William “Buddy” McCloud has seen enough tornadoes during his 40years of living on China Grove Road to have what the old folks call”good enough sense.”

So when he found out that the Mississippi Emergency ManagementAgency has a plan in place to pay 75 percent of the costs ofinstalling an underground storm shelter or safe room, he put thatsense into action.

“I considered it an opportunity,” McCloud said Friday as he sat6 feet underground in his fiberglass shelter, protected from therain above. “The shelter was available, the cost share wasavailable and it’s a safety factor for your family.

Earlier this summer, McCloud bought The Refuge I, a 12-man stormshelter manufactured by Fiberglass Creations, Inc., of Henderson,Texas, for approximately $5,000. MEMA’s A Safe Place to Go Program,available through the agency’s Hazard Mitigation Grant funding,provided 75 percent – approximately $3,700 – of the total cost.

The shelter soon would be put into use.

“During Hurricane Gustav, we were probably down here five or sixhours off and on,” said McCloud, recalling the storm that camethrough the area in early September.

McCloud is one of only eight people in Lincoln County who havetaken advantage of hazard mitigation money to purchase a shelter orin-house safe room, while neighboring Lawrence County has 53shelter-equipped citizens and Copiah County has 32, according to aMEMA release.

Lincoln County Civil Defense Director and local MEMA agentClifford Galey said the program – which began after a series ofdeadly tornadoes in 2001 – draws its funding from the total dollarfigure of recovery efforts after major disasters. Individualspurchase the shelters and MEMA reimburses them after the fact.

Another disaster may occur and pump up the mitigation fundbefore August 2009. But for now the plan is to discontinue theshelter and safe house funding program then.

Galey said there are more than 50 Lincoln County residents whohave signed up for the funding but have not installed the shelters.Time is running out.

“If they haven’t done it, they need to hurry up and get itdone,” he said. “The time frame is running out for those people whosigned up.”

Galey praised the effectiveness of the shelters, pointing outthat today’s early warning abilities combined with the undergroundstructures allows people to ride out even the worst storms inenclosed safety.

The shelter’s durability comes not only from its positionunderground, but from its design and material makeup.

Nina Griffith, co-owner of Monticello’s Southern Storm Shelters- the only MEMA-certified vendor in the area – said the sheltersare “awesome.”

“Fiberglass is going to outlast you – it will be around forever,for your grandchildren,” she said. “Some people will sell youmetal, but if you put that in the ground it’s going to rust. Whenyou put fiberglass in the ground, it’s there.”

Her company deals exclusively with Fiberglass Creations, Inc.,and offers the shelter in three different sizes. There is the Mini,which seats six people; the Refuge II, which seats eight people;and McCloud’s Refuge I, which can seat up to 15 people.

Griffith said the Mini sells for $3,975; the Refuge II for$4,575; and the Refuge I for $4,975. Her company charges $800 forthe installation, plus $2 per mile to cover the distance thecompany’s installation professional covers from his home in BaySprings.

The shelters look awkward from outside. Inside, however, theyare constructed like underground igloos, with sharply descendingcarpeted steps complete with handrail, a carpeted floor and benchseating on three sides.

Each shelter has a patented locking door and two ventilationholes, which Griffith said could be used by savvy shelter owners torun power or cable to the shelter for lighting and television.

Griffith said her company installs the shelters according toMEMA guidelines. The holes are dug to certain depths and leveledoff, and after the shelters are lowered into position, they aretied down and secured with concrete “boulders” that Southern StormShelters pours. Dirt is packed tight around the shelter, andadditional dirt is left with the new owner to fill in thedepressions that form during the setting process.

Once the shelter is installed, Griffith said it can withstand”pretty much anything.”

“If the good Lord wants you he’s gonna take you anyway, but onceyou close that door in the shelter you’re underground,” shesaid.

MEMA estimates that approximately 4,600 shelters or safe roomshave been installed using hazard mitigation funds statewide.Another 2,500 or more are expected to be installed before thedeadline next summer.

For more information on MEMA’s reimbursement program, interestedpeople may contact the agency at 601-933-6362. For more informationon the shelters, interested people may contact Southern StormShelters at 601-587-4419.