Mississippi tornadoes and strong storms on Wednesday brought a tornado watch to the Pine Belt around 2:30 p.m., then multiple warnings across several counties as damage and outages spread. Lamar County Sheriff Danny Rigel reported three injuries and said no fatalities had been reported.
Pine Belt warnings Wednesday
WDAM 7’s First Alert Weather had already declared a First Alert Day for the severe-weather threat. Storm shelters started opening after the tornado watch was issued, and NWS Jackson later issued a tornado warning for Marion, Jefferson Davis, Lawrence and Lincoln counties until 11:45 p.m.
Dixie Electric Power Association said more than 1,500 customers were still without power on Wednesday. PowerOutage.us listed 1,098 customers without power in Jefferson Davis County, adding another measure of how widely the storms disrupted service.
Lamar County damage and roads
Rigel said the county’s emergency management agency building had damage, including the 911 dispatch center. He also said most of the affected roads were down to one lane, and motorists were urged to avoid those areas.
The sheriff’s report also placed the injuries alongside damage on campus and utility disruptions, showing the storm’s effects were not limited to one county or one system. The boil water notice for the northeast section of the Dixie community in Forrest County followed a lightning strike to the association’s main water line.
School changes Thursday
Lamar Christian School said it would be closed Thursday and Friday because of loss of power and “notable damage” on campus. Lamar County Schools said Purvis and Baxterville schools would operate on a two-hour delay Thursday, while Sumrall, Oak Grove and Lumberton schools remained on normal schedules.
For residents and families in the affected area, the immediate decisions were about access, power and school start times. The storm response has already shifted from warning mode to cleanup and limited service restoration, with Dixie Community Utility Association saying it would restore service “as soon as possible.”
