JACKSONVILLE, Arkansas — The City of Jacksonville has been working tirelessly to rebuild its community.
Leaders have continued assessing damage to determine where help is needed most as they continue rebuilding.
“We're actually in a really good spot," Mayor Jeff Elmore said. "Considering all things that have happened here."
Elmore said the city has made an immense amount of progress.
“There may be some debris on the sides, but all the roads are open, which is a great thing... all but two streets have power,” Elmore said. “Both [are] actually controlled power outages while they're finishing up some work.”
While Jacksonville is getting back on its feet, some things are gone, including several businesses and Dupree Park, which is one of the city's biggest landmarks.
“Now the ball fields and the rest of the park has major damage... light poles down, concession stands' roofs gone," Elmore said. "The typical damage that you see everywhere else in town is also there."
Thursday U.S. Sen. John Boozman took his first look at the damage.
“You can see a picture of the devastation, but you just don't realize the extent of the damage,” Boozman said.
Seeing the damage has been difficult for Elmore, but he's starting to feel a shift.
“Seeing what our people have done, totally changed my perspective," Elmore said. "It goes from being pessimistic and gloom to just pure optimism...looking at where we're headed."
Boozman praised the community's efforts, and his office hopes to help where they can.
“Coordinating with the nonprofits... just making sure that things are running smoothly," Boozman said. "Answering any questions or if we can't answer them tracking down the answers."
As state leaders do their best, Jacksonville neighbors are also lending a helping hand.
“Jacksonville High School baseball team lost the use of their fields," Elmore said. "Other districts have stepped up and said 'Hey, y'all can complete games at our place.' So, we're making do."
The city had plans to upgrade Dupree Park's accessibility. While those plans remain in place, people can expect the upgrade to take longer than expected due to damage recovery.