Man dies after falling from Fair cabin

A man working on his Neshoba County Fair cabin died a day after falling from the second story last Wednesday afternoon.

The man, Ray Charles Martin, 77, of Leake County, passed away on Thursday, May 8, according to Neshoba County Sheriff Eric Clark.

“Ray Martin was a Staple to our community. The hardest working, most humble, Christian Man,” Kenny and Suzanne Byrd wrote on Facebook. “If he wasn’t bailing, hauling hay or chicken mess, he was in his Chicken Houses. Sun, Rain, Sleet, or Snow, he was doing one of the above. Let me add…He was always available to help others and never too busy to stop and chat.”

According to Clark, Martin was found bloody and lying on the ground near Cabin 869 on Wednesday, May 7, at about 5:52 p.m. Clark noted that the power and water had just been turned on that Monday and said Martin was working on his cabin.

Martin was found by a passerby who called 9-1-1. Clark said the passerby did not know how long he had been there.

A medical helicopter landed in the middle of the Racetrack at about 6:30 p.m. and took off for the University of Mississippi Medical Center in Jackson at about 7 p.m.

Clark warned cabin owners to exhibit “extra caution” as they return to their cabins to get them ready for the Fair.

“People need to be mindful as they open their Fair cabins up,” Clark said.

Martin was a lifelong resident of the Ebenezer community in Leake County.

He was a former owner of Martin Logging and Martin Cattle Farms, and until his death, he and his wife continued to raise chickens for Peco Farms.

According to the family, Martin won numerous performance awards in poultry and cattle farming.

Martin was a member of and a deacon at Sunrise Baptist Church and was ordained as a deacon at New Prospect Baptist Church.