The spring of 2007 started a bit early with the region seeing its first severe weather outbreak on February 24th. A large and powerful storm system took shape as a deep surface low tracked across Kansas and into portions of Iowa.
Every event with a place to put it; 4 filed by county or forecast zone are drawn at its center, in a lighter ring. Tap one for its entry below.
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.
The episode as NWS JAN wrote it up.
The spring of 2007 started a bit early with the region seeing its first severe weather outbreak on February 24th. A large and powerful storm system took shape as a deep surface low tracked across Kansas and into portions of Iowa. This strong area of low pressure was driven by a powerful upper level trough which supported very strong winds through the entire atmosphere. These winds were felt at the surface to some degree as a large area across the Lower Mississippi River Valley saw sustained winds between 25-35 mph with gusts between 40-50 mph. Those gradient winds, in advance of the severe weather, were strong enough to down some trees and power lines across the region. Those damage reports were more scattered in nature.|Those strong winds from the deepening surface low helped to draw northward moisture and instability. The strong winds allowed for the environment to become highly sheared. Basically, there were increasing winds with height and a change in the wind direction as well. This particular combination of instability and high shear was quite rare. However, this set the stage for a severe weather outbreak which included numerous reports of damaging winds, large hail and a few tornadoes.
The local office's own words before the first event, as it sent them, from the Iowa Environmental Mesonet's archive of National Weather Service text.
NWS Jackson, MS wrote its last area forecast discussion before the first event at Feb 24, 10:54 AM CST, 3 hours 6 minutes earlier.
AREA FORECAST DISCUSSION...UPDATED
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE JACKSON MS
1054 AM CST SAT FEB 24 2007
.DISCUSSION...AN ACTIVE DAY IS BEGINNING TO SET UP FOR THE ARKLAMISS
REGION THIS MORNING. THE SURFACE LOW IS NOW CENTERED OVER NORTHERN
OKLAHOMA AND SOUTHERN KANSAS WITH THE COLD FRONT STRETCHING THROUGH
EAST TEXAS. SHOWERS HAVE BEGUN TO DRIFT NORTH ACROSS THE CWFA...WITH
STRONG THUNDERSTORMS DEVELOPING OVER THE ARKLATEX REGION AND THROUGH
ARKANSAS. THE TIMING OF THIS SYSTEM STILL LOOKS ON TRACK WITH THE
FRONT REACHING THE WESTERN PORTIONS OF THE CWFA MIDDAY...THE CENTRAL
PORTIONS OF THE CWFA AROUND 9 PM AND LEAVING EASTERN PORTIONS OF THE
AREA AROUND MIDNIGHT.
WE STILL EXPECT SEVERE WEATHER TO BE LIKELY WITH THIS STORM SYSTEM.
WITH STRONG FORCING OVER THE NORTHERN HALF OF THE AREA WITH A STRONG
500MB JET...WILL CONTINUE WITH THINKING OF A SQUALL LINE MOVING
THROUGH THE NORTHERN PORTION OF THE CWFA. FOR THE SOUTHERN HALF...AM
LOOKING MORE AT THE POSSIBILITY FOR MORE DISCRETE CELLS RATHER THAN A
SQUALL LINE MOVING THROUGH THIS AREA. WILL STILL CONTINUE WITH
THINKING THAT AREAS WEST OF THE INTERSTATE 55 CORRIDOR AND AREAS IN
THE SOUTH...THERE IS A MORE ENHANCED RISK FOR SEVERE WEATHER THAN THE
REST OF THE REGION. THERE WILL BE MORE INSTABILITY IN PLACE OVER THIS
REGION. ALSO...DEWPOINTS WILL BE HIGHER IN THE LOWER 60S...WHICH WE
HAVE ALREADY BEEN SEEING AN INCREASE IN OVER MUCH OF THE
AREA...MAINLY IN THE SOUTHWEST. BUT AGAIN...WE ARE LOOKING AT ANY
CELLS FORMING DURING THE DAY AHEAD OF THE FRONT THAT BECOME SEVERE TO
BE CAPABLE OF HAIL AND STRONG WINDS. THE BULK OF THE SEVERE WEATHER
WILL COME WHEN THE BOUNDARY BEGINS TO REACH THE AREA...BRINGING
DAMAGING WINDS...TORNADOES...AND LARGE HAIL POSSIBLE TO MOST OF THE
OUTLOOK AREA.
ASIDE FROM SEVERE...AM CONTINUING THE WIND ADVISORY FOR THE ENTIRE
AREA. WE HAVE ALREADY BEGUN TO SEE AN INCREASE IN WINDS OVER THE AREA
WITH GUSTS UP TO 30KT IN THE DELTA REGION.
OTHERWISE...THE FORECAST PACKAGE LOOKS TO BE PRETTY MUCH ON TRACK. I
MADE A FEW MINOR ADJUSTMENTS TO ACCOUNT FOR OBSERVATIONAL TRENDS. BUT
OTHER THAN THAT...NO CHANGES WERE NEEDED AT THIS TIME.
&&
.AVIATION...EXPECT CONDITIONS TO DETERIORATE OVER THE NEXT COUPLE OF
HOURS WITH THE APPROACH OF A STRONG STORM SYSTEM. MVFR CONDITIONS
WILL MOVE IN FOR MOST LOCATIONS AND LAST THROUGH THE LATE EVENING
HOURS. AS STRONG CONVECTION MOVES INTO THE AREA...FLIGHT CATEGORIES
MAY BRIEFLY DROP TO IFR AS THUNDERSTORMS MOVE OVER THE AREA. WINDS
WILL ALSO BE RATHER STRONG THROUGH THE DAY AS A TIGHTENING PRESSURE
GRADIENT MOVES OVER THE REGION. EXPECT SOUTHEAST TO SOUTHERLY WINDS
THROUGH THE DAY WITH SPEEDS OF AROUND 20-30KT WITH HIGHER GUSTS TO
40KT...ESPECIALLY IN THE DELTA REGION. WINDS WILL BEGIN TO CALM DOWN
A BIT OVERNIGHT. OVERALL CONDITIONS WILL BEGIN TO IMPROVE AFTER
MIDNIGHT...RETURNING BACK TO IFR FLIGHT CATEGORIES BY 12Z SUNDAY.
&&
.PRELIMINARY POINT TEMPS/POPS...
JACKSON 73 47 66 35 / 78 89 10 0
MERIDIAN 75 47 68 38 / 57 100 21 0
VICKSBURG 74 46 66 35 / 84 70 9 0
HATTIESBURG 76 51 72 39 / 47 90 18 0
NATCHEZ 76 47 67 38 / 77 70 9 0
GREENVILLE 71 45 60 34 / 98 70 10 0
GREENWOOD 71 46 61 34 / 95 95 10 0
&&
.JAN WATCHES/WARNINGS/ADVISORIES...
MS...WIND ADVISORY UNTIL 3 AM CST SUNDAY FOR MSZ018-019-025>066-
072>074.
LA...WIND ADVISORY UNTIL 3 AM CST SUNDAY FOR LAZ007>009-015-016-
023>026.
AR...WIND ADVISORY UNTIL 3 AM CST SUNDAY FOR ARZ074-075.
&&
14HAZARDOUS WEATHER OUTLOOK NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE JACKSON MS 0607 AM CST SAT FEB 24 2007 ARZ074-075-LAZ007>009-015-016-023>026-MSZ018-019-025>066-072>074- 251207- ADAMS-ASHLEY-ATTALA-BOLIVAR-CARROLL-CATAHOULA-CHICOT-CHOCTAW- CLAIBORNE-CLARKE-CLAY-CONCORDIA-COPIAH-COVINGTON-EAST CARROLL- FORREST-FRANKLIN LA-FRANKLIN MS-GRENADA-HINDS-HOLMES-HUMPHREYS- ISSAQUENA-JASPER-JEFFERSON-JEFFERSON DAVIS-JONES-KEMPER-LAMAR- LAUDERDALE-LAWRENCE-LEAKE-LEFLORE-LINCOLN-LOWNDES-MADISON LA- MADISON MS-MARION-MONTGOMERY-MOREHOUSE-NESHOBA-NEWTON-NOXUBEE- OKTIBBEHA-RANKIN-RICHLAND-SCOTT-SHARKEY-SIMPSON-SMITH-SUNFLOWER- TENSAS-WARREN-WASHINGTON-WEBSTER-WEST CARROLL-WINSTON-YAZOO- 0607 AM CST SAT FEB 24 2007 THIS HAZARDOUS WEATHER OUTLOOK IS FOR CENTRAL MISSISSIPPI... NORTHEAST LOUISIANA...AND EXTREME SOUTHEAST ARKANSAS .DAY ONE...TODAY AND TONIGHT... ...THUNDERSTORMS... AN OUTBREAK OF SEVERE WEATHER IS EXPECTED ACROSS THE LOWER MISSISSIPPI VALLEY LATE TODAY THROUGH THIS EVENING WITH WIDESPREAD DAMAGING WINDS AND SIGNIFICANT TORNADOES POSSIBLE. A POWERFUL STORM SYSTEM MOVING INTO THE MID MISSISSIPPI VALLEY REGION LATE TODAY IS EXPECTED TO SET THE STAGE FOR A POTENTIALLY DANGEROUS OUTBREAK OF SEVERE THUNDERSTORMS ACROSS SOUTHEAST ARKANSAS...NORTHEAST LOUISIANA...AND MUCH OF MISSISSIPPI. THE INITIAL STORMS WILL LIKELY DEVELOP THIS MORNING THROUGH EARLY AFTERNOON...MAINLY OVER AREAS NORTHWEST OF THE NATCHEZ TRACE CORRIDOR. THE MAIN RISK ASSOCIATED WITH THESE STORMS WILL BE HAIL UP TO THE SIZE OF QUARTERS. BY MID AFTERNOON...MORE FAVORABLE CONDITIONS FOR SCATTERED SEVERE STORMS CAPABLE OF PRODUCING TORNADOES...VERY LARGE HAIL...AND DAMAGING WINDS WILL DEVELOP ALONG AND WEST OF THE MISSISSIPPI RIVER. THE FAVORABLE AREA FOR SEVERE STORMS WILL SHIFT INTO CENTRAL AND SOUTHERN MISSISSIPPI DURING THE LATE AFTERNOON AND EVENING HOURS AS THE RISK FOR SIGNIFICANT TORNADOES...VERY LARGE HAIL...AND DAMAGING WINDS CONTINUES. BY 6 PM...AN INTENSE SQUALL LINE OF STORMS SHOULD EXTEND ALONG AND JUST EAST OF THE MISSISSIPPI RIVER. THIS LINE WILL BE THE FINAL ROUND OF POTENTIALLY DAMAGING WINDS AS IT SWEEPS EAST AND AT LEAST AFFECTS AREAS NORTH OF INTERSTATE TWENTY IN MISSISSIPPI. RESIDENTS OF EXTREME SOUTHEAST ARKANSAS...NORTHEAST LOUISIANA AND MUCH OF MISSISSIPPI SHOULD CLOSELY MONITOR THE WEATHER SITUATION TODAY AS WIDESPREAD HAZARDOUS WEATHER IS EXPECTED TO DEVELOP BY EARLY THIS EVENING. PEOPLE PLANNING OUTDOOR ACTIVITIES THROUGH THIS EVENING SHOULD ENSURE THAT THEY HAVE WEATHER INFORMATION READILY AVAILABLE...AND HAVE A PLAN TO MOVE TO A PLACE OF SAFETY IF SEVERE WEATHER APPROACHES. ...NON PRECIPITATION... A WIND ADVISORY HAS BEEN ISSUED FOR THE ENTIRE OUTLOOK AREA TODAY INTO THIS EVENING. SUSTAINED WINDS OF 25 TO 30 MPH WITH GUSTS AROUND 40 MPH WILL BE POSSIBLE BEGINNING AROUND BY LATE MORNING. THERE WILL BE AN ENHANCED RISK OF STRONGER WINDS ACROSS THE DELTA WHERE WINDS GUSTS COULD APPROACH AND EVEN EXCEED 50 MPH IN THE AFTERNOON. FOR FURTHER INFORMATION ON THE WIND THREAT REFER TO OUR WIND ADVISORY PRODUCT JANNPWJAN. .DAYS TWO THROUGH SEVEN...SUNDAY THROUGH FRIDAY... NO HAZARDOUS WEATHER IS EXPECTED AT THIS TIME. .SPOTTER CALL TO ACTION STATEMENT... THE ACTIVATION OF STORM SPOTTERS...HAM RADIO OPERATORS...AND EMERGENCY MANAGEMENT PERSONNEL IN SUPPORT OF SEVERE WEATHER OPERATIONS WILL LIKELY BE NEED THIS AFTERNOON THROUGH TONIGHT. OTHERWISE ACTIVATION IS NOT ANTICIPATED THROUGH NEXT SATURDAY. FOR MORE INFORMATION PLEASE VISIT OUR WEBSITE AT WWW.SRH.NOAA.GOV/JAN. THIS INCLUDES THE GRAPHICAL HAZARDOUS WEATHER OUTLOOK.
The national radar mosaic for the moment the first event began.
26 thunderstorm wind, 21 hail, 4 strong wind, 4 tornado. Local standard time, as filed.
Several trees were blown down about 5 miles south of Natchez. This damage was caused during the strong gradient wind gusts in advance of the line of storms.
Several trees were blown down on Carrollton Street and Bowling Green. This damage was caused during the strong gradient wind gusts in advance of the line of storms.
A few trees were blown down in Columbia, one located on Columbia-Purvis Road. This damage was caused during the strong gradient wind gusts well in advance of the line of storms.
A swath of penny to nickel sized hail fell across northern portions of Washington County. This occurred from a severe thunderstorm that moved out of Chicot County and continued into southern Bolivar County where hail continued to fall all the way to Shaw.
A swath of straight line wind damaged occurred from just southwest of Greenville, along Highway 82, to areas within town. Along Highway 82, just before the River bridge, several power lines were blown down. In town, a Hotel sustained roof damage along with a metal car port thrown 30 feet up into a tree. Additionally, a chimney was blown off a mobile home. Many trees were uprooted and snapped along with several power lines down.
A swath of penny to nickel sized hail occurred across southeast Bolivar County around Shaw. This storm moved out of northern Washington County and across southeast Bolivar before weakening as it moved into Sunflower County.
This tornado touched down 6 miles southwest of Indianola and raced northeast toward and across the southern part of town. Numerous trees were snapped along with a few power poles and metal signs blown down. Several sheds were also destroyed along the path. The Kingdom Hall Church, along Highway 49, had half of its roof blown off along with the entire car port destroyed. An area fence was severe damaged as debris was blown along the path. An irrigation pivot system was flipped over and severely damaged just east of town.
Several trees and a few power lines were blown down across the county. One of the downed power lines started a fire in Preston. This damage was caused during the strong gradient wind gusts in advance of the line of storms.
A brief tornado touched down near Schlater. The path was mainly through open field, but one mobile home had its roof blown off with another home sustaining minor damage.
A few trees were blown down around town. One tree damaged a roof to a house.
Intermittent damage occurred from 7 miles west of town to about 5 miles northwest of town. Seven miles west, an awning to a house was knocked over. Northwest of town, a power pole was blown down and a irrigation pivot system was flipped over.
A swath of penny to quarter sized hail fell across most of Grenada County.
Scattered trees blown down across the county.
A few trees and numerous large limbs were blown down. A couple of the downed trees took down some power lines.
Several trees blown down on power lines around Anding.
A few trees were blown down.
A few trees were blown down.
A few trees were blown down on Highway 43.
Several trees and power lines were blown down.
Several trees were blown down.
A couple of trees and a power line were blown down.
Scattered trees and power lines blown down across the county.
A few trees were blown down on the southwest side of Louisville.
A few trees were blown down just north of Columbus AFB.
This tornado briefly touched down at the intersection of Morrow Road and Highway 18 in the Robinhood Community. Numerous hardwood trees were uprooted and pine trees snapped.
A couple of trees were blown down off Highway 98.
Numerous trees were blown down along with several power lines.
A mobile home had a portion of its tin roof peeled off.
Scattered trees were blown down across the county. One mobile home was damaged around Columbus.
A few trees were blown down.
This tornado touched down along Ponderosa Road and tracked northeast for 3.5 miles. The tornado paralleled Interstate 20 for a short while then crossed the interstate just west of mile-marker 101. Numerous hardwood trees were uprooted with numerous pine trees snapped. Several large pine trees blocked the east bound lanes of Interstate 20. The tornado dissipated just north of the interstate.
A few trees were blown down around New Hope.
Several trees and power lines were blown down.
A couple of trees were blown down.
A few trees were blown down around the city with one large tree down on a house.
A couple of trees were blown down around Collins.
A few power lines were blown down in Laurel.
After NWS Directive 10-1605, the rules offices file Storm Data by.
Every storm in Mississippi in 2007Every state in 2007This day in weather historyThe tornado archive for Mississippi, 2007Warnings in Mississippi, February 2007
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: 13926, 13927, 13956, 14188, 14190, 14189, 14197, 14285, 14279, 14280, 14282, 14283, 14281, 14284, 14292, 15447, 15570, 15571, 15593, 15572, 15574, 15580, 15591, 15590, 15595, 15599, 15596, 15604, 15614, 15618, 15605, 15621, 15624, 15630, 15609, 15632, 15642, 15634, 15636, 15639, and more.