Thursday storms wreak havoc across Scott County with 32 tornadoes verified statewide
On April 18 a severe supercell thunderstorm produced at least 32 tornadoes in Mississippi, four of which caused significant damage to many parts of Scott County. Residents throughout the county were affected by this widespread storm that caused extensive damage in multiple cities and communityies.
Many local residents suffered through the after effects of not having electricity for days, and in the worst hit areas, like Dummy Line Road in Morton, residents lost their homes and most of their belongings in a matter of seconds.
The storm was not a surprise weather event. The local and national weather services had been warning residents of the possible dangers associated with it since the preceding Monday. Most everyone was aware that the storm was coming, but could not imagine the extent of damage it would cause until after it had pushed through the county and off to the northeast.
The National Weather Service in Jackson has confirmed that at least 32 tornadoes touched down across Mississippi. The tornadoes that spent time on the ground range in intensity from an EF-0 to an EF-2 on the Fujita Tornado Intensity Scale. The Fujita Scale classifies the intensity of a tornado based on the amount of damage or destruction they cause. The number of tornado touch downs could rise as surveyors continued their work Monday and Tuesday surveying destruction paths and debris fields of suspected tornadoes.
Scott County Emergency Management Director Mike Marlow said that the four tornadoes that touched down in the county ranged in intensity from an EF-0 to an EF-2. “This was a strong destructive storm, but we were fortunate as we had no fatalities and no injuries due to the tornadoes,” Marlow reported. “We had 44 homes sustain major damage in Morton and another six structures outside the Morton area sustained significant damage. The four confirmed touch downs were in different parts of the county. In addition to the tornado in Morton we had a EF-0 and one EF-1 hit on Hwy 13 South near the county line and one EF-1 hit in the Lena and Coal Bluff area causing significant damage.”
Of the four tornadoes in the county, the tornado that touched down in Morton on Dummy Line Road and Oakdale Avenue was the most destructive and has been classified as a F2 twister that packed wind speeds from 115 MPH to 157 MPH. “The tornado that hit the Dummy Line Road area of Morton had a path approximately 600 yards wide and stayed on the ground for six miles per storm tracker,” Marlow added.
Heading early warnings from news and weather outlets, many schools and businesses closed early on Thursday in preparation for the storm. The inclement weather first reached the southwest part of the county at approximately 3:30 p.m. Thursday afternoon. The weather conditions quickly worsened and reports of possible tornadoes started not long after. The storm essentially covered the entire county and spawned numerous tornadoes both on the ground as well as numerous other tornadoes that remained in the air never actually touching ground.
The clean-up efforts on Dummy Line Road and Oakdale Avenue continue today as the debris piles on the sides of the roads continue to grow higher. The amount of damage and debris left in the tornadoes path was extensive, and some of the debris piles have already reached up to 20 feet tall, but the residents spirits remain good even though some of their homes are a total loss.
The residents on Dummyline and Oakdale were feeling very blessed this week for surviving such an ordeal and because no one was hurt or killed during the tornado.
Houston Westerfield, has lived on Dummy Line for more than 59 years and said that even though his house was destroyed he was feeling very blessed that both he and his wife survived. “My wife was looking out our back door when the wind really got bad so we started moving as fast as we could to the hallway and then it got really bad,” Westerfield said. “All of a sudden there was a bad noise and then our roof was pulled right off the house and I thought this may be my time to go. But just as fast as it started it was over and we were both still here, but look at my house.” Houston was referring to his home that is missing the roof on a majority of the home.
“Even though we have lost our home we have each other and that’s why we are feeling so blessed sitting here with no house and no electricity,” said Westerfield. “It happened so fast that we did not even have a chance to get down in the hallway before it hit and it was gone. It was over in just a couple of seconds, but we still have each other so that is what’s important to us.”
The Westerfields were not the only family to lose their home in the storm. There were numerous homes on both Dummyline and Oakdale that were total losses, as well as many other homes up and down the streets that had varying degrees of damage. The whole neighborhood is coming together to help one another, and they were grateful for the quick response of local and state officials.
“The Mississippi Emergency Management director was on site first thing Friday morning, and the governor and Congressman Michael Guest have both come to view the damage in Morton,” Marlow said. I cannot say enough about our county and city first responders, volunteers and private citizens who were offering their equipment and assistance to help in any way they could. The job they have done is simply amazing. We had new power poles installed and all power and utilities back in Morton within 48 hours of the storm.”
Additionally, area churches have come out in force to offer their help. “The local churches have come out in huge numbers to help in every way they can. They have brought manpower as well as badly needed supplies that has really helped the clean-up effort,” said Marlow. “We could not have got as much done without the help of North Morton Baptist Church that has been helping with feeding all the workers and volunteers.”
Marlow went on to say that the whole county has pulled together during this time. “My phone has been ringing off the hook and many of the calls are people wanting to know how they can help,” he said. “Even when you have tragedies like this storm when you have people like we do here in Scott County it sure makes the recover effort that much easier on those residents who have already suffered significant loses.”
See additional photos on page 16 of our e-edition.
