Tornadoes and Hail in Mississippi, March 12, 1986

Name: Tornadoes and Hail in Mississippi, March 12, 1986
Start: 1986-03-12T00:30
End: 1986-03-12T20:12
Location: Mississippi

March 12, 1986 · NWS JAN · 29 events in 18 counties and zones

15 tornado, 8 hail, 6 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

Open the live radar over this ground

The toll

Deaths: 0
Injuries: 11
Property damage: $17 million
Crop damage: None recorded
Events: 29

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

15 tornado, 8 hail, 6 thunderstorm wind. Local standard time, as filed.

Thunderstorm Wind, Tunica

When: March 12, 12:30 AM CST
Where: Tunica County
Coordinates: 34.680, -90.380

Tornado, Bolivar

When: March 12, 1:30 AM CST
Where: Bolivar County
Rating: F0
Path length: 0.4 mi
Path width: 30 yd
Property damage: $25,000
Coordinates: 33.830, -90.920

Tornado, De Soto

When: March 12, 1:30 AM CST
Where: De Soto County
Rating: F1
Path length: 1 mi
Path width: 30 yd
Property damage: $250,000
Coordinates: 34.820, -90.200

Thunderstorm Wind, De Soto

When: March 12, 2:00 AM CST
Where: De Soto County
Coordinates: 34.820, -90.000

Thunderstorm Wind, Bolivar

When: March 12, 2:00 AM CST
Where: Bolivar County
Coordinates: 33.950, -90.820

Tornado, Tallahatchie

When: March 12, 2:20 AM CST
Where: Tallahatchie County
Rating: F1
Path length: 1.2 mi
Path width: 100 yd
Injuries: 1 direct, 0 indirect
Property damage: $2.5 million
Coordinates: 34.000, -90.050

Thunderstorm Wind, Tippah

When: March 12, 3:15 AM CST
Where: Tippah County
Coordinates: 34.730, -88.950

Hail, Jefferson

When: March 12, 7:55 AM CST
Where: Jefferson County
Measured: 1.75 in hail
Coordinates: 31.720, -91.070

Hail, Franklin

When: March 12, 8:15 AM CST
Where: Franklin County
Measured: 0.75 in hail
Coordinates: 31.470, -90.900

Hail, Jefferson

When: March 12, 8:40 AM CST
Where: Jefferson County
Measured: 0.75 in hail
Coordinates: 31.680, -90.800

Hail, Copiah

When: March 12, 9:10 AM CST
Where: Copiah County
Measured: 1.25 in hail
Coordinates: 32.020, -90.500

Tornado, Amite

When: March 12, 9:25 AM CST
Where: Amite County
Rating: F2
Path length: 3 mi
Path width: 250 yd
Property damage: $250,000
Coordinates: 31.320, -90.600

Hail, Lincoln

When: March 12, 9:25 AM CST
Where: Lincoln County
Measured: 0.75 in hail
Coordinates: 31.580, -90.450

Tornado, Pike

When: March 12, 9:30 AM CST
Where: Pike County
Rating: F2
Path length: 2 mi
Path width: 250 yd
Property damage: $250,000
Coordinates: 31.330, -90.520

Tornado, Lincoln

When: March 12, 9:38 AM CST
Where: Lincoln County
Rating: F2
Path length: 3 mi
Path width: 250 yd
Property damage: $250,000
Coordinates: 31.350, -90.530

Thunderstorm Wind, Lincoln

When: March 12, 9:45 AM CST
Where: Lincoln County
Coordinates: 31.570, -90.450

Tornado, Lincoln

When: March 12, 10:10 AM CST
Where: Lincoln County
Rating: F1
Path length: 1 mi
Path width: 100 yd
Property damage: $25,000
Coordinates: 31.580, -90.300

Hail, Pike

When: March 12, 10:25 AM CST
Where: Pike County
Measured: 1 in hail
Coordinates: 31.050, -90.330

Tornado, Smith

When: March 12, 12:07 PM CST
Where: Smith County
Rating: F3
Path length: 2 mi
Path width: 123 yd
Property damage: $2.5 million
Coordinates: 31.900, -89.370

Tornado, Jasper

When: March 12, 12:10 PM CST
Where: Jasper County
Rating: F3
Path length: 20 mi
Path width: 123 yd
Injuries: 1 direct, 0 indirect
Property damage: $2.5 million
Coordinates: 31.970, -89.270

Tornado, Newton

When: March 12, 12:30 PM CST
Where: Newton County
Rating: F3
Path length: 10 mi
Path width: 123 yd
Injuries: 1 direct, 0 indirect
Property damage: $2.5 million
Coordinates: 32.270, -89.120

Tornado, Clarke

When: March 12, 12:50 PM CST
Where: Clarke County
Rating: F2
Path length: 2 mi
Path width: 120 yd
Property damage: $250,000
Coordinates: 32.230, -88.820

Tornado, Lauderdale

When: March 12, 12:55 PM CST
Where: Lauderdale County
Rating: F2
Path length: 12 mi
Path width: 120 yd
Property damage: $250,000
Coordinates: 32.250, -88.850

Tornado, Lauderdale

When: March 12, 1:06 PM CST
Where: Lauderdale County
Rating: F4
Path length: 16 mi
Path width: 440 yd
Injuries: 8 direct, 0 indirect
Property damage: $2.5 million
Coordinates: 32.420, -88.770

Tornado, Kemper

When: March 12, 1:20 PM CST
Where: Kemper County
Rating: F4
Path length: 7 mi
Path width: 440 yd
Property damage: $2.5 million
Coordinates: 32.600, -88.700

Tornado, Kemper

When: March 12, 1:30 PM CST
Where: Kemper County
Rating: F1
Path length: 1 mi
Path width: 70 yd
Property damage: $25,000
Coordinates: 32.680, -88.470

Hail, Kemper

When: March 12, 1:45 PM CST
Where: Kemper County
Measured: 1.75 in hail
Coordinates: 32.820, -88.430

Thunderstorm Wind, Harrison

When: March 12, 6:00 PM CST
Where: Harrison County
Coordinates: 30.400, -89.120

Hail, Lauderdale

When: March 12, 8:12 PM CST
Where: Lauderdale County
Measured: 0.88 in hail
Coordinates: 32.370, -88.720

What these are

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

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

The same day elsewhere

Every storm in Mississippi in 1986 Every state in 1986 This day in weather history The tornado archive for Mississippi, 1986 Warnings in Mississippi, March 1986

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: 10063110, 10063111, 10063112, 10063113, 10063114, 10063115, 10063965, 10063966, 10063967, 10063968, 10063969, 10064184, 10064185, 10064186, 10064187, 10064188, 10064189, 10064190, 10064191, 10064192, 10064193, 10064194, 10064195, 10064196, 10064197, 10064198, 10064199, 10064200, 10064201.