Mississippi, 1978

Tornado and Damaging Winds in Mississippi, August 29, 1978

August 29, 1978 · NWS T · 3 events in 2 counties and zones

2 thunderstorm wind, 1 tornado, 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
1
Injuries
2
Property damage
$250,000
Crop damage
None recorded
Events
3

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

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

Tornado, Copiah

When
August 29, 6:30 AM CST
Where
Copiah County
Rating
F1
Path length
21.3 mi
Path width
100 yd
Deaths
1 direct, 0 indirect
Injuries
2 direct, 0 indirect
Property damage
$250,000
Coordinates
31.980, -90.420

Thunderstorm Wind, Lafayette

When
August 29, 2:20 PM CST
Where
Lafayette County
Coordinates
34.370, -89.300

Thunderstorm Wind, Lafayette

When
August 29, 3:38 PM CST
Where
Lafayette County
Coordinates
34.230, -89.370

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.

EventDateAgeSexWhereKind
Tornado, Copiah1978-08-29Direct

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 1978Every state in 1978This day in weather historyThe tornado archive for Mississippi, 1978

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: 10063970, 10063971, 10063972.