When is tornado season in Mississippi? What the weather data says is the peak time in MS

Yahoo

04-03-2025

Signs of spring are all around us here in the Deep South. Birdsong. Baseball. Flowers. Cicadas. Pollen. Tornado watches.
It might be tempting to treat severe weather advisories lightly. Most of the time, the watches and warnings that blare from our phones don't lead to widespread damage or injuries. But deadly storms can hit at any time of year in Mississippi.
Certain seasons see more strong storms. Spring is known for having peak tornado weather, but no month is without a severe weather risk.
In 2024, 85 tornadoes hit Mississippi. Notably, the NWS confirmed that 27 hit the state in one day on Saturday, Dec. 28. That storm system caused two deaths and spread destruction over 23 counties.
Here's what you need to know about the history of violent and deadly tornadoes in Mississippi, when they're most likely to hit so you can be ready.
"The springtime is the most active season for tornadoes," Michael Hill, warning coordination meteorologist at the National Weather Service in Jackson, told The Clarion Ledger in a previous interview. "Right now, we're in a slight La Niña pattern, which means we have a little more active jet stream and more active spring. Generally, on the whole, it's a more active jet stream so we have a chance for deeper troughs, stronger storms and more storms."
Most storms hit in March, April and May, and the long-range forecast says spring 2025 could be an active season for severe storms and strong tornadoes.
According to an analysis of twister data from 1880 to 2023 in the Mississippi State University tornado database, the most storms hit Mississippi and parts of Louisiana and Arkansas covered by the NWS office in Jackson in the spring.
April: 703.
March: 439.
November: 359.
May: 303.
February: 285.
December: 264.
January: 232.
September: 154.
June: 129.
October: 122.
August: 80.
July: 44.
The National Weather Service office in Jackson has recorded 18 twisters in the Magnolia State so far in 2025.
The strongest was on Jan. 5 in Noxubee, and the EF 2 had winds of 115 mph. It was part of a system that spawned at least 10 twisters in parts of Louisiana, Mississippi and Tennessee.
Most others have been EF 0 or 1.
You should know: NWS expects Mississippi to have an active tornado season this spring
According to an analysis of twister data from 1880 to 2023 in the Mississippi State weather database, the most storms his Mississippi and parts of Louisiana and Arkansas in the afternoon and evening.
Peak hours were from about 2 p.m to 8 p.m.
The hours with the fewest twisters were from about 3 a.m. through the 6 a.m. hour.
Tornadoes are classified by wind speed using the Enhanced Fujita Scale. (It replaced the original Fujita Scale in 2007.) Storms are ranked with numbers 0-5.
The National Weather Service investigates storm damage and estimates wind speeds to confirm and classify tornadoes.
EF0: 65-85 miles per hour.
EF1: 86-110 miles per hour.
EF2: 111-135 miles per hour.
EF3: 136-165 miles per hour.
EF4: 166-200 miles per hour.
EF5: Over 200 miles per hour.
Mississippi No. 1 for tornadoes? There's more to it than you may think
EF 0s and 1s are classified as weak.
EF 2s and 3s are called strong.
EF 4s and 5s are considered violent storms.
Yes, six times. A Mississippi State database with tornado data dating back to 1880 lists more than 2,700 records for Mississippi. The state has seen twisters that clocked in as a 5 on the Fujita or Advanced Fujita scale on:
April 5, 1936: This twister spun 15 miles through Lee and Itawamba counties. It killed 216 and injured 700.
Dec. 5, 1953: This storm traveled 8.91 miles in Madison Parish in Louisiana and Warren County. It caused 38 deaths and 270 injuries.
March 3, 1966: This storm became known as the Candlestick Park Tornado. It's named after a shopping center in south Jackson that was totally destroyed by a 202-mile path that spanned east and central Mississippi and ended near Tuscaloosa, Alabama. It killed 58 and injured 518.
Feb. 21, 1971: This storm started in Madison and East Carroll parishes in Louisiana, and traveled through Issaquena, Sharkey, Washington, Humphreys, Sunflower and Leflore counties in Mississippi. It claimed 46 lives and caused 496 injuries.
April 3, 1974: This twister hit ground in Monroe County in Mississippi and traveled through Lamar, Marion, Winston, Lawrence and Morgan counties in Alabama. It killed 30 and wounded 280.
April 27, 2011:
1:30 p.m.: This storm traveled through Neshoba, Kemper, Winston and Noxubee counties for 28 miles, causing three deaths and 8 injuries.
2:42 p.m.: This tornado struck ground in Monroe and Itawamba counties in Mississippi and went on to hit Marion and Franklin counties in Alabama. It traveled 37 miles and killed 23 and wounded 137.
'It's pretty crazy.' Checks from MS church destroyed by tornado found 80 miles away
The following are the most deadly tornadoes between 1950 and 2025 in Mississippi.
Feb. 21, 1971: An F4 spawned in Issaquena County near the Louisiana line around 4 p.m. It traveled across the Delta and ended in Hardeman County, Tennessee. The storm killed 58 and injured 795.
March 3, 1966: The Candlestick Park Tornado was an F5 that cut a 202-mile path from east and central Mississippi to the Tuscaloosa, Alabama, area. It killed 58 and injured 518.
Feb. 21, 1971: An F5 spawned around 2:50 p.m. It traveled through Madison and East Carroll parishes in Louisiana and Issaquena, Sharkey, Washington, Humphreys, Sunflower and Leflore counties in Mississippi. It claimed 46 lives and caused 496 injuries.
Dec. 5, 1953: An F5 traveled 8.91 miles in Madison Parish in Louisiana and Warren County. It caused 38 deaths and 270 injuries.
Jan. 23, 1969: An F4 spun up and cut across Jefferson, Copiah, Simpson, Rankin, Smith, Scott and Newton counties. It killed 32 and injured 241.
March 3, 1974: An F5 started in Monroe County in Mississippi and hit Lamar, Marion, Winston, Lawrence and Morgan counties in Alabama. It killed 30 and wounded 280.
March 27, 2011: The EF5 started around 2:42 p.m., traveling through Monroe and Itawamba counties in Mississippi and going on to hit Marion and Franklin counties in Alabama. It traveled 37 miles and killed 23 and wounded 137.
Feb. 1, 1955: An F3 cut an 8-mile path of destruction through Tunica and DeSoto counties. It killed 20 and injured 141.
: An EF 4 traveled more than 59 miles through Issaquena, Sharkey, Humphreys and Holmes counties. It killed 17 and injured 165.
March 21, 1952: An F4 hit ground in Marshall County, Mississippi, and cut 29 miles to Fayette County, Tennessee. It left 17 dead and 96 wounded.
A history of twisters: Tornadoes in Mississippi since 1950
On March 24, 2023, an EF 4 killed 17 people. It was part of a system that included 20 reported twisters in Mississippi and Alabama that killed more than 20 people in Mississippi.
Rolling Fork bore the brunt of the violent storm, which popped up after dark and left a wide path of destruction. Fifteen people in the town died, and about 300 homes were destroyed along with local businesses.
A year later, population estimates said the town of 1,800 had shrunk to 1,200 because of lack of housing and jobs lost because of damage to businesses. The Federal Emergency Management Administration estimated a three-year build-back period.
But Rolling Fork is resilient.
By March 2024, almost every business along the U.S. 61 corridor that was damaged or destroyed was open for business. Chuck's Dairy Bar, the last to return, reopened to fanfare from the community last summer.
Since 2017, FEMA has promised $1,114,222,840 for disaster relief and mitigation. Of that, $1,109,768,502 was set aside for specific projects, and about $868,047,525 has been paid out.
The majority of money went to the Department of Homeland Security FEMA Disaster Relief Fund. $761 million was allocated and obligated, and $636 million has been paid.
Most help, about $531 million, has been committed to severe storm recovery, such as tornadoes, straight-line winds, flooding and mudslides.
However, several hurricanes had allocations of more than $10 million from the Disaster Relief Fund, including:
Zeta (2020): $164.1 million.
Ida (2021): $52.2 million.
Nate (2017): $12.8 million.
The Small Business Administration accounts for about $89.6 million in allocations to Mississippi, followed by $61 million to the USDA, $46 million to the Department of Commerce (including the Economic Development Administration and the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration) and $45 million to Housing and Urban Development.
According to FEMA data, 94 federal disasters have been declared in Mississippi from May 2, 1953 to March 3, 2025.
41 severe storms.
24 hurricanes.
12 tornadoes.
10 floods.
2 severe ice storms.
1 snowstorm.
4 other disasters.
Counties along the Gulf have seen the most disaster declarations.
The most severe storms leading to FEMA declarations happened in April.
Of the dozen tornadoes that led to federal emergency disasters, four happened in January, and three hit in April. February, March, October, November and December have each had one federal declaration following twister damage.
In 2020, the state had 11 federal declarations approved, the most in any year tracked. (That includes COVID declarations.)
Contributing: Brian Broom and Ross Reily
Bonnie Bolden is the Deep South Connect reporter for Mississippi with Gannett/USA Today. Email her at [e-mail].
This article originally appeared on Mississippi Clarion Ledger: Mississippi weather: Data shows peak tornado season. Know the history