Tornadoes · United States · Mississippi

Tornadoes in Jefferson Davis County, Mississippi

61 tornadoes have crossed Jefferson Davis County since 1950, 11 of them surveyed so far this year and still preliminary, 18th of the 82 counties in Mississippi with a tornado on record, an average of one every 1.2 years. They have killed 22 people and injured 259. 4 were rated F4 or EF4 and above.

The rating scale

Tracks are drawn in the color of the rating. The United States rated tornadoes on Ted Fujita’s F scale until 31 January 2007 and on the Enhanced Fujita scale after it. Both run from 0 to 5, and both rate the damage rather than measure the wind: the speeds are what that damage is taken to imply.

  1. F0 / EF040 to 72 mph on the F scale, 65 to 85 mph on the EF scale

    Light damage. Surface peeled off some roofs, gutters and siding damaged, branches broken, shallow-rooted trees pushed over.

  2. F1 / EF173 to 112 mph on the F scale, 86 to 110 mph on the EF scale

    Moderate damage. Roofs badly stripped, mobile homes overturned or badly damaged, exterior doors lost, windows broken.

  3. F2 / EF2113 to 157 mph on the F scale, 111 to 135 mph on the EF scale

    Considerable damage. Roofs torn off well-built houses, frame homes shifted on their foundations, mobile homes destroyed, large trees snapped or uprooted, cars lifted off the ground.

  4. F3 / EF3158 to 206 mph on the F scale, 136 to 165 mph on the EF scale

    Severe damage. Whole stories of well-built houses destroyed, large buildings badly damaged, trains overturned, trees debarked, heavy cars lifted and thrown.

  5. F4 / EF4207 to 260 mph on the F scale, 166 to 200 mph on the EF scale

    Devastating damage. Well-built houses leveled, structures with weak foundations moved some distance, cars thrown and large missiles generated.

  6. F5 / EF5261 to 318 mph on the F scale, over 200 mph on the EF scale

    Incredible damage. Strong frame houses swept off their foundations, car-sized missiles thrown more than 100 meters, steel-reinforced concrete badly damaged, high-rise buildings deformed.

  7. Unrated

    The survey recorded a tornado but could not put a number on it, most often because it crossed open country and damaged nothing a rating can be read from.

Now

Tornadoes
61
Deaths
22
Injuries
259
F4 and above
4
Worst on record
EF4, April 12, 2020

The deadliest in Jefferson Davis County

  1. EF4 Bassfield–Soso tornado, MississippiApril 12, 20207 killed, 98 injured
  2. EF4 Tylertown tornado, Louisiana and MississippiMarch 15, 20256 killed, 6 injured
  3. F4, Lawrence and Jefferson Davis counties, MississippiApril 18, 19784 killed, 31 injured
  4. EF4 Hope–Bassfield tornado, MississippiApril 12, 20204 killed, 3 injured
  5. EF2, Marion, Jefferson Davis and Covington counties, MississippiMarch 15, 20251 killed, 1 injured

The strongest

  1. EF4 Bassfield–Soso tornado, MississippiApril 12, 2020EF4, 67.4 mi (108 km)
  2. EF4 Tylertown tornado, Louisiana and MississippiMarch 15, 2025EF4, 67.2 mi (108 km)
  3. EF4 Hope–Bassfield tornado, MississippiApril 12, 2020EF4, 22.1 mi (36 km)
  4. F4, Lawrence and Jefferson Davis counties, MississippiApril 18, 1978F4, 19.1 mi (31 km)
  5. EF3, Lawrence, Jefferson Davis, Covington and Jones counties, MississippiApril 12, 2020EF3, 83.2 mi (134 km)
  6. F3, Jefferson Davis and Covington counties, MississippiNovember 21, 1992F3, 27.0 mi (43 km)
  7. F3, Jefferson Davis and Covington counties, MississippiDecember 15, 1971F3, 15.9 mi (26 km)
  8. F3, Jefferson Davis County, MississippiMay 7, 1982F3, 6.0 mi (10 km)
  9. F3, Jefferson Davis County, MississippiDecember 10, 1971F3, 0.1 mi (0 km)
  10. EF2, Marion, Jefferson Davis and Covington counties, MississippiMarch 15, 2025EF2, 18.2 mi (29 km)

Every year with a tornado

The 32 years of the 76 in the record with a tornado in Jefferson Davis County. Each year links to every tornado in Mississippi that year.

YearTornadoesDeathsInjuriesStrongest
202611EF1
2025677EF4
20241EF1
20231EF0
20225EF2
20211EF0
2020511103EF4
201911EF2
20182EF1
20171EF0
20161EF1
20131EF2
20121EF0
20111EF1
20091EF1
20082EF1
20072EF1
20061F0
20051F1
20042F1
20031F1
20011F0
19951F0
19941F1
19931F0
19921105F3
19821F3
19781431F4
19721F2
19712F3
19681F2
1961212F2

Every tornado that crossed Jefferson Davis County

61 tornadoes, newest first. 1 of them touched down in a neighboring state and ran in, so the record files it under that state rather than Mississippi. The 11 at the top are this year's, from the surveying office rather than SPC's published database, and their ratings are marked as preliminary.

DateTimeRatingWherePath (mi)Width (yd)DeathsInjuriesDamage
January 10, 20264:21 AM CSTEF1Jefferson Davis5.3350
February 15, 202612:32 AM CSTEF1Jefferson Davis3.8350
February 15, 202612:38 AM CSTEF1Jefferson Davis5.9200
February 15, 202612:47 AM CSTEF1Jefferson Davis2.1150
March 11, 20268:31 PM CDTEF1Jefferson Davis10.1500
March 11, 20268:41 PM CDTEF1Jefferson Davis2.9250
March 11, 20268:41 PM CDTEF1Jefferson Davis3.1400
March 11, 20268:46 PM CDTEF1Jefferson Davis12.0700
March 11, 20268:48 PM CDTEF1Jefferson Davis3.2400
April 24, 202610:23 PM CDTEF1Jefferson Davis1.6150
May 6, 20268:54 PM CDTEF0Jefferson Davis3.7200
April 6, 20252:51 AM CDTEF1Jefferson Davis1.4300$75,000
March 15, 20253:03 PM CDTEF2Marion18.21,16011
March 15, 20252:11 PM CDTEF2Jefferson Davis12.6600
March 15, 202512:17 PM CDTEF4Tylertown tornado67.21,40066$5.5 million
January 31, 20253:13 AM CSTEF0Jefferson Davis0.575$15,000
January 5, 20258:32 PM CSTEF1Simpson4.0300$41,000
December 28, 20247:15 PM CSTEF1Jefferson Davis0.3200$35,000
February 16, 20232:27 PM CSTEF0Jefferson Davis0.150$40,000
December 14, 20227:58 AM CSTEF1Jefferson Davis6.5250$50,000
November 29, 20225:13 PM CSTEF1Jefferson Davis3.9400$60,000
November 29, 20225:03 PM CSTEF0Jefferson Davis3.470$5,000
April 5, 20227:09 AM CDTEF2Jefferson Davis14.8400$150,000
April 5, 20227:06 AM CDTEF1Jefferson Davis3.1100$40,000
May 18, 20212:59 PM CDTEF0Jefferson Davis1.0300$75,000
December 24, 202012:25 AM CSTEF0Jefferson Davis2.0400$30,000
April 12, 20204:36 PM CDTEF3Lawrence83.22,0412$18 million
April 12, 20204:12 PM CDTEF4Bassfield–Soso tornado67.43,960798$62 million
April 12, 20203:38 PM CDTEF4Hope–Bassfield tornado22.11,93643$2.8 million
March 4, 20204:39 AM CSTEF0Jefferson Davis9.3400$26,000
December 16, 20194:44 PM CSTEF2Lawrence10.76001$585,000
April 6, 201811:18 PM CDTEF1Jefferson Davis2.9440$60,000
April 6, 201811:01 PM CDTEF1Jefferson Davis4.7350$25,000
August 30, 201712:35 PM CDTEF0Jefferson Davis1.150$15,000
July 10, 20166:17 PM CDTEF1Jefferson Davis0.8260$110,000
February 21, 201310:31 PM CSTEF2Jefferson Davis6.3400$175,000
March 2, 201211:47 PM CSTEF0Jefferson Davis0.350$60,000
November 16, 20114:11 AM CSTEF1Marion9.6440$300,000
May 3, 200911:07 AM CDTEF1Jefferson Davis8.4400$262,000
December 9, 200811:24 PM CSTEF1Jefferson Davis3.450$100,000
September 1, 20082:00 PM CDTEF0Jefferson Davis1.350$2,000
October 17, 20077:30 PM CDTEF1Jefferson Davis0.3100$100,000
February 13, 20074:13 AM CSTEF0Jefferson Davis3.075$5,000
October 16, 20065:12 PM CDTF0Jefferson Davis1.040
March 26, 20058:43 PM CSTF1Jefferson Davis2.075$20,000
May 1, 20044:32 PM CDTF1Jefferson Davis6.0100$10,000
May 1, 20043:43 PM CDTF1Jefferson Davis9.0300$30,000
November 27, 20034:11 AM CSTF1Jefferson Davis2.0400$10,000
February 16, 20013:35 PM CSTF0Marion3.0150$20,000
October 27, 19954:55 PM CDTF0Jefferson Davis2.0100$500 to $5,000
January 27, 19946:07 PM CSTF1Jefferson Davis4.0100$50,000 to $500,000
December 4, 19937:21 AM CSTF0Jefferson Davis2.050
November 21, 199211:23 PM CSTF3Jefferson Davis27.0880105$500,000 to $5 million
May 7, 198212:35 PM CDTF3Jefferson Davis6.0200$50,000 to $500,000
April 18, 197812:30 AM CSTF4Lawrence19.1100431$50,000 to $500,000
January 9, 19726:00 PM CSTF2Jefferson Davis2.033$5,000 to $50,000
December 15, 19716:15 AM CSTF3Jefferson Davis15.9150$5,000 to $50,000
December 10, 19719:00 AM CSTF3Jefferson Davis0.117$500 to $5,000
November 17, 19687:45 AM GMT-6F2Lawrence10.810
February 20, 19615:30 PM GMT-6F2Jefferson Davis15.4734$50,000 to $500,000
February 20, 19615:10 PM GMT-6F2Marion17.0738$5,000 to $50,000

Nearby

Warnings in force in Jefferson Davis CountyThe forecast for Jefferson Davis CountyThe live radar over Jefferson Davis CountyEvery county in Mississippi

What this means

Ratings are the survey's, read off the damage rather than measured; the rating scale is above. Tornado counts rise through the record as reporting improved, so a year in the 1950s is not comparable with one today except for the strongest tornadoes, which were always noticed.

Sources

NOAA Storm Prediction Center tornado database, 1950-2025, the official record kept by NOAA's Storm Prediction Center.