Rankin County School District Natural Disasters and Weather Extremes
The chance of earthquake damage in Rankin County School District is about the same as Mississippi average and is much lower than the national average. The risk of tornado damage in Rankin County School District is much higher than Mississippi average and is much higher than the national average.
Earthquake Index, #140
Rankin County School District | 0.00 |
Mississippi | 0.05 |
U.S. | 1.81 |
The earthquake index value is calculated based on historical earthquake events data using USA.com algorithms. It is an indicator of the earthquake level in a region. A higher earthquake index value means a higher chance of an earthquake.
Volcano Index, #1
Rankin County School District | 0.0000 |
Mississippi | 0.0000 |
U.S. | 0.0023 |
The volcano index value is calculated based on the currently known volcanoes using USA.com algorithms. It is an indicator of the possibility of a region being affected by a possible volcano eruption. A higher volcano index value means a higher chance of being affected.
Tornado Index, #3
Rankin County School District | 437.19 |
Mississippi | 280.40 |
U.S. | 136.45 |
The tornado index value is calculated based on historical tornado events data using USA.com algorithms. It is an indicator of the tornado level in a region. A higher tornado index value means a higher chance of tornado events.
Other Weather Extremes Events
A total of 4,205 other weather extremes events within 50 miles of Rankin County School District were recorded from 1950 to 2010. The following is a break down of these events:
Type | Count | Type | Count | Type | Count | Type | Count | Type | Count |
Avalanche: | 0 | Blizzard: | 0 | Cold: | 2 | Dense Fog: | 0 | Drought: | 15 |
Dust Storm: | 0 | Flood: | 282 | Hail: | 1,321 | Heat: | 22 | Heavy Snow: | 11 |
High Surf: | 0 | Hurricane: | 5 | Ice Storm: | 7 | Landslide: | 0 | Strong Wind: | 20 |
Thunderstorm Winds: | 2,431 | Tropical Storm: | 4 | Wildfire: | 0 | Winter Storm: | 13 | Winter Weather: | 7 |
Other: | 65 |
Volcanos Nearby
No volcano is found in or near Rankin County School District.
Historical Earthquake Events
No historical earthquake events that had recorded magnitudes of 3.5 or above found in or near Rankin County School District.
No historical earthquake events found in or near Rankin County School District.
Historical Tornado Events
A total of 162 historical tornado events that had recorded magnitude of 2 or above found in or near Rankin County School District.
Distance (miles) | Date | Magnitude | Start Lat/Log | End Lat/Log | Length | Width | Fatalities | Injuries | Property Damage | Crop Damage | Affected County |
1.9 | 1992-11-21 | 4 | 32°05'N / 90°13'W | 32°29'N / 89°43'W | 37.00 Miles | 880 Yards | 10 | 98 | 25.0M | 0 | Rankin |
2.3 | 1975-01-10 | 2 | 32°13'N / 90°02'W | 32°15'N / 89°58'W | 4.50 Miles | 77 Yards | 0 | 0 | 25K | 0 | Rankin |
4.4 | 2005-04-06 | 3 | 32°08'N / 90°07'W | 32°17'N / 89°56'W | 15.00 Miles | 600 Yards | 0 | 6 | 11.0M | 150K | Rankin |
Brief Description: This tornado developed just SE of Florence between US Highway 49 and State Highway 469. For the first 3 miles, the tornado steadily gained strength and downed many trees and power lines. At this time the intensity was F1 and F2. As the tornado approached the community of Monterey its intensity increased. The most significant damage occurred along a 2 mile path a few miles SE and E of Monterey. Thomasville Road and E Monterey Road were the hardest hit. Here the tornado destroyed or significantly damaged nearly 3 dozen homes, a dozen mobile homes and caused 6 injuries. The tornado continued to move to the NE and moved through the Richland Creek bottom. As it continued NE toward the south side of Brandon, the tornado weakened. The path crossed Star Road and then State Highway 18. Where it crossed Highway 18, the tornado damaged the new Brandon High School, which was under construction, and demolished several construction trailers. The damage to the school comprised of a portion of the roof blown off and windows blown out. The tornado continued to weaken, downing more trees, as it crossed Shiloh Road, Interstate 20 and US Highway 80 where it dissipated. This tornado did cause significant timber damage, mainly between Monterey and where it cross Interstate 20. Several thousand trees were snapped, uprooted or damaged by this wide and long track strong tornado. | |||||||||||
4.6 | 2003-04-24 | 3 | 32°15'N / 90°00'W | 32°21'N / 89°51'W | 12.00 Miles | 600 Yards | 0 | 6 | 50.0M | 0 | Rankin |
Brief Description: This strong tornado moved directly through downtown Brandon damaging or destroying several businesses, one school and dozens of homes. In addition to structural damage, hundreds of trees were snapped or uprooted as the tornado move to the NE. | |||||||||||
8.7 | 1950-03-27 | 2 | 32°18'N / 90°10'W | 32°29'N / 89°47'W | 25.70 Miles | 50 Yards | 0 | 0 | 250K | 0 | Rankin |
9.7 | 1987-11-16 | 2 | 32°15'N / 90°10'W | 32°18'N / 90°09'W | 6.00 Miles | 150 Yards | 0 | 5 | 2.5M | 0 | Rankin |
11.3 | 2008-12-09 | 2 | 32°06'N / 90°03'W | 32°07'N / 90°02'W | 1.00 Mile | 300 Yards | 0 | 0 | 800K | 0K | Rankin |
Brief Description: EVENT NARRATIVE: This tornado touched down just northwest of Star along Highway 49 and tracked along Muse Road for a mile. The tornado caused extensive damage to the Star baseball field. It knocked down the light fixtures off the poles. Metal fences were blown down and the dugout structure was destroyed. Damage to a couple of cars in the area also occurred due to fallen trees. The tornado damaged a residence with an 8 foot hole to the roof and completely destroyed a well constructed metal outbuilding that housed a small personal airplane. This is where the tornado was at peak intensity with winds estimated to be around 112 mph and a rating of EF2. Most of the other damage along the path was uprooted and snapped trees. The top to a small well house was also toppled. EPISODE NARRATIVE: A round of severe thunderstorms containing tornadoes, large hail and damaging winds, occurred Tuesday December 9th into Tuesday night across much of the Lower Mississippi River Valley. These storms developed along and ahead of a strong surface cold front and strong upper level disturbance. A surface low developed to our west and tracked eastward increasing the winds and drawing northward deep moisture and instability. The cold front steadily pushed east and clashed with the unstable and highly sheared environment and produced numerous severe thunderstorms as a squall line developed and tracked eastward across the region. This event produced 16 tornadoes along with many reports of large hail, and wind damage. The majority of the severe weather occurred across central and southern Mississippi. Of the 16 tornadoes, 2 were rated EF2, 8 rated EF1, and 6 rated EF0. Historically, these 16 tornadoes rank 2nd all time for the number of tornadoes in the month of December. The record is 19 which occurred during the December of 1988. Additionally, this December 9th event has pushed the yearly total of tornadoes in Mississippi to 109. This will set a new record for the number of tornadoes in a year for the state of Mississippi. The previous record of 99 was set in 2005. | |||||||||||
11.7 | 1950-03-27 | 2 | 32°17'N / 90°16'W | 32°18'N / 90°07'W | 9.00 Miles | 50 Yards | 0 | 7 | 250K | 0 | Hinds |
12.1 | 1958-02-26 | 3 | 32°18'N / 90°10'W | 32°35'N / 89°50'W | 27.60 Miles | 60 Yards | 1 | 14 | 250K | 0 | Rankin |
12.3 | 1958-02-26 | 3 | 31°58'N / 90°06'W | 32°35'N / 89°28'W | 56.40 Miles | 60 Yards | 0 | 0 | 2.5M | 0 | Simpson |
12.9 | 1976-02-18 | 2 | 32°18'N / 90°18'W | 32°22'N / 90°06'W | 12.70 Miles | 27 Yards | 0 | 50 | 2.5M | 0 | Hinds |
13.2 | 1950-03-27 | 2 | 32°17'N / 90°16'W | 32°18'N / 90°10'W | 6.20 Miles | 50 Yards | 0 | 6 | 250K | 0 | Hinds |
14.0 | 1959-01-21 | 2 | 32°12'N / 89°55'W | 32°25'N / 89°36'W | 23.80 Miles | 33 Yards | 0 | 0 | 25K | 0 | Rankin |
14.1 | 1974-02-14 | 2 | 32°28'N / 89°57'W | 0 | 0 | 0K | 0 | Rankin | |||
14.9 | 1995-05-08 | 2 | 32°15'N / 89°47'W | 32°21'N / 89°42'W | 7.00 Miles | 440 Yards | 0 | 0 | 60K | 0 | Rankin And Scott |
Brief Description: The tornado touched down between Shiloh Road and Tower road or 1.5 miles west of Crossroads at 1515cst and traveled northeast seven miles and lifted between Interstate 20 and U.S.> Highway 80 about one mile east of the Scott county line and 1 mile northeast of Clarksburg. Major damage was don to one house. Numerous large trees were uprooted along the path of the tornado. | |||||||||||
15.0 | 1983-05-19 | 2 | 32°27'N / 90°07'W | 32°29'N / 90°04'W | 4.00 Miles | 77 Yards | 0 | 2 | 2.5M | 0 | Madison |
15.6 | 1987-11-16 | 2 | 32°27'N / 89°55'W | 32°31'N / 89°55'W | 4.00 Miles | 100 Yards | 0 | 0 | 250K | 0 | Rankin |
15.8 | 2004-02-05 | 2 | 31°59'N / 90°06'W | 32°06'N / 89°59'W | 8.50 Miles | 300 Yards | 0 | 0 | 250K | 0 | Simpson |
Brief Description: This tornado touched down just to the northwest of Harrisville and tracked northeast, passing just to the west of Braxton. This tornado caused damage to several homes along Star-Braxton Road. These homes sustained mainly roof damage along with a few homes having windows blown out. One well-constructed home had its roof peeled back. This roofing material was blown several hundred feet down wind and wrapped around trees and a fence. The worst damage occurred 1.5 miles west-norhtwest of Braxton. Here, 70 percent of the forest was flattened. The tornado continued to move northeast into Rankin county, crossing Highway 49 at the Simpson and Rankin county line. | |||||||||||
15.9 | 1966-03-03 | 5 | 32°21'N / 90°07'W | 32°34'N / 89°34'W | 35.40 Miles | 33 Yards | 0 | 0 | 25.0M | 0 | Rankin |
17.9 | 2001-11-24 | 4 | 32°26'N / 90°12'W | 32°34'N / 90°03'W | 11.50 Miles | 880 Yards | 2 | 21 | 12.0M | 0 | Madison |
Brief Description: A violent tornado touched down about six miles west-southwest of the city of Madison. The touchdown point of the tornado was just south of the Fairfield subdivision, which is a large, well built subdivision of mostly brick homes. Numerous houses were seriously damaged or destroyed as the tornado, as much as one half mile wide, moved across the subdivision. Several houses in the subdivision in the direct path of the tornado were blown off of their foundations. One 25 year old woman was killed, and a pregnant woman was critically injured as the tornado destroyed their houses. The baby of the pregnant woman was delivered at the hospital and died shortly after birth. After the storm moved across the Fairfield subdivision, it continued moving northeast through several other subdivisions and large houses in the Madison and Gluckstadt communities. The tornado travelled 11.5 miles, crossing Interstate 55 before dissipating over central Madison County, about 3.5 miles south-southwest of Canton. In addition to the two deaths, a total of 21 people were injured. Damage in the county included 47 houses and seven mobile homes destroyed, 37 houses and three mobile homes with major damage, and 67 houses and three mobile homes with minor damage. F25PH, M0PH | |||||||||||
17.9 | 1976-03-29 | 4 | 32°03'N / 89°50'W | 32°07'N / 89°43'W | 8.50 Miles | 33 Yards | 0 | 0 | 2.5M | 0 | Rankin |
18.1 | 1987-11-16 | 2 | 32°04'N / 90°23'W | 32°15'N / 90°10'W | 14.00 Miles | 150 Yards | 0 | 0 | 2.5M | 0 | Hinds |
18.4 | 1976-03-29 | 4 | 31°57'N / 90°12'W | 32°03'N / 89°50'W | 22.60 Miles | 33 Yards | 0 | 0 | 2.5M | 0 | Simpson |
18.8 | 2010-12-31 | 2 | 32°05'N / 90°22'W | 32°13'N / 90°12'W | 14.00 Miles | 800 Yards | 0 | 0 | 2.0M | 0K | Hinds |
Brief Description: EVENT NARRATIVE: This tornado first touched down in Midway Estates just to the west of Midway Road. Initially the tornado knocked down a few trees and caused minor shingle damage to roofs. The tornado tracked northeast crossing Tank Road, Green Gable Road, and Lebanon-Pinegrove Road. The damage was predominantly downed trees and minor structural damage. The tornado then moved nearly parallel to Interstate 55 and passed through Byram. Numerous structures were damaged, dozens of billboards were blown out, a tanker truck was overturned, numerous power poles were snapped and numerous trees were snapped and uprooted. The tornado was the most intense at this point with winds estimated to be around 120 mph. In addition, the maximum path width of 1/2 mile occurred in Byram. The tornado then crossed the Pearl River into Rankin County. The tornado was on the ground for almost 14 miles in Hinds County with a total path length of 26 miles through both Hinds and Rankin Counties. EPISODE NARRATIVE: A potent storm system brought a prolonged outbreak of severe thunderstorms to the Lower Mississippi Valley region from the afternoon hours of New Years Eve lasting through the morning hours of New Years Day. This rare combination of high instability and wind shear is mainly what supported the large outbreak and multiple strong tornadoes. National Weather Service storm survey teams found 11 total tornadoes which occurred during this event. Of the 11, two were EF-3 with two more EF-2. Six were EF-1 with one EF-0. Damaging straight line winds also brought numerous trees and large limbs down across the area. Large hail also occurred during the event with reports ranging from quarter to golf ball size. In addition, flash flooding was a significant issue across the area. Roads were flooded in several locations, some vehicles were submerged in flood waters, and a few evacuations took place as a result of rising flood waters. | |||||||||||
18.8 | 1969-01-23 | 4 | 32°03'N / 89°49'W | 32°05'N / 89°44'W | 5.60 Miles | 200 Yards | 0 | 1 | 250K | 0 | Rankin |
19.2 | 1983-04-01 | 2 | 32°13'N / 90°19'W | 0.70 Mile | 200 Yards | 0 | 3 | 25K | 0 | Rankin | |
19.9 | 1973-03-11 | 2 | 32°03'N / 89°46'W | 32°04'N / 89°45'W | 2.30 Miles | 250 Yards | 0 | 0 | 25K | 0 | Rankin |
19.9 | 1966-03-03 | 5 | 32°11'N / 90°33'W | 32°21'N / 90°07'W | 27.80 Miles | 33 Yards | 57 | 504 | 25.0M | 0 | Hinds |
19.9 | 1958-02-26 | 3 | 32°03'N / 90°28'W | 32°18'N / 90°10'W | 24.60 Miles | 60 Yards | 1 | 0 | 250K | 0 | Hinds |
20.1 | 1969-01-23 | 4 | 31°54'N / 90°10'W | 32°03'N / 89°49'W | 23.00 Miles | 200 Yards | 12 | 65 | 250K | 0 | Simpson |
20.5 | 2005-04-06 | 2 | 32°06'N / 89°41'W | 32°13'N / 89°39'W | 12.00 Miles | 500 Yards | 0 | 0 | 120K | 2.2M | Smith |
Brief Description: This tornado touched down 1 mile north of White Oak and tracked north-northeast for 12 miles as it moved into Scott county. Once in Scott county, the tornado was on the ground for another 1.5 miles before it dissipated. At the beginning of the track, 3 outbuildings were heavily damaged and numerous large trees were snapped. The tornado continued to the north-northeast and increased in intensity. About 5 to 8 miles north-northeast of White Oak, the tornado reached its maximum intensity. Here, 7 well constructed chicken houses were destroyed and hundreds of chickens were killed. Pieces of sheet metal and other parts of the chicken houses were deposited some 2 miles downstream along the path. Additionally, a few hundred large trees were uprooted and snapped. The tornado continued to the north-northeast and moved into Scott county at 0859 CST. The tornado weakened at this point and the damage was confined to several trees snapped and uprooted. The total path length across Smith and Scott counties was 13.5 miles. | |||||||||||
20.9 | 1992-11-21 | 4 | 31°58'N / 90°12'W | 32°05'N / 90°13'W | 5.00 Miles | 880 Yards | 0 | 0 | 2.5M | 0 | Simpson |
21.0 | 1975-01-10 | 2 | 32°19'N / 90°21'W | 32°29'N / 90°17'W | 12.30 Miles | 50 Yards | 0 | 1 | 250K | 0 | Hinds |
21.1 | 1980-04-25 | 2 | 32°04'N / 90°16'W | 1.00 Mile | 70 Yards | 0 | 0 | 25K | 0 | Hinds | |
21.2 | 1967-12-20 | 2 | 32°05'N / 90°17'W | 0.50 Mile | 100 Yards | 0 | 0 | 3K | 0 | Hinds | |
21.5 | 1989-03-04 | 3 | 32°23'N / 90°22'W | 32°27'N / 90°16'W | 11.00 Miles | 350 Yards | 0 | 5 | 2.5M | 0 | Hinds |
22.5 | 1969-01-23 | 4 | 32°05'N / 89°44'W | 32°13'N / 89°32'W | 14.90 Miles | 200 Yards | 9 | 35 | 250K | 0 | Smith |
23.0 | 1975-01-10 | 2 | 32°29'N / 90°17'W | 32°31'N / 90°16'W | 2.70 Miles | 50 Yards | 0 | 0 | 250K | 0 | Madison |
23.6 | 1973-03-11 | 2 | 31°54'N / 89°48'W | 32°03'N / 89°46'W | 10.60 Miles | 250 Yards | 0 | 1 | 25K | 0 | Simpson |
23.7 | 1987-11-16 | 2 | 31°49'N / 90°01'W | 32°03'N / 89°46'W | 20.00 Miles | 100 Yards | 0 | 0 | 250K | 0 | Simpson |
23.8 | 1995-11-11 | 3 | 32°31'N / 90°24'W | 32°33'N / 90°06'W | 15.00 Miles | 200 Yards | 0 | 2 | 500K | 0 | Madison |
Brief Description: The tornado began at 0310 five miles west-southwest of Flora and traveled in an easterly direction and lifted five miles southwest of Canton at around 0330. Three mobile homes were totally destroyed. A two story house was almost totally destroyed and two of the occupants were injured. A pickup truck in front of this house was picked up and hurled into a lake nearly 100 yard behind the house. At least five houses had roof damage. Two houses under construction were leveled. Numerous trees, fences, and small buildings were blown down along the path of the tornado. | |||||||||||
24.2 | 1962-04-10 | 2 | 32°37'N / 90°03'W | 32°37'N / 89°58'W | 4.90 Miles | 1000 Yards | 0 | 0 | 25K | 0 | Madison |
24.5 | 1992-11-21 | 4 | 31°58'N / 90°14'W | 31°58'N / 90°12'W | 1.00 Mile | 880 Yards | 0 | 0 | 2.5M | 0 | Copiah |
24.9 | 1992-11-22 | 4 | 32°29'N / 89°43'W | 32°36'N / 89°43'W | 8.00 Miles | 880 Yards | 0 | 0 | 2.5M | 0 | Scott |
25.0 | 1959-03-11 | 2 | 32°05'N / 89°46'W | 32°08'N / 89°27'W | 18.90 Miles | 50 Yards | 0 | 0 | 0K | 0 | Rankin |
25.0 | 1980-10-17 | 2 | 32°32'N / 90°17'W | 0.50 Mile | 100 Yards | 0 | 0 | 25K | 0 | Madison | |
25.1 | 1970-10-13 | 2 | 32°00'N / 89°42'W | 0 | 3 | 25K | 0 | Simpson | |||
26.0 | 1950-03-27 | 2 | 32°18'N / 90°07'W | 32°59'N / 89°49'W | 50.30 Miles | 50 Yards | 0 | 0 | 250K | 0 | Rankin |
26.0 | 1953-04-24 | 2 | 31°43'N / 91°04'W | 32°35'N / 89°46'W | 96.70 Miles | 30 Yards | 0 | 0 | 25K | 0 | Jefferson |
26.6 | 1976-03-29 | 4 | 32°35'N / 90°13'W | 32°43'N / 89°52'W | 22.30 Miles | 880 Yards | 3 | 177 | 25.0M | 0 | Madison |
27.5 | 1967-12-02 | 3 | 32°21'N / 90°46'W | 32°56'N / 89°32'W | 82.30 Miles | 50 Yards | 0 | 3 | 250K | 0 | Warren |
27.7 | 1976-03-29 | 4 | 32°07'N / 89°43'W | 32°17'N / 89°20'W | 25.20 Miles | 33 Yards | 0 | 0 | 2.5M | 0 | Smith |
27.9 | 1973-11-26 | 3 | 32°02'N / 90°23'W | 0 | 0 | 0K | 0 | Copiah | |||
27.9 | 1981-05-18 | 2 | 32°40'N / 89°56'W | 32°39'N / 89°49'W | 7.10 Miles | 300 Yards | 0 | 1 | 250K | 0 | Madison |
28.0 | 1974-01-28 | 3 | 32°07'N / 90°43'W | 32°17'N / 90°13'W | 31.40 Miles | 100 Yards | 0 | 5 | 250K | 0 | Hinds |
28.3 | 1990-04-27 | 2 | 31°52'N / 89°42'W | 31°58'N / 89°47'W | 5.00 Miles | 100 Yards | 0 | 0 | 250K | 0 | Simpson |
28.3 | 1988-11-19 | 2 | 32°36'N / 89°46'W | 32°38'N / 89°43'W | 1.50 Miles | 90 Yards | 0 | 0 | 250K | 0 | Scott |
28.7 | 1958-02-26 | 3 | 32°35'N / 89°50'W | 32°42'N / 89°44'W | 10.00 Miles | 60 Yards | 6 | 12 | 250K | 0 | Madison |
29.8 | 1973-05-27 | 2 | 32°17'N / 89°29'W | 0 | 3 | 250K | 0 | Lauderdale | |||
29.8 | 1973-05-27 | 2 | 32°17'N / 89°29'W | 0 | 0 | 250K | 0 | Lauderdale | |||
29.8 | 1957-04-04 | 3 | 31°53'N / 89°46'W | 31°56'N / 89°39'W | 7.70 Miles | 167 Yards | 0 | 50 | 250K | 0 | Simpson |
29.9 | 1987-11-16 | 2 | 32°33'N / 90°19'W | 32°43'N / 90°13'W | 15.00 Miles | 73 Yards | 0 | 0 | 250K | 0 | Madison |
30.1 | 1976-03-26 | 4 | 31°47'N / 90°01'W | 31°54'N / 89°44'W | 18.50 Miles | 880 Yards | 0 | 11 | 2.5M | 0 | Simpson |
30.4 | 2004-11-24 | 2 | 31°45'N / 90°04'W | 31°55'N / 89°44'W | 24.00 Miles | 200 Yards | 0 | 0 | 1.5M | 0 | Simpson |
Brief Description: This tornado continued out of northern Lawrence county and moved into southwest Simpson county 5 miles southwest of the Shivers community. As this tornado tracked northeast, several hundred trees were uprooted and snapped. Several chicken houses sustained major damage along with a few totally destroyed. Three homes sustained major damage and nine mobile homes sustained major damage. This tornado tracked across several highways including State Highway 28 and 13. This tornado also crossed US Highway 49, 4 miles northwest of Magee. Here the tornado severely damaged the VFW Post 9122 building and rolled over an RV. This tornado weakened as moved a little more northeast and dissipated 4 miles north of Magee. | |||||||||||
30.6 | 1983-05-20 | 2 | 32°15'N / 90°33'W | 32°18'N / 90°29'W | 4.00 Miles | 77 Yards | 0 | 0 | 25K | 0 | Hinds |
30.7 | 1961-02-20 | 2 | 31°46'N / 89°51'W | 31°56'N / 89°46'W | 12.50 Miles | 73 Yards | 0 | 2 | 0K | 0 | Simpson |
30.8 | 1977-01-09 | 2 | 31°55'N / 89°40'W | 1.00 Mile | 200 Yards | 0 | 0 | 25K | 0 | Smith | |
30.9 | 1974-02-21 | 3 | 31°46'N / 89°57'W | 31°54'N / 89°46'W | 14.20 Miles | 33 Yards | 0 | 0 | 25K | 0 | Simpson |
31.0 | 2009-03-26 | 3 | 31°47'N / 89°51'W | 31°57'N / 89°39'W | 16.00 Miles | 500 Yards | 0 | 25 | 5.0M | 0K | Simpson |
Brief Description: EVENT NARRATIVE: The tornado first touched down just north of Mount Zion Road in Southwest Simpson County and continued northeast through the northwest side of Magee and then across the Smith County line before lifting near South County Road 503. Along the path, 60 homes were damaged or destroyed. A large, well-built church was destroyed. A warehouse was significantly damaged and a radio tower was snapped. Hundreds of hardwood and softwood trees were snapped and uprooted. The highest winds occurred at the church and nearby houses and trees just southwest of Magee along and just off Highway 28. Maximum winds were around 150 mph. The EF3 rating was in Simpson County while the highest rated damage in Smith County was EF1. Total path length across both counties was near 18 miles. EPISODE NARRATIVE: A round of severe thunderstorms, containing tornadoes and damaging straight line winds, occurred Wednesday night, March 25, into early Thursday morning, March 26. These storms developed as a strong upper level disturbance encountered an unstable environment over the lower Mississippi Valley. A squall line of showers and thunderstorms pushed rapidly eastward across the area. One supercell storm formed ahead of the main line and produced a strong tornado which hit the town of Magee. Eight tornadoes were confirmed from this event. Of the 8 tornadoes, 1 was rated EF3, 1 was rated EF2, 4 were rated EF1, and 2 were rated EF0. Numerous other locations experienced damaging straight line winds in excess of 60-70 mph. The worst damage occurred from a tornado which laid a 17.5 mile long track across Simpson and Smith counties. This storm was rated as EF3 with estimated 150 mph maximum winds near Magee. A second strong tornado, rated EF2 with 125 mph winds, effected Jones County near Soso. | |||||||||||
31.6 | 2010-11-30 | 2 | 32°00'N / 89°36'W | 32°06'N / 89°26'W | 11.00 Miles | 600 Yards | 0 | 0 | 900K | 0K | Smith |
Brief Description: EVENT NARRATIVE: This tornado started west southwest of Raleigh along county road 516 near Highway 540. The tornado tracked northeast downing numerous trees and power lines along the path. At its widest point the tornado produced substantial damage to a brick home...removing half of the roof and severely damaging the remaining half. The walls of the home fell in the section of the house where the roof was removed. Several other houses received minor to moderate roof damage. Numerous sheds and small barns were destroyed or damaged. Tin roofing and siding was removed from a storage shed...some of which became projectiles that were forced through the walls of a wood frame house. A mobile home was blown off its foundation. Widespread tree damage also occurred. Maximum winds were around 125 mph. EPISODE NARRATIVE: During the evening hours of November 29th and the overnight/early morning period of the 30th, the region was impacted by an outbreak of tornadoes. This outbreak brought 13 tornadoes to the forecast area. This occurred as potent storm system moved out of the Rockies and developed a strong area of low pressure across the Central Plains. This surface low caused a warm front to take shape and quickly lift northward across the forecast during the afternoon of the 29th. Warm and humid conditions pushed north, which led to unstable conditions over the region just ahead of the advancing strong cold front. The wind energy through the atmosphere was strong. The resulting wind shear (change in wind speed or direction with height) was strong and very favorable for rotating storms and supporting tornadoes. As the clash of systems occurred, a mix of supercell thunderstorms developed, along with a broken line of thunderstorms. A handful of these storms utilized the strong wind shear present and produced tornadoes. Overall, 13 tornadoes occurred with 5 being of the strong variety (EF2-EF3). The strongest tornado occurred over northwest Leake and southern Attala Counties. Here, an EF3 moved along a 10 mile path and destroyed numerous mobile homes, 6 people were injured. Four other strong tornadoes occurred and were all rated EF2. Two of these occurred in Yazoo County, one just southwest of Yazoo City and the other in Downtown Yazoo City. Numerous buildings were damaged along with many trees and power lines down. Another EF2 occurred in Starkville where it destroyed multiple mobile homes in town. Fifteen injuries occurred in this area. The final EF2 occurred in Smith County. This tornado had an 11 mile path which started just SW of Raleigh to 6 miles NE of Raleigh. One brick home sustained significant damage along with numerous other buildings and sheds damaged. This outbreak broke a streak of 3 years when no tornadoes occurred during the month of November across Mississippi. Additionally, the last Fall outbreak of tornadoes occurred on November 24, 2004. Historically, November marks the peak of our 2nd severe weather season and ranks 3rd as the most active month for tornadoes in Mississippi, just a few behind March. | |||||||||||
31.7 | 1975-01-10 | 4 | 31°45'N / 90°07'W | 31°52'N / 89°58'W | 11.90 Miles | 150 Yards | 0 | 1 | 25K | 0 | Simpson |
32.0 | 1980-04-25 | 2 | 31°46'N / 89°59'W | 31°53'N / 89°40'W | 20.30 Miles | 900 Yards | 1 | 7 | 2.5M | 0 | Simpson |
32.5 | 1997-02-21 | 2 | 32°31'N / 89°34'W | 32°34'N / 89°31'W | 5.00 Miles | 200 Yards | 0 | 1 | 150K | 0 | Scott |
Brief Description: The tornado touched down 2 miles southwest of the Midway community. As the tornado tracked northeast through the community of Midway, it destroyed three mobile homes and caused significant roof damage to two residences. In addition the Midway Community Center was nearly totally destroyed. Just to the northeast of Midway the tornado uprooted or snapped off 75 to 100 trees and a house was significantly damaged. Another older house was totally destroyed. The tornado continued to move northeast and it lifted in the town of Walnut Grove. Damage in Walnut Grove consisted of several houses having some roof damage and several large trees being uprooted. Just southwest of Walnut Grove, six chicken houses were destroyed. One injury was reported in the Midway community. | |||||||||||
32.6 | 1988-11-19 | 2 | 32°38'N / 89°43'W | 32°40'N / 89°37'W | 10.50 Miles | 90 Yards | 0 | 2 | 250K | 0 | Leake |
32.8 | 1990-12-21 | 3 | 32°42'N / 90°04'W | 32°47'N / 89°57'W | 11.00 Miles | 880 Yards | 0 | 0 | 2.5M | 0 | Madison |
33.0 | 1987-11-16 | 2 | 32°43'N / 90°13'W | 32°44'N / 90°05'W | 6.00 Miles | 73 Yards | 0 | 0 | 250K | 0 | Yazoo |
33.5 | 1999-12-09 | 3 | 32°38'N / 90°21'W | 32°42'N / 90°17'W | 6.00 Miles | 400 Yards | 0 | 1 | 200K | 0 | Yazoo |
Brief Description: This strong tornado blew down or uprooted thousands of trees and destroyed two mobile homes. One person was seriously injured. Several barns and out buildings were also destroyed and several farm implements were damaged. One of the out buildings had steel girders which were anchored into three foot square concrete pads and buried in the ground. Almost all of these girders were pulled out of the ground and thrown at least fifty yards. | |||||||||||
34.3 | 1958-02-26 | 3 | 32°42'N / 89°44'W | 32°43'N / 89°43'W | 1.30 Miles | 60 Yards | 0 | 0 | 250K | 0 | Leake |
34.3 | 1958-02-26 | 3 | 31°59'N / 90°32'W | 32°03'N / 90°28'W | 6.20 Miles | 60 Yards | 0 | 0 | 250K | 0 | Copiah |
34.5 | 1955-04-12 | 2 | 31°55'N / 89°59'W | 32°04'N / 89°01'W | 57.60 Miles | 33 Yards | 0 | 0 | 3K | 0 | Simpson |
34.6 | 1994-11-27 | 3 | 31°53'N / 89°45'W | 32°13'N / 89°10'W | 40.00 Miles | 200 Yards | 2 | 0 | 2.0M | 0 | Simpson, Smith And Jasper |
Brief Description: This tornado touched down 1 mile northwest of Magee in Simpson County moved northeast and moved into Smith County, 4 miles southwest of Cohay, at 2225CST. The tornado moved across Smith County and moved into Jasper County, 4 miles west of Louin, at around 2300CST. The tornado lifted at 2315CST 3 miles south of Baxter. The most intense segment of this tornado (F3) was when it moved across the north portions of Magee. Forty to fifty houses or mobile homes had major damage. Two people were killed in Magee when a large tree fell across their mobile home. Most of the damage in Smith County was to trees and power lines. In Jasper County, several chicken houses were destroyed around Montrose and most other damage as to trees. The tornado was weaker in Smith and Jasper counties and ranged from F0-F1. F38M M02M | |||||||||||
34.7 | 1972-01-09 | 2 | 31°50'N / 89°43'W | 31°54'N / 89°33'W | 10.90 Miles | 200 Yards | 0 | 0 | 25K | 0 | Simpson |
34.7 | 1957-04-04 | 3 | 31°56'N / 89°39'W | 32°05'N / 89°19'W | 22.10 Miles | 167 Yards | 1 | 25 | 0K | 0 | Smith |
35.8 | 1978-04-17 | 3 | 32°07'N / 90°37'W | 32°08'N / 90°33'W | 4.50 Miles | 100 Yards | 0 | 0 | 250K | 0 | Hinds |
36.0 | 1977-12-24 | 3 | 31°48'N / 90°20'W | 31°48'N / 90°12'W | 8.00 Miles | 440 Yards | 0 | 0 | 250K | 0 | Copiah |
36.3 | 2004-11-24 | 2 | 32°38'N / 89°32'W | 32°40'N / 89°36'W | 10.00 Miles | 400 Yards | 0 | 0 | 300K | 0 | Leake |
Brief Description: This tornado touched down just inside Scott county and tracked northeast for 10 miles across southwest Leake county. Hundreds of trees were damaged along its path. Four mobile homes sustained minor damage with pieces of siding torn off and small parts of their roof pealed back. Major damage occurred to three residential homes were two sustained significant roof damage and the other was destroyed due to several trees falling on it. In addition, one chicken house was severely damaged and three farm buildings destroyed. | |||||||||||
36.6 | 1969-01-23 | 4 | 32°13'N / 89°32'W | 32°18'N / 89°12'W | 20.30 Miles | 200 Yards | 0 | 0 | 250K | 0 | Scott |
36.7 | 1976-03-20 | 2 | 32°43'N / 90°17'W | 32°46'N / 90°16'W | 3.80 Miles | 150 Yards | 0 | 0 | 25K | 0 | Yazoo |
36.8 | 2004-11-24 | 2 | 32°01'N / 89°32'W | 32°05'N / 89°18'W | 12.50 Miles | 600 Yards | 0 | 2 | 3.5M | 0 | Smith |
Brief Description: This tornado touched down just south of Raleigh on State Highway 35 and tracked northeast to the Jasper Smith county line, 7 miles northeast of Sylvarena, where it then moved into Jasper county. Along its path it uprooted and destroyed a few thousand trees. Thirteen chicken houses were destroyed and six others were damaged. Three mobile homes and one residential home were destroyed along with five other homes sustaining major damage. Two people were injured when a mobile home was blown off its foundation and destroyed 10 miles northeast of Raleigh. At 210 AM the strong tornado moved into northwest Jasper county. The total path length of this tornado was 38 miles across Smith, Jasper and Newton counties. | |||||||||||
36.9 | 1957-02-01 | 2 | 32°47'N / 89°50'W | 1.00 Mile | 100 Yards | 0 | 0 | 3K | 0 | Madison | |
37.0 | 1997-02-21 | 2 | 32°34'N / 89°29'W | 32°35'N / 89°28'W | 1.00 Mile | 200 Yards | 0 | 0 | 1.5M | 0 | Leake |
Brief Description: The tornado touched down 2 miles southwest of the Midway community. As the tornado tracked northeast through the community of Midway, it destroyed three mobile homes and caused significant roof damage to two residences. In addition the Midway Community Center was nearly totally destroyed. Just to the northeast of Midway the tornado uprooted or snapped off 75 to 100 trees and a house was significantly damaged. Another older house was totally destroyed. The tornado continued to move northeast and it lifted in the town of Walnut Grove. Damage in Walnut Grove consisted of several houses having some roof damage and several large trees being uprooted. Just southwest of Walnut Grove, six chicken houses were destroyed. One injury was reported in the Midway community. | |||||||||||
37.1 | 1972-01-09 | 2 | 31°44'N / 89°55'W | 2.00 Miles | 33 Yards | 0 | 0 | 25K | 0 | Jefferson Davis | |
37.2 | 1980-10-17 | 2 | 32°47'N / 90°10'W | 32°49'N / 90°00'W | 10.00 Miles | 900 Yards | 0 | 0 | 250K | 0 | Yazoo |
37.3 | 1953-01-22 | 2 | 31°55'N / 90°37'W | 32°07'N / 90°30'W | 15.50 Miles | 100 Yards | 0 | 1 | 250K | 0 | Humphreys |
37.4 | 2004-12-07 | 2 | 32°13'N / 90°44'W | 32°18'N / 90°32'W | 13.00 Miles | 400 Yards | 0 | 0 | 500K | 0 | Hinds |
Brief Description: This tornado moved into Hinds county from Claiborne county and intensified as it tracked northeast across west-central Hinds county. A few thousand trees were uprooted and snapped along the 13 mile path. Just off State Highway 27, large barn was severely damaged and a home had its roof torn off along Newman Road. On Puckett Road, a home was damaged and the garage had its roof torn off. A few more homes sustained damage as the tornado moved northeast. The tornado dissipated 5 miles southwest of Bolton. The total path length across Warren, Claiborne and Hinds county was 26 miles. | |||||||||||
37.4 | 1976-03-29 | 4 | 31°47'N / 90°39'W | 31°57'N / 90°12'W | 28.80 Miles | 880 Yards | 0 | 0 | 2.5M | 0 | Copiah |
37.5 | 1967-12-02 | 4 | 32°28'N / 89°28'W | 32°31'N / 89°21'W | 7.60 Miles | 300 Yards | 2 | 10 | 25K | 0 | Scott |
37.5 | 1977-03-03 | 2 | 32°45'N / 89°46'W | 32°47'N / 89°43'W | 4.10 Miles | 440 Yards | 0 | 0 | 25K | 0 | Madison |
37.6 | 1980-04-25 | 2 | 31°53'N / 89°40'W | 31°58'N / 89°19'W | 21.30 Miles | 33 Yards | 0 | 0 | 2.5M | 0 | Smith |
38.0 | 1965-06-13 | 2 | 32°21'N / 89°21'W | 1.00 Mile | 87 Yards | 0 | 0 | 25K | 0 | Scott | |
38.0 | 2005-04-06 | 3 | 31°47'N / 89°39'W | 32°03'N / 89°20'W | 26.00 Miles | 600 Yards | 0 | 0 | 8.0M | 600K | Smith |
Brief Description: This strong tornado developed from a long lived supercell thunderstorm, which had a history of producing tornadoes, that moved across a large portion of Southern and Central Mississippi. The tornado touched down just N of Mount Olive, in Covington county, and stayed on the ground for 28 miles across most of Smith county, where it dissipated around the Ted community just inside Jasper county. Where the tornado first touched down it was weak, F0, and only downed a few trees. As it moved NE, into Smith county, it quickly gained strength. F1 to F2 type damaged occurred across SW Smith county where hundreds of trees were snapped or uprooted and several homes and outbuildings had part or all of their roofs blown off. As the strong tornado approached Mize, MS, it became stronger and reached it maximum intensity, F3. Here the tornado was 600 yards wide and was significantly damaging nearly all the trees in its path. One mile to the SW of Mize, a mobile home was destroyed. The most significant damage occurred in Mize where the Attendance Center was nearly demolished. The top floor of the Attendance Center was almost completely taken off, 3 portable classrooms were destroyed along with several large light poles bent or snapped. The tornado continued to the NE toward the Center Ridge community. The damage between Mize and Center Ridge, a distance of nearly 9 miles, ranged between F2 and F3. Along Providence Road, a barn was destroyed, 2 homes were significantly damaged and a church was heavily damaged. The tornado crossed State Highway 37 and continued toward the Center Ridge community. Here, many more trees were uprooted along with several structures demolished or sustaining significant damage. As the tornado tracked toward Sylvarena, it began to weaken and become smaller. From this point, to where it dissipated in Jasper county, damage was confined to trees snapped and uprooted. This tornado affected 3 counties and had a total path length of 28 miles. | |||||||||||
38.6 | 1973-12-04 | 2 | 32°20'N / 90°39'W | 2.00 Miles | 30 Yards | 0 | 0 | 250K | 0 | Hinds | |
38.7 | 1969-04-13 | 2 | 31°43'N / 90°17'W | 31°47'N / 90°13'W | 6.10 Miles | 267 Yards | 0 | 5 | 25K | 0 | Copiah |
38.8 | 1969-04-13 | 2 | 31°47'N / 89°38'W | 31°50'N / 89°35'W | 4.70 Miles | 250 Yards | 0 | 0 | 250K | 0 | Smith |
38.9 | 1971-02-21 | 4 | 32°32'N / 90°33'W | 32°57'N / 90°09'W | 37.00 Miles | 33 Yards | 11 | 154 | 0K | 0 | Yazoo |
38.9 | 1955-04-12 | 2 | 31°32'N / 89°25'W | 32°35'N / 89°20'W | 72.70 Miles | 33 Yards | 0 | 0 | 250K | 0 | Lincoln |
39.3 | 1980-10-17 | 2 | 32°49'N / 90°00'W | 32°51'N / 89°53'W | 7.20 Miles | 33 Yards | 0 | 0 | 250K | 0 | Madison |
39.3 | 1961-11-15 | 2 | 32°21'N / 90°40'W | 32°22'N / 90°39'W | 1.90 Miles | 50 Yards | 0 | 0 | 0K | 0 | Warren |
39.4 | 1976-02-18 | 3 | 32°33'N / 89°38'W | 32°43'N / 89°19'W | 21.70 Miles | 200 Yards | 1 | 27 | 2.5M | 0 | Leake |
39.6 | 1971-02-21 | 4 | 32°20'N / 90°44'W | 32°32'N / 90°33'W | 17.50 Miles | 33 Yards | 2 | 28 | 0K | 0 | Warren |
39.9 | 1969-04-13 | 2 | 31°45'N / 89°40'W | 31°47'N / 89°38'W | 3.30 Miles | 250 Yards | 0 | 11 | 250K | 0 | Covington |
40.1 | 1969-01-23 | 4 | 31°46'N / 90°44'W | 31°54'N / 90°10'W | 34.50 Miles | 200 Yards | 11 | 140 | 250K | 0 | Copiah |
40.1 | 1961-11-15 | 2 | 32°20'N / 90°41'W | 32°21'N / 90°40'W | 1.90 Miles | 50 Yards | 0 | 1 | 25K | 0 | Hinds |
40.4 | 1992-11-22 | 4 | 31°51'N / 89°31'W | 32°05'N / 89°17'W | 20.00 Miles | 1760 Yards | 0 | 15 | 25.0M | 0 | Smith |
40.6 | 1968-11-17 | 2 | 31°41'N / 89°59'W | 31°41'N / 89°50'W | 8.90 Miles | 33 Yards | 0 | 0 | 0K | 0 | Lawrence |
40.6 | 1961-02-20 | 2 | 31°36'N / 89°57'W | 31°46'N / 89°51'W | 12.90 Miles | 73 Yards | 0 | 2 | 250K | 0 | Jefferson Davis |
40.9 | 1968-11-17 | 2 | 31°41'N / 89°57'W | 31°40'N / 89°56'W | 1.90 Miles | 33 Yards | 0 | 0 | 0K | 0 | Lawrence |
41.0 | 1977-03-28 | 3 | 32°43'N / 89°58'W | 32°58'N / 89°40'W | 24.50 Miles | 250 Yards | 0 | 0 | 250K | 0 | Sharkey |
41.4 | 1969-04-13 | 2 | 31°38'N / 90°03'W | 31°42'N / 90°00'W | 5.60 Miles | 140 Yards | 0 | 0 | 25K | 0 | Lawrence |
41.7 | 1992-11-22 | 4 | 32°36'N / 89°43'W | 32°57'N / 89°30'W | 36.00 Miles | 880 Yards | 1 | 0 | 2.5M | 0 | Leake |
41.9 | 1968-12-27 | 2 | 32°44'N / 89°32'W | 1.00 Mile | 100 Yards | 0 | 0 | 0K | 0 | Leake | |
41.9 | 1999-02-27 | 3 | 31°37'N / 90°14'W | 31°43'N / 89°59'W | 17.00 Miles | 440 Yards | 0 | 0 | 200K | 0 | Lawrence |
Brief Description: This strong tornado moved across Northern Lawrence county through mainly rural areas knocking down many trees and power lines. Many homes received damage, particularly near the towns of Sontag and New Hebron. Several homes received major damage. | |||||||||||
42.6 | 1992-11-21 | 3 | 31°39'N / 89°44'W | 31°46'N / 89°38'W | 12.00 Miles | 880 Yards | 0 | 100 | 25.0M | 0 | Covington |
43.6 | 1976-06-01 | 2 | 32°26'N / 89°19'W | 32°27'N / 89°14'W | 4.90 Miles | 440 Yards | 0 | 0 | 250K | 0 | Newton |
43.9 | 1958-02-26 | 3 | 32°35'N / 89°28'W | 32°43'N / 89°19'W | 12.70 Miles | 60 Yards | 1 | 24 | 2.5M | 0 | Leake |
43.9 | 1992-11-22 | 4 | 32°05'N / 89°17'W | 32°15'N / 89°13'W | 12.00 Miles | 1760 Yards | 0 | 0 | 25.0M | 0 | Jasper |
44.2 | 1970-10-13 | 2 | 32°35'N / 89°20'W | 0 | 1 | 0K | 0 | Leake | |||
44.3 | 1953-05-04 | 2 | 31°50'N / 89°26'W | 1.50 Miles | 200 Yards | 0 | 1 | 25K | 0 | Smith | |
44.5 | 1975-05-03 | 2 | 32°21'N / 90°47'W | 32°26'N / 90°42'W | 7.40 Miles | 440 Yards | 0 | 0 | 25K | 0 | Warren |
44.6 | 1978-04-18 | 4 | 31°35'N / 89°58'W | 31°40'N / 89°50'W | 9.90 Miles | 100 Yards | 0 | 0 | 0K | 0 | Jefferson Davis |
44.6 | 2002-11-10 | 2 | 32°54'N / 89°50'W | 32°53'N / 89°46'W | 3.00 Miles | 1000 Yards | 0 | 0 | 15K | 0 | Attala |
Brief Description: A tornado developed near the Madison/Attala County line, about 9.5 miles south of Boyette (5 miles northeast of Cameron in Madison County). Travelling east-northeast, the tornado resulted in tree damage to rural areas of Southeast Attala County. The tornado moved into Leake County around 7:32 PM about 9 miles south of Sallis. | |||||||||||
45.0 | 1987-11-16 | 2 | 31°42'N / 90°25'W | 31°43'N / 90°22'W | 4.00 Miles | 150 Yards | 0 | 0 | 250K | 0 | Copiah |
45.2 | 1971-12-15 | 3 | 31°35'N / 89°58'W | 31°40'N / 89°43'W | 15.90 Miles | 150 Yards | 0 | 0 | 25K | 0 | Jefferson Davis |
45.3 | 1992-11-21 | 2 | 31°42'N / 90°24'W | 31°43'N / 90°24'W | 1.00 Mile | 440 Yards | 0 | 0 | 250K | 0 | Copiah |
45.5 | 1977-03-28 | 2 | 32°54'N / 90°02'W | 32°57'N / 89°58'W | 5.20 Miles | 150 Yards | 0 | 4 | 25K | 0 | Issaquena |
45.5 | 2010-04-24 | 4 | 32°42'N / 90°40'W | 32°57'N / 90°09'W | 35.00 Miles | 3080 Yards | 4 | 53 | 140.0M | 4.0M | Yazoo |
Brief Description: EVENT NARRATIVE: The tornado moved out of extreme southeast Sharkey County and into west central Yazoo County and gained intensity as it tracked northeast. The tornado caused significant home damage northwest of Satartia, and again as it crossed Highway 3 near the Crupp Community. The tornado then moved through a rural area southwest of Yazoo City, causing major damage or destruction of a number of homes, as well as intense tree damage. As the tornado approached the intersection of US Highway 49 and Highway 16, on the south side of Yazoo City, it reached its widest point and maximum intensity. Here the rating peaked at EF4 with maximum winds around 170 mph. The tornado had a maximum width of 1.75 miles. Several buildings, including a church and several businesses, were totally destroyed. The tornado continued moving through residential areas on the southeast side of Yazoo City, heavily damaging or destroying numerous homes. The tornado continued northeast through rural northeastern Yazoo County before it tracked into Holmes County. A total of four fatalities occurred in Yazoo County. All of the fatalities were individuals who were in mobile homes. EPISODE NARRATIVE: During the midday hours of April 24th, an intense supercell thunderstorm produced a violent, long track tornado, which ripped a path across the center of the NWS Jackson, MS forecast area. This tornado touched down just south of I-20, west of Tallulah, in Madison Parish. The tornado intensified quickly and became large as it tracked at a fast pace to the northeast. The tornado moved at roughly 55 mph and was on the ground for 149 miles. The actual time on the ground was 2 hours and 44 minutes. The tornado touched 9 counties/parishes along it's path with the most significant damage occurring in Madison Parish, Warren, Yazoo, Holmes, Attala and Choctaw Counties. A great deal of the damage was in the EF2 and EF3 range with a couple locations of EF4 damage in Yazoo and Holmes Counties. Maximum winds peaked around 170 mph. Overall, 10 fatalities occurred along with 146 injuries. Five fatalities occurred in Choctaw County, 4 in Yazoo County, and 1 in Holmes County. As we try and put this tornado into perspective for the state of Mississippi, this long track tornado ranks as the 4th longest in Mississippi history at 149 miles. It is the widest known tornado with a maximum width of 1.75 miles. It also ranks as the 9th deadliest tornado with 10 fatalities, making it the most deadly since November 21st 1992. Lastly, this was the first violent tornado (F4 or greater) in the month of April since April 18th, 1978. | |||||||||||
45.6 | 2008-01-10 | 3 | 32°54'N / 90°00'W | 32°57'N / 89°53'W | 8.00 Miles | 1320 Yards | 0 | 3 | 3.0M | 700K | Holmes |
Brief Description: EVENT NARRATIVE: The tornado started with a narrow path of scattered downed trees near Shady Lane Road. The damage intensified as it approached Highway 17. Here tree damage became much more intense with hundreds of trees snapped and uprooted. One home had a portion of its roof ripped off. The tornado intensified and reached its maximum intensity and width between Highway 17 and U.S. Highway 51. Hundreds of trees were snapped and uprooted, some of them hardwoods that were snapped off except for a few large limbs and partially debarked. Several mobile homes were obliterated and two homes of wood frame and concrete block construction had nearly all of the outer walls collapsed along with total roof removal. Large missiles were generated, including a pickup truck that was thrown nearly 150 yards. On the east side of U.S. Highway 51, three high tension steel power poles were snapped off near the base. As the tornado continued east-northeast and moved into Attala County, the path narrowed and damage became limited to tree damage before dissipation just inside the Attala County line. The total path length across both Holmes and Attala Counties was 10 miles with a EF3 Enhanced Fujita Scale rating. Maximum winds were around 140 mph. EPISODE NARRATIVE: The second week of January 2008 was quite active with respect to severe weather. Two events impacted the region in a span of 3 days which produced several tornadoes, large hail and wind damage across the area. On January 10th a vigorous storm system developed over the southern portions of the Midwest and moved northeast towards the Ohio valley. A strong cold front swept across the area during the late morning into the afternoon hours and strong to severe thunderstorms developed out ahead of it. All of the ingredients for tornadic development came into place as warm Gulf moisture pushed northward into the area out ahead of the front. The thunderstorms developed in eastern Louisiana and quickly moved across central Mississippi during the late morning and afternoon hours. As the storms progressed eastward, good instability combined with very strong wind shear for supercell development east of the Mississippi River, with the storms reaching maximum intensity along and east of the interstate 55 corridor. By far, the most damage was produced by a single supercell thunderstorm that moved from north of Vicksburg through north central and northeast Mississippi during the late morning and early afternoon hours. This single storm produced three strong tornadoes, all of which were rated as EF3 on the Enhanced Fujita tornado damage scale. The most significant damage occurred in Caledonia in Lowndes County, where a school gymnasium was destroyed along with a number of school buses and vehicles in the area. A second supercell that organized near the Mississippi River in southwest Mississippi before midday tracked from Claiborne County, through the northern Jackson Metropolitan Area, and finally into Noxubee county in northeast Mississippi by mid afternoon. This storm was responsible for 5 different tornado touchdowns along its path, as well as many reports of high winds and hail. The rest of the area saw a broken line of storms and other supercells ahead of the line. A mix of damaging winds and hail were reported through the rest of the afternoon before the system exited the area. | |||||||||||
45.7 | 1957-04-04 | 3 | 32°05'N / 89°19'W | 32°08'N / 89°09'W | 10.40 Miles | 167 Yards | 0 | 0 | 0K | 0 | Jasper |
45.8 | 1986-03-12 | 3 | 31°54'N / 89°22'W | 31°58'N / 89°16'W | 2.00 Miles | 123 Yards | 0 | 0 | 2.5M | 0 | Smith |
45.9 | 1980-04-25 | 2 | 31°58'N / 89°19'W | 32°00'N / 89°15'W | 4.50 Miles | 33 Yards | 0 | 1 | 2.5M | 0 | Jasper |
45.9 | 1978-04-17 | 2 | 31°42'N / 90°27'W | 31°44'N / 90°25'W | 3.30 Miles | 33 Yards | 0 | 0 | 25K | 0 | Copiah |
46.0 | 1988-11-26 | 2 | 32°27'N / 90°49'W | 32°30'N / 90°40'W | 9.00 Miles | 600 Yards | 0 | 0 | 2.5M | 0 | Warren |
46.1 | 1975-01-10 | 4 | 31°31'N / 90°14'W | 31°43'N / 90°07'W | 15.40 Miles | 150 Yards | 0 | 0 | 250K | 0 | Lawrence |
46.2 | 1982-04-02 | 3 | 32°43'N / 89°31'W | 32°45'N / 89°20'W | 12.00 Miles | 400 Yards | 0 | 5 | 25.0M | 0 | Leake |
46.7 | 1972-04-21 | 2 | 31°38'N / 89°43'W | 31°42'N / 89°32'W | 11.70 Miles | 90 Yards | 0 | 8 | 250K | 0 | Covington |
46.7 | 2010-11-29 | 2 | 32°43'N / 90°37'W | 32°49'N / 90°27'W | 12.00 Miles | 200 Yards | 0 | 0 | 700K | 0K | Yazoo |
Brief Description: EVENT NARRATIVE: Numerous trees and power poles were snapped and trees were uprooted. Several irrigation pumps were flipped over. Several homes received extensive roof and wall damage. A single wide mobile home was completely destroyed. The roof was torn off a metal frame building and two semi-trucks were flipped over. Maximum winds were around 125 mph. EPISODE NARRATIVE: During the evening hours of November 29th and the overnight/early morning period of the 30th, the region was impacted by an outbreak of tornadoes. This outbreak brought 13 tornadoes to the forecast area. This occurred as potent storm system moved out of the Rockies and developed a strong area of low pressure across the Central Plains. This surface low caused a warm front to take shape and quickly lift northward across the forecast during the afternoon of the 29th. Warm and humid conditions pushed north, which led to unstable conditions over the region just ahead of the advancing strong cold front. The wind energy through the atmosphere was strong. The resulting wind shear (change in wind speed or direction with height) was strong and very favorable for rotating storms and supporting tornadoes. As the clash of systems occurred, a mix of supercell thunderstorms developed, along with a broken line of thunderstorms. A handful of these storms utilized the strong wind shear present and produced tornadoes. Overall, 13 tornadoes occurred with 5 being of the strong variety (EF2-EF3). The strongest tornado occurred over northwest Leake and southern Attala Counties. Here, an EF3 moved along a 10 mile path and destroyed numerous mobile homes, 6 people were injured. Four other strong tornadoes occurred and were all rated EF2. Two of these occurred in Yazoo County, one just southwest of Yazoo City and the other in Downtown Yazoo City. Numerous buildings were damaged along with many trees and power lines down. Another EF2 occurred in Starkville where it destroyed multiple mobile homes in town. Fifteen injuries occurred in this area. The final EF2 occurred in Smith County. This tornado had an 11 mile path which started just SW of Raleigh to 6 miles NE of Raleigh. One brick home sustained significant damage along with numerous other buildings and sheds damaged. This outbreak broke a streak of 3 years when no tornadoes occurred during the month of November across Mississippi. Additionally, the last Fall outbreak of tornadoes occurred on November 24, 2004. Historically, November marks the peak of our 2nd severe weather season and ranks 3rd as the most active month for tornadoes in Mississippi, just a few behind March. | |||||||||||
46.8 | 1992-11-22 | 4 | 32°15'N / 89°13'W | 32°19'N / 89°10'W | 8.00 Miles | 1760 Yards | 0 | 5 | 2.5M | 0 | Newton |
46.8 | 1974-02-21 | 3 | 31°33'N / 90°12'W | 31°39'N / 90°05'W | 9.80 Miles | 200 Yards | 0 | 13 | 250K | 0 | Lawrence |
47.3 | 2010-11-29 | 2 | 32°51'N / 90°25'W | 32°54'N / 90°19'W | 7.00 Miles | 150 Yards | 0 | 0 | 1.3M | 0K | Yazoo |
Brief Description: EVENT NARRATIVE: This storm tracked through downtown Yazoo City. It damaged several buildings, most of which was roof damage however one building had some exterior walls destroyed. Numerous windows were blown out of downtown buildings and a large area of siding was torn from another building. The tornado knocked down trees and damaged the roof of the county courthouse. Damage in the downtown area was the strongest for this tornado and rated as EF2.The tornado weakened as it moved northeast for about a mile with only scattered tree damage occurring. As the tornado crossed Jerry Clower Blvd it strengthened and snapped a power pole and damaged the roof of a store. The tornado weakened again and downed scattered trees as it crossed Honeycutt Road and Graball Freerun Road. A roof was pealed off a home near Landers Road with additional trees down. The final damage was noted along Graball Freerun Road between Carson and Strickland Roads. Maximum winds were around 115 mph. EPISODE NARRATIVE: During the evening hours of November 29th and the overnight/early morning period of the 30th, the region was impacted by an outbreak of tornadoes. This outbreak brought 13 tornadoes to the forecast area. This occurred as potent storm system moved out of the Rockies and developed a strong area of low pressure across the Central Plains. This surface low caused a warm front to take shape and quickly lift northward across the forecast during the afternoon of the 29th. Warm and humid conditions pushed north, which led to unstable conditions over the region just ahead of the advancing strong cold front. The wind energy through the atmosphere was strong. The resulting wind shear (change in wind speed or direction with height) was strong and very favorable for rotating storms and supporting tornadoes. As the clash of systems occurred, a mix of supercell thunderstorms developed, along with a broken line of thunderstorms. A handful of these storms utilized the strong wind shear present and produced tornadoes. Overall, 13 tornadoes occurred with 5 being of the strong variety (EF2-EF3). The strongest tornado occurred over northwest Leake and southern Attala Counties. Here, an EF3 moved along a 10 mile path and destroyed numerous mobile homes, 6 people were injured. Four other strong tornadoes occurred and were all rated EF2. Two of these occurred in Yazoo County, one just southwest of Yazoo City and the other in Downtown Yazoo City. Numerous buildings were damaged along with many trees and power lines down. Another EF2 occurred in Starkville where it destroyed multiple mobile homes in town. Fifteen injuries occurred in this area. The final EF2 occurred in Smith County. This tornado had an 11 mile path which started just SW of Raleigh to 6 miles NE of Raleigh. One brick home sustained significant damage along with numerous other buildings and sheds damaged. This outbreak broke a streak of 3 years when no tornadoes occurred during the month of November across Mississippi. Additionally, the last Fall outbreak of tornadoes occurred on November 24, 2004. Historically, November marks the peak of our 2nd severe weather season and ranks 3rd as the most active month for tornadoes in Mississippi, just a few behind March. | |||||||||||
47.3 | 2010-11-29 | 2 | 32°54'N / 89°43'W | 32°55'N / 89°42'W | 2.00 Miles | 400 Yards | 0 | 0 | 150K | 0K | Leake |
Brief Description: EVENT NARRATIVE: The initial damage where the tornado developed was limited to some minor tree damage along Buddy Odom Road. The tornado tracked north northeast and rapidly became strong, with EF2 and low end EF3 damage occurring along the rest of the path. The tornado affected Shiloh and Buddy Odom Roads as well as State Highway 429 in Leake County; and County Roads 4022, 4033, 4126, 4045, 4171, 4142 and State Highway 14 in Attala County. Several mobile homes, including at least two double wides, were completely destroyed at several locations along the path, with debris carried well away from the remains. Impressive tree damage occurred at numerous locations along the path, including a couple of locations where some debarking/denuding was noted. Vehicles were rolled or tossed at several locations. A frame home was pushed off its foundation and a number of frame homes suffered moderate to major roof damage. Numerous power poles were snapped along the path. The widest point of the damage path was around a quarter mile, and was near Highway 14 in Attala County. Maximum winds were around 140 mph. Total path length across Leake and Attala Counties was 10 miles. EPISODE NARRATIVE: During the evening hours of November 29th and the overnight/early morning period of the 30th, the region was impacted by an outbreak of tornadoes. This outbreak brought 13 tornadoes to the forecast area. This occurred as potent storm system moved out of the Rockies and developed a strong area of low pressure across the Central Plains. This surface low caused a warm front to take shape and quickly lift northward across the forecast during the afternoon of the 29th. Warm and humid conditions pushed north, which led to unstable conditions over the region just ahead of the advancing strong cold front. The wind energy through the atmosphere was strong. The resulting wind shear (change in wind speed or direction with height) was strong and very favorable for rotating storms and supporting tornadoes. As the clash of systems occurred, a mix of supercell thunderstorms developed, along with a broken line of thunderstorms. A handful of these storms utilized the strong wind shear present and produced tornadoes. Overall, 13 tornadoes occurred with 5 being of the strong variety (EF2-EF3). The strongest tornado occurred over northwest Leake and southern Attala Counties. Here, an EF3 moved along a 10 mile path and destroyed numerous mobile homes, 6 people were injured. Four other strong tornadoes occurred and were all rated EF2. Two of these occurred in Yazoo County, one just southwest of Yazoo City and the other in Downtown Yazoo City. Numerous buildings were damaged along with many trees and power lines down. Another EF2 occurred in Starkville where it destroyed multiple mobile homes in town. Fifteen injuries occurred in this area. The final EF2 occurred in Smith County. This tornado had an 11 mile path which started just SW of Raleigh to 6 miles NE of Raleigh. One brick home sustained significant damage along with numerous other buildings and sheds damaged. This outbreak broke a streak of 3 years when no tornadoes occurred during the month of November across Mississippi. Additionally, the last Fall outbreak of tornadoes occurred on November 24, 2004. Historically, November marks the peak of our 2nd severe weather season and ranks 3rd as the most active month for tornadoes in Mississippi, just a few behind March. | |||||||||||
47.3 | 1977-06-16 | 2 | 31°51'N / 89°21'W | 0.60 Mile | 33 Yards | 0 | 0 | 25K | 0 | Smith | |
47.7 | 1989-10-16 | 2 | 32°44'N / 90°33'W | 32°48'N / 90°34'W | 3.00 Miles | 80 Yards | 0 | 0 | 250K | 0 | Yazoo |
48.2 | 1986-03-12 | 3 | 31°58'N / 89°16'W | 32°14'N / 89°07'W | 20.00 Miles | 123 Yards | 0 | 1 | 2.5M | 0 | Jasper |
48.4 | 2002-12-19 | 2 | 32°17'N / 89°12'W | 32°21'N / 89°08'W | 5.50 Miles | 440 Yards | 0 | 0 | 1.0M | 0 | Newton |
Brief Description: A tornado developed in Newton County, just southwest of the city of Newton. It moved 5.5 miles northeast through the city, resulting in approximately 50 injuries and damage to numerous buildings. In all, over 150 homes and 95 businesses were either damaged or destroyed. The most extensive damage occurred near the city's Wal-Mart, which received heavy roof damage. The tornado lifted just northeast of the intersection of State Road 15 and Interstate 20. | |||||||||||
48.4 | 1978-04-18 | 4 | 31°33'N / 90°07'W | 31°35'N / 89°58'W | 9.20 Miles | 100 Yards | 4 | 31 | 250K | 0 | Lawrence |
49.0 | 1973-01-18 | 2 | 32°48'N / 89°28'W | 32°49'N / 89°26'W | 2.70 Miles | 67 Yards | 0 | 0 | 25K | 0 | Leake |
49.1 | 2002-11-10 | 2 | 32°55'N / 89°43'W | 32°56'N / 89°38'W | 4.00 Miles | 1000 Yards | 0 | 0 | 100K | 0 | Leake |
Brief Description: This tornado originally developed in Attala County, about 9.5 miles south of Boyette. It moved across rural areas of northern Leake County, damaging a house and a barn, as well as uprooting hundreds of trees. The tornado moved back into Attala County about 5 miles north-northeast of Thomastown (0.5 mile south of McVille in Attala County). | |||||||||||
49.3 | 1971-05-09 | 3 | 32°52'N / 89°32'W | 1.00 Mile | 33 Yards | 1 | 3 | 0K | 0 | Leake | |
49.4 | 2007-12-20 | 2 | 31°36'N / 90°22'W | 31°37'N / 90°17'W | 5.00 Miles | 200 Yards | 0 | 1 | 500K | 0K | Lincoln |
Brief Description: EVENT NARRATIVE: This strong tornado touched down just east of the Brookhaven-Lincoln County Airport and tracked east-northeast for five miles to near the Woolworth Community. The most significant damage occurred just south of Heucks Crossing along Beeson Road where two mobile homes were obliterated. The debris was swept from foundations with large debris, including furniture, and appliances thrown more than 100 yards. Additionally, numerous trees, both pines and hardwoods, were snapped and uprooted along with several power lines down along the path. A shop was also destroyed, camper trailer heavily damaged and two other homes suffered significant roof damage. EPISODE NARRATIVE: A small, but potent, storm system evolved and moved east across the region during the first half of the day. A large MCV (meso-scale convective vortex) developed across Central Louisiana during the morning hours and moved east adding an extra kick to the atmosphere and aided in generating a line of severe thunderstorms which produced five tornadoes and wind damage. All the severe weather was confined to the southern areas, generally along Highway 84, and extended from Natchez to Brookhaven to Laurel. | |||||||||||
49.4 | 2004-11-24 | 2 | 32°05'N / 89°18'W | 32°13'N / 89°01'W | 20.00 Miles | 600 Yards | 0 | 2 | 3.0M | 0 | Jasper |
Brief Description: This tornado moved into Jasper county from Smith county 5.5 miles southwest of Montrose and tracked northeast for 20 miles before moving into Newton county 6 miles east of Garlandville. As this strong tornado tracked across Jasper county a few thousand trees were uprooted and snapped. Seven residential homes sustained major damage along with eleven sustaining minor damage. Eight chicken houses were destroyed with five more sustaining major damage. The total path length of this tornado was 38 miles across Smith, Jasper and Newton counties. | |||||||||||
49.9 | 1966-04-26 | 2 | 32°58'N / 89°55'W | 33°00'N / 89°52'W | 4.10 Miles | 67 Yards | 0 | 0 | 250K | 0 | Holmes |
49.9 | 2010-04-24 | 2 | 32°39'N / 90°44'W | 32°42'N / 90°40'W | 4.00 Miles | 1100 Yards | 0 | 0 | 0K | 2.0M | Sharkey |
Brief Description: EVENT NARRATIVE: The path of the tornado clipped the far southeast corner of Sharkey County in the Delta National Forest. Considerable damage occurred to the timber along the path as it moved into western Yazoo County. The tornado reached EF2 intensity before moving into western Yazoo County with peak winds around 130 mph. EPISODE NARRATIVE: During the midday hours of April 24th, an intense supercell thunderstorm produced a violent, long track tornado, which ripped a path across the center of the NWS Jackson, MS forecast area. This tornado touched down just south of I-20, west of Tallulah, in Madison Parish. The tornado intensified quickly and became large as it tracked at a fast pace to the northeast. The tornado moved at roughly 55 mph and was on the ground for 149 miles. The actual time on the ground was 2 hours and 44 minutes. The tornado touched 9 counties/parishes along it's path with the most significant damage occurring in Madison Parish, Warren, Yazoo, Holmes, Attala and Choctaw Counties. A great deal of the damage was in the EF2 and EF3 range with a couple locations of EF4 damage in Yazoo and Holmes Counties. Maximum winds peaked around 170 mph. Overall, 10 fatalities occurred along with 146 injuries. Five fatalities occurred in Choctaw County, 4 in Yazoo County, and 1 in Holmes County. As we try and put this tornado into perspective for the state of Mississippi, this long track tornado ranks as the 4th longest in Mississippi history at 149 miles. It is the widest known tornado with a maximum width of 1.75 miles. It also ranks as the 9th deadliest tornado with 10 fatalities, making it the most deadly since November 21st 1992. Lastly, this was the first violent tornado (F4 or greater) in the month of April since April 18th, 1978. |
* The information on this page is based on the global volcano database, the U.S. earthquake database of 1638-1985, and the U.S. Tornado and Weather Extremes database of 1950-2010.