Mississippi, 1959

Tornadoes and Damaging Wind in Mississippi, January 21, 1959

January 21, 1959 · 10 events in 10 counties and zones

9 tornado, 1 thunderstorm wind, as filed by the National Weather Service.

Where it happened

Every event with a place to put it. Tap one for its entry below.

  • Tornadoes
  • Tropical storms and surge
  • Floods
  • Wind
  • Hail
  • Winter weather
  • Heat and drought
  • Cold
  • Fire, smoke and dust
  • Marine and coastal
  • Other

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The toll

Deaths
0
Injuries
2
Property damage
$653,000
Crop damage
None recorded
Events
10

Deaths and injuries are direct and indirect together, as the offices filed them. Damage is property and crops in the dollars of the year, not adjusted for inflation, and only where an office estimated it.

Event by event

9 tornado, 1 thunderstorm wind. Local standard time, as filed.

Tornado, Sharkey

When
January 21, 7:40 AM CST
Where
Sharkey County
Rating
F2
Path length
31.9 mi
Path width
100 yd
Property damage
$25,000
Coordinates
32.820, -90.930

Tornado, Warren

When
January 21, 8:00 AM CST
Where
Warren County
Rating
F1
Path length
16.9 mi
Path width
33 yd
Property damage
$25,000
Coordinates
32.180, -90.930

Thunderstorm Wind, Hinds

When
January 21, 8:00 AM CST
Where
Hinds County
Coordinates
32.080, -90.580

Tornado, Tishomingo

When
January 21, 9:11 AM CST
Where
Tishomingo County
Rating
F2
Path length
5.7 mi
Path width
20 yd
Injuries
1 direct, 0 indirect
Property damage
$25,000
Coordinates
34.520, -88.200

Tornado, Pontotoc

When
January 21, 9:20 AM CST
Where
Pontotoc County
Rating
F3
Path length
3.8 mi
Path width
33 yd
Injuries
1 direct, 0 indirect
Property damage
$250,000
Coordinates
34.350, -89.030

Tornado, Rankin

When
January 21, 9:30 AM CST
Where
Rankin County
Rating
F2
Path length
23.8 mi
Path width
33 yd
Property damage
$25,000
Coordinates
32.200, -89.920

Tornado, Union

When
January 21, 9:30 AM CST
Where
Union County
Rating
F3
Path length
30 mi
Path width
33 yd
Property damage
$250,000
Coordinates
34.380, -88.980

Tornado, Leake

When
January 21, 9:45 AM CST
Where
Leake County
Path length
26.1 mi
Path width
33 yd
Property damage
$25,000
Coordinates
32.620, -89.700

Tornado, Smith

When
January 21, 10:30 AM CST
Where
Smith County
Path width
50 yd
Property damage
$3,000
Coordinates
31.870, -89.570

Tornado, Marion

When
January 21, 10:30 AM CST
Where
Marion County
Path width
33 yd
Property damage
$25,000
Coordinates
31.280, -89.830

What these are

Tornado
A violently rotating column of air in contact with the ground and extending from a thunderstorm, filed with its path, width and Fujita or Enhanced Fujita rating from the damage survey.
Thunderstorm Wind
Winds from a thunderstorm of 50 knots (58 mph) or more, or lower winds that caused damage or casualties. Measured gusts are marked MG, estimated EG.

After NWS Directive 10-1605, the rules offices file Storm Data by.

The same day elsewhere

More

Every storm in Mississippi in 1959Every state in 1959This day in weather historyThe tornado archive for Mississippi, 1959

Sources

NOAA National Centers for Environmental Information, Storm Events Database, compiled from the National Weather Service’s monthly Storm Data. Complete through 2026-06; NCEI adds each month about 75 days after it ends and revises past years a few times a year. Rebuilt 2026-09-24. Each event’s entry at NCEI: 10049594, 10049595, 10049596, 10049597, 10049598, 10049599, 10049600, 10049601, 10049602, 10049603.