USM tornado ’could have been much, much worse’

The initial tornado damage assessment of the University of Southern Mississippi is better than what university officials expected. "The great majority of the campus is just fine," USM administrator Joe Paul told the media this morning. "It could have been much, much worse." The university’s front door area near Hardy Street sustained most of the tornado damage. At least six campus buildings have some sort of tornado damage. "We’ve still go work to do to make sure the grounds are safe," said Paul.