A line of severe storms moved across MS during the afternoon/evening hours of March 15 2026. Some of these thunderstorms produced damaging wind gusts that downed trees and powerlines.
Every event with a place to put it. 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.
A line of severe storms moved across MS during the afternoon/evening hours of March 15 2026. Some of these thunderstorms produced damaging wind gusts that downed trees and powerlines. Some of these storms produced hail.
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 Mar 15, 11:47 AM CST, 43 minutes earlier. Its key messages:
Area Forecast Discussion...UPDATED
National Weather Service Jackson MS
1247 PM CDT Sun Mar 15 2026
...New AVIATION...
.KEY MESSAGES...
- A strong cold front will bring a variety of impacts to the
area as we go into early next week.
- There is an enhanced risk for severe weather, especially for
damaging winds.
- Strong winds will also precede and follow the cold front mid
morning through Monday afternoon.
- Much colder air moving in Monday will bring a significant hard freeze
threat to much of the area Monday night.
&&
.DISCUSSION...
Issued at 154 AM CDT Sun Mar 15 2026
Updates today: Messaging for severe weather tonight remains on
track. There has been a slight adjustment north for the enhanced
risk, with focus mainly along and north of the I-20 corridor. The
wind advisory has been expanded to include much of the rest of the
area due to increased confidence for stronger winds. The significant
freeze threat has been expanded to include the remaining area as
guidance continues to trend colder for Monday night. In the wake of
storms as the front is pushing through early Monday morning, cold
air is outrunning the precip. There is an uptrend in CAM guidance
for the potential for a very brief window of snow showers/flurries
around dawn Monday morning, none of which are expected to be
impactful.
In the near term: High pressure shifts east today ahead of a rapidly
approaching strong cold front. Wind will begin to pick up from the
south and bring an increase in boundary layer moisture. A stout
upper trough will support a rapidly deepening surface low across the
plains, and its aforementioned attendant surface cold front
continues to be the focus for our next round of hazards.
Concerning the wind threat: Strong pressure falls and rises either
side of the front in association with this dynamic system will
result in a strong gradient wind threat both ahead of and in the
wake of storms tonight. A wind advisory will be maintained for the
Delta region, and expanded to include much of the rest of the area,
with the exception of Marion, Lamar, and Forest counties, as
confidence is lower there.
Concerning the severe threat: The strong forcing and shear, along
with sufficient instability along/just ahead of the front, will
support a forced squall line racing across the area Sunday night.
The enhanced severe risk continues to be messaged, with the latest
update highlighting areas mostly along and north of the I-20
corridor. The greater severe threat area looks to be over our
northwest where the combination of instability/forcing will be
greatest, and where updraft intensity and low level environment seem
strong enough in the guidance for some tornado potential,
particularly with any segments orthogonal to the low level shear
vector, and with discrete cellular development ahead of the main
line, which seems most probable in northwest portions of our area.
Tornadoes and hail will be a concern, but the potential for areas of
widespread damaging straight-line winds, is still the main concern.
Concerning the freeze threat: In the wake of the cold front, a polar
surface high will usher in a much colder airmass, and will promote
freezing temperatures Monday night into Tuesday morning, and to a
lesser extent, Wednesday morning. Areawide impacts are likely.
Therefore have expanded the significant to include the rest of the
area, while an extreme is highlighted in the northeast where hard
freezing temperatures are expected and it could remain below
freezing for 6-10 hours. Especially considering the recent record
warmth, and with highs in the 80s also expected Sunday ahead of this
freeze, impacts to unprotected vegetation are expected. And, with
more low temperatures now forecast to fall into the low to mid 20s
Tue morning, there will also be a significant threat to early season
fruit crops. We may eventually need messaging for Tue night when the
surface high will be in a more ideal position, but impacts should be
less then with the thermal trough beginning to shift out of our
region.
In addition, it is worth noting that confidence has increased in a
very short window (1 to 2 hours) for snow showers/flurries on the
back end of the front, indicative of colder air outrunning precip.
Any showers that do occur are not expected to be impactful and will
be brief, but will be a cool phenomenon in the wake of severe
weather in mid March.
Thereafter, a significant warm-up is expected for mid to late next
week with building heights over the region. Highs will rise back
above seasonal norms with readings in the upper 70s and low 80s by
Friday. A strong midlevel high over the desert southwest will keep
northerly flow over our area which will maintain warm and dry
conditions. /SAS/EC/
&&
.AVIATION...
(18Z TAFS)
Issued at 1238 PM CDT Sun Mar 15 2026
VFR conditions and a gusty south wind 25-35kts wl prevail through
00Z Mon. After 00Z a band of TSRA along and ahead of a cold front
will begin moving nw-se across the area. Lower flight restrictions
along with gusts in excess of 45kts wl be psbl for 2-3hrs as the
band of TSRA move through. Gusty nw wind 20-25kts and MVFR cigs wl
prevail in the wake of the TSRA until Cigs improve toward the end
of the TAF period. /22/
&&
.PRELIMINARY POINT TEMPS/POPS...
Jackson 83 37 48 27 / 10 90 20 0
Meridian 81 37 49 26 / 0 90 10 0
Vicksburg 83 38 49 27 / 20 90 10 0
Hattiesburg 84 42 54 29 / 10 90 30 0
Natchez 84 39 51 28 / 10 90 20 0
Greenville 80 35 45 27 / 60 80 0 0
Greenwood 82 36 46 24 / 40 90 10 0
&&
.JAN WATCHES/WARNINGS/ADVISORIES...
MS...Wind Advisory until 7 PM CDT Monday for MSZ018-019-025-034-035-
040-041.
Freeze Watch from Monday evening through Tuesday morning for
MSZ018-019-025>066-072>074.
Wind Advisory until noon CDT Monday for MSZ026>033-036>039-
042>066.
LA...Wind Advisory until 7 PM CDT Monday for LAZ007>009-015-016-
023>026.
Freeze Watch from Monday evening through Tuesday morning for
LAZ007>009-015-016-023>026.
AR...Wind Advisory until 7 PM CDT Monday for ARZ074-075.
Freeze Watch from Monday evening through Tuesday morning for
ARZ074-075.
&&
SAS20/EC/22The Columbus AFB radar (KGWX), 138 km away, was scanning. The volume nearest the first event began at 18:33 UTC.
29 thunderstorm wind, 1 hail. Local standard time, as filed.
A powerline was blown down in the Whitehaven subdivision. This downed powerline caused a grass fire.
A few power poles were leaning along Hwy 8.
A 52 mph wind gust was measured at an ASOS site near the Metcalfe area.
A large tree limb was blown down and went through a roof on Sunset Drive.
A few power poles were blown down along Hwy 448.
A power pole was blown down.
Multiple powerlines were blown due to strong thunderstorm winds along Hwy 8.
Power lines and trees were blown down through town. A home on Clay Road had roof damage.
Numerous street signs were blown down due to strong thunderstorm winds.
Multiple trees were blown down on the east side of town.
Trees were blown down across US Highway 49 near MS Highway 12.
A tree fell on an apartment along Kent Street.
A few powerlines were blown down.
A few trees and powerlines were blown down across town.
A few trees were blown down on the west side of the county.
Numerous streets were blown down.
A few trees were blown down on the east side of the county and around West Point.
Law enforcement reported trees down across the road by Holmes Hollow Lane.
A tree was blown down on a house on Green Street, and tin roof panels from an outbuilding were wrapped around a power pole.
A tree was blown on McNair Road.
Trees and branches were blown down across from the Choctaw Fire Station.
A few scattered trees were blown down in the west part of the county.
A tree fell on a trailer on Sistrunk Ave.
Several trees were down in the SE part of the county, along Hwy 98, FC Allen road and Little Springs road. A couple of powerlines were down as well.
A few scattered trees were blown down in the east part of the county.
Tin roof panels were wrapped around a power pole. Structures appear to be an outbuilding or shed.
A tree was down across Lower Brookhaven road.
A tree was down on a home.
A couple of powerlines were down due to limbs or trees in the SE part of the county.
Reports of pea-sized hail in Brookhaven.
After NWS Directive 10-1605, the rules offices file Storm Data by.
Every storm in Mississippi in 2026Every state in 2026This day in weather historyWarnings in Mississippi, March 2026
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: 1315499, 1315493, 1315496, 1315491, 1315488, 1315483, 1315460, 1315447, 1315449, 1315446, 1344486, 1315444, 1315441, 1315438, 1315437, 1315443, 1315431, 1315434, 1315429, 1315399, 1315398, 1315396, 1315397, 1315395, 1315392, 1315405, 1315310, 1315306, 1315304, 1315302.