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(MEMPHIS, Tenn.) — They were called the “path of least resistance” by energy giants proposing a new crude oil pipeline. Now, after months of activism and resistance, a Black community in Memphis, Tennessee is celebrating the announcement that construction of the pipeline has been called off.

“This is a significant victory for our community, and for all people who have been pushed to the margins of our society,” Justin J. Pearson, a local resident and one of the co-founders of the grassroots group Memphis Community Against the Pipeline (MCAP), told ABC News on Tuesday, adding that the community responded to the news by erupting in “jubilation.”

“It’s an extraordinary feat for people who were called the path of least resistance to have pushed back and beat back two billion-dollar crude oil pipeline companies,” he added. “You can walk through the neighborhood and see all these signs and the spirit that endures, showing that we really are the path of resilience.”

Plans for the Byhalia Connection pipeline, a joint venture from Plains All American and Valero Energy, were officially called off last Friday. The proposed 49-mile crude oil conduit faced mounting community opposition, and lawmakers and celebrities also added their voices to the resistance movement.

Brad Leone, the director of communications at Plains All American, said in a statement posted to the Byhalia Connection’s website that the company was no longer pursuing construction of the project “primarily due to lower U.S. oil production resulting from the COVID-19 pandemic.”

“We value the relationships we’ve built through the development of this project, and appreciate those that supported the project and would have shared in its ongoing benefits including our customers, communities, energy consumers, landowners, area contractors and suppliers,” the statement added.

The pipeline initially threatened to cut through predominantly Black communities that have historical significance to those who live there — such as Boxtown, an area in Southwest Memphis that got its name after formerly enslaved people built their homes there out of train boxcars.

A representative of the pipeline company initially told the community the route was chosen because it was the “path of least resistance.” A company spokesperson later clarified to ABC News that, “What should have been said is that we looked for the path with the fewest collective impacts.”

Still, community members protesting the project said they were tired of bearing the brunt of industrial projects and potential pollutants in their backyard.

Former Vice President Al Gore, who attended anti-pipeline rallies, reacted to the cancellation news on Twitter. Gore congratulated MCAP and the community, “who made their voices heard to stop this reckless, racist ripoff!”

Byhalia Pipeline canceled! Congrats to @MemphisCAP_org & the community of SW Memphis who made their voices heard to stop this reckless, racist ripoff! No more oil in our soil!https://t.co/kEw56NYEWG

— Al Gore (@algore) July 3, 2021

Actor Danny Glover, of the Lethal Weapon franchise, also sent well-wishes on Twitter to the community, calling the news a “huge win.”

This is a HUGE WIN for the people of Memphis and all those who organized to prevent the Byhalia Pipeline! Congrats all!!!! https://t.co/VWpsFzIhNn

— Danny Glover (@mrdannyglover) July 5, 2021

The Southern Environmental Law Center, which represented MCAP and other community organizations as they fought state and federal permits for the project, applauded the news as “a victory for the people of Southwest Memphis, for the city’s drinking water, and perhaps most monumentally, it is a triumph for environmental justice,” according to a statement from Amanda Garcia, the group’s Tennessee office director.

Pearson, who was at the forefront of the pipeline resistance movement over the past several months, said the battles for environmental justice for all are not over. Still, he said he hopes others can see this victory as inspiration to fight for what they believe in.

“There’s no power more powerful than people power,” Pearson told ABC News. “Even when we don’t have as much money or clout as these billion-dollar businesses, we have our bodies, we have our voices, we have our time. We have our spirits, which cannot be broken.”

Copyright © 2021, ABC Audio. All rights reserved.

(NEW YORK) — Courtney and Kale Buchholtz had just put their 5-month-old son Cannon to bed and sat down on the couch the night of July 2 when a loud bang shook the walls of their Prairieville, Louisiana, home.

The couple said they thought lightning had struck their house until Courtney Buchholtz looked down at the baby monitor and saw debris flying into Cannon’s room.

Thinking a window had busted open, the couple ran to their son’s room and discovered that instead, a giant oak tree had fallen through the roof.

“When I saw the tree I almost couldn’t even comprehend what was happening, that there was a tree in our house,” Courtney Buchholtz told ABC News’ Good Morning America. “And the thought of it being on top of Cannon, I felt physically ill.”

The Buchholtzes said they heard Cannon crying in his crib, which they took as a good sign that he was at least alive.

Courtney Buchholtz weaved through the debris in the room to pull Cannon out of his crib and handed him to her husband, who checked the infant for injuries.

“I just turned him over and checked him really well to make sure there was nothing wrong with him,” said Kale Buchholtz. “He had been crying, but as soon as I got him in my hands, he was laughing as I was turning him.”

Cannon escaped the incident without a scratch, according to the Buchholtzes, who said he only had to be washed clean of debris from the fallen ceiling.

The family of three quickly evacuated the house and drove to a family member’s nearby home. When Kale Buchholtz returned that night, he found the weight of the tree had destroyed nearly the entire house, aside from Cannon’s crib.

“It was just kind of like a little bubble around him,” he said. “The hallway on one side of his room was where most of the tree was, and around his crib it was just wood and sheetrock and everything else.”

When Courtney Buchholtz re-watched the footage of the tree falling, as captured by the baby monitor app on her phone, she described it as being like there was a “shield” protecting Cannon.

She said she immediately thought of her late son Kasen, who died in 2016, one month after he was born prematurely.

“We always say that he’s watching over his little brother, so my immediate thought was that Kasen was protecting his brother and keeping him safe,” she said. “Losing one child and the thought of anything happening to another child is gut-wrenching.”

The Buchholtzes, who had to rebuild after water flooded their home in 2016, are now trying to salvage whatever they can from their home and prepare to rebuild again.

“It’s been a pain but, you know what, we can deal with that. We’ll clean up a mess any day,” said Courtney Buchholtz, adding, “It could have been so much worse.”

“It makes you realize a house is just a house and the material things can be replaced,” said Kale Buchholtz. “Family is what matters.”

Copyright © 2021, ABC Audio. All rights reserved.

(NEW YORK) — Elsa has strengthened to a Category 1 hurricane Tuesday night just southwest of Tampa Bay with sustained winds of 75 mph.

Landfall is expected around 8 or 9 a.m. Wednesday near the Big Bend region along Florida’s west coast.

Storms with winds of 74 mph or higher are considered hurricanes.

Elsa’s path is sparing Miami, where rescuers are still searching for victims of the deadly Surfside condo collapse.

Search and rescue efforts continued through the rain and wind overnight, pausing only briefly for lightning as per the law, Miami-Dade County Mayor Daniella Levine Cava said Tuesday. The wind has also hampered large cranes from moving heavy debris, Surfside Mayor Charles Burkett said.

July 6th – Starting Tuesday off with a time-lapse as Elsa’s outer bands stream past the office. Tropical Storm #Elsa is passing just to the west of Key West this morning. Heavy rainfall, strong wind gusts in squalls, and a few tornadoes are possible across South Florida today. pic.twitter.com/6J1IZojt2C

— NWS Miami (@NWSMiami) July 6, 2021

A hurricane warning is in effect along Florida’s northern Gulf Coast while a tornado watch has been issued from Miami to Tampa through 11 p.m.

The University of Florida in Gainesville has canceled all classes for Wednesday as Elsa closes in.

Tampa International Airport is suspending operations from 5 p.m. Tuesday until 10 a.m. Wednesday while the Sarasota Bradenton International Airport is stopping operations from 6:30 p.m. to 6 a.m.

Storm surge could reach 3 to 5 feet along Florida’s Gulf Coast.

Rainfall totals may climb to 6 to 8 inches across Florida, Georgia and the Carolinas through Thursday.

The ground in many parts of the Sunshine State is already saturated after a 300% rain increase over the last two weeks, Lt. Gov. Jeanette Nunez said Tuesday.

Residents should be prepared to be without power for the next few days, but widespread evacuations aren’t expected, Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis said.

After barreling through Florida, Elsa will weaken to a tropical storm or tropical depression as it moves through Savannah, Georgia, and Charleston, South Carolina.

By the end of the week, Elsa will bring rain and wind to the Mid-Atlantic and Northeast.

Copyright © 2021, ABC Audio. All rights reserved.