Tornadoes and Hail in Mississippi, March 20, 1976

Name: Tornadoes and Hail in Mississippi, March 20, 1976
Start: 1976-03-20T14:45
End: 1976-03-20T21:58
Location: Mississippi

March 20, 1976 · 37 events in 29 counties and zones

17 thunderstorm wind, 14 tornado, 6 hail, 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

Open the live radar over this ground

The toll

Deaths: 1
Injuries: 10
Property damage: $1.7 million
Crop damage: None recorded
Events: 37

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

17 thunderstorm wind, 14 tornado, 6 hail. Local standard time, as filed.

Hail, Hinds

When: March 20, 2:45 PM CST
Where: Hinds County
Measured: 1 in hail
Coordinates: 32.330, -90.230

Hail, Copiah

When: March 20, 2:45 PM CST
Where: Copiah County
Measured: 1 in hail
Coordinates: 31.980, -90.370

Hail, Rankin

When: March 20, 2:50 PM CST
Where: Rankin County
Measured: 1 in hail
Coordinates: 32.270, -89.980

Thunderstorm Wind, Holmes

When: March 20, 3:45 PM CST
Where: Holmes County
Coordinates: 32.800, -89.920

Thunderstorm Wind, Scott

When: March 20, 4:20 PM CST
Where: Scott County
Coordinates: 32.370, -89.480

Tornado, Lafayette

When: March 20, 4:24 PM CST
Where: Lafayette County
Rating: F1
Path length: 0.1 mi
Path width: 133 yd
Property damage: $25,000
Coordinates: 34.300, -89.350

Thunderstorm Wind, Leake

When: March 20, 4:29 PM CST
Where: Leake County
Coordinates: 32.880, -89.670

Hail, Lafayette

When: March 20, 4:35 PM CST
Where: Lafayette County
Measured: 1.75 in hail
Coordinates: 34.370, -89.470

Hail, Union

When: March 20, 4:36 PM CST
Where: Union County
Measured: 1.75 in hail
Coordinates: 34.500, -89.000

Tornado, Newton

When: March 20, 4:40 PM CST
Where: Newton County
Rating: F2
Path length: 1.3 mi
Path width: 250 yd
Property damage: $250,000
Coordinates: 32.570, -89.180

Tornado, Neshoba

When: March 20, 4:50 PM CST
Where: Neshoba County
Rating: F2
Path length: 18.5 mi
Path width: 33 yd
Property damage: $250,000
Coordinates: 32.580, -89.170

Tornado, Noxubee

When: March 20, 5:45 PM CST
Where: Noxubee County
Rating: F1
Path length: 11.2 mi
Path width: 100 yd
Property damage: $25,000
Coordinates: 32.930, -88.630

Thunderstorm Wind, Washington

When: March 20, 6:30 PM CST
Where: Washington County
Measured: 50 kt (58 mph)
Coordinates: 33.480, -90.980

Tornado, Bolivar

When: March 20, 6:35 PM CST
Where: Bolivar County
Rating: F2
Path length: 4.3 mi
Path width: 440 yd
Injuries: 1 direct, 0 indirect
Property damage: $250,000
Coordinates: 33.720, -90.750

Tornado, Issaquena

When: March 20, 7:00 PM CST
Where: Issaquena County
Rating: F2
Path length: 2.3 mi
Path width: 440 yd
Property damage: $25,000
Coordinates: 33.000, -90.950

Tornado, Sharkey

When: March 20, 7:15 PM CST
Where: Sharkey County
Rating: F2
Path length: 16.5 mi
Path width: 33 yd
Property damage: $25,000
Coordinates: 33.020, -90.930

Thunderstorm Wind, Grenada

When: March 20, 7:15 PM CST
Where: Grenada County
Coordinates: 33.800, -89.780

Thunderstorm Wind, Leflore

When: March 20, 7:15 PM CST
Where: Leflore County
Coordinates: 33.600, -90.220

Tornado, Humphreys

When: March 20, 7:30 PM CST
Where: Humphreys County
Rating: F2
Path length: 11 mi
Path width: 33 yd
Property damage: $25,000
Coordinates: 33.100, -90.670

Thunderstorm Wind, Yalobusha

When: March 20, 8:00 PM CST
Where: Yalobusha County
Coordinates: 34.020, -89.700

Thunderstorm Wind, Warren

When: March 20, 8:00 PM CST
Where: Warren County
Coordinates: 32.350, -90.880

Thunderstorm Wind, Lafayette

When: March 20, 8:00 PM CST
Where: Lafayette County
Coordinates: 34.370, -89.520

Thunderstorm Wind, Pontotoc

When: March 20, 8:05 PM CST
Where: Pontotoc County
Coordinates: 34.280, -88.830

Tornado, Yazoo

When: March 20, 8:15 PM CST
Where: Yazoo County
Rating: F2
Path length: 3.8 mi
Path width: 150 yd
Property damage: $25,000
Coordinates: 32.720, -90.280

Thunderstorm Wind, Sunflower

When: March 20, 8:15 PM CST
Where: Sunflower County
Coordinates: 33.820, -90.530

Tornado, Madison

When: March 20, 8:20 PM CST
Where: Madison County
Rating: F1
Path length: 2 mi
Path width: 100 yd
Property damage: $25,000
Coordinates: 32.730, -90.030

Tornado, Webster

When: March 20, 8:20 PM CST
Where: Webster County
Rating: F3
Path length: 9 mi
Path width: 1,400 yd
Deaths: 1 direct, 0 indirect
Injuries: 5 direct, 0 indirect
Property damage: $250,000
Coordinates: 33.600, -89.180

Tornado, Clay

When: March 20, 8:35 PM CST
Where: Clay County
Rating: F3
Path length: 21.7 mi
Path width: 1,400 yd
Injuries: 1 direct, 0 indirect
Property damage: $250,000
Coordinates: 33.670, -89.050

Thunderstorm Wind, Alcorn

When: March 20, 8:45 PM CST
Where: Alcorn County
Coordinates: 34.930, -88.450

Thunderstorm Wind, Lowndes

When: March 20, 9:14 PM CST
Where: Lowndes County
Measured: 52 kt (60 mph)
Coordinates: 33.650, -88.450

Tornado, Lowndes

When: March 20, 9:15 PM CST
Where: Lowndes County
Rating: F2
Path length: 0.5 mi
Path width: 100 yd
Property damage: $25,000
Coordinates: 33.300, -88.620

Thunderstorm Wind, Noxubee

When: March 20, 9:15 PM CST
Where: Noxubee County
Coordinates: 33.200, -88.400

Thunderstorm Wind, Warren

When: March 20, 9:15 PM CST
Where: Warren County
Coordinates: 32.350, -90.880

Thunderstorm Wind, Lowndes

When: March 20, 9:15 PM CST
Where: Lowndes County
Coordinates: 33.500, -88.430

Thunderstorm Wind, Monroe

When: March 20, 9:15 PM CST
Where: Monroe County
Coordinates: 33.820, -88.450

Tornado, Monroe

When: March 20, 9:20 PM CST
Where: Monroe County
Rating: F3
Path length: 18.7 mi
Path width: 1,400 yd
Injuries: 3 direct, 0 indirect
Property damage: $250,000
Coordinates: 33.820, -88.720

Hail, Hinds

When: March 20, 9:58 PM CST
Where: Hinds County
Measured: 1.75 in hail
Coordinates: 32.120, -90.620

The people who died

As the offices recorded each death: direct deaths were caused by the weather itself, indirect ones by something it set in motion.

Event	Date	Age	Sex	Where	Kind
Tornado, Webster	1976-03-20				Direct

What these are

Hail: Hail three-quarters of an inch or larger, or smaller hail that caused damage, filed with the largest stone measured.
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.
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.

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

The same day elsewhere

Every storm in Mississippi in 1976 Every state in 1976 This day in weather history The tornado archive for Mississippi, 1976

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: 10050804, 10050805, 10050806, 10050807, 10050808, 10050809, 10049748, 10048621, 10048833, 10048834, 10048835, 10048836, 10048837, 10048838, 10048839, 10048840, 10048841, 10048842, 10048843, 10048844, 10048845, 10048846, 10048847, 10048848, 10048849, 10048850, 10048851, 10048852, 10048853, 10048854, 10048855, 10048856, 10048857, 10048858, 10048859, 10048860, 10048861.