigation (MBI) and the Mississippi State Medical Examiner’s Office exhumed the remains and sent forensic evidence to Othram in the Woodlands, Texas, for advanced DNA testing to aid in identification. Through the development of a DNA profile from a suitable extract, they were able to make a breakthrough.
Subsequent investigations led to the discovery of genetic relatives of the woman. In May 2024, she was officially identified as Tonette Jackson.
Family members revealed that during Hurricane Katrina, Tonette and her husband, Hardy, found themselves trapped in their attic as floodwaters surged in Biloxi, Mississippi. Their home succumbed to the force of nature, separating the couple and sweeping them away in the floodwaters.
According to the family, Hardy managed to cling to a tree and witnessed his wife in the water. Despite his efforts to hold on to her, Tonette insisted that he let go and focus on their children and grandchildren. Tragically, she was swept away, and her body was never recovered. Hardy passed away in 2013.
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hurricane katrina victim mississippi identified years later
mississippi hurricane katrina victim identified later.
