Saturday, April 16, 2011

More on Jackson, MS Area Tornado of 4-15-11



The above image is a closeup of storm reports from the Jackson, MS area from yesterday.  Text boxes with details of significant tornado damage have also be pinned to the image where appropriate.


In the immediate Jackson area, widespread damage took place generally along a swath from the Clinton area, Northeastward across mainly western and northern Jackson to near Ridgeland.  The map below is an approximation of the track of the tornado, based on the NWS survey and radar data:




The survey has determined that the tornado touched down near Airport Rd. about 4 miles SW of Clinton at 10:51 a.m., and lifted near the intersection of S. Pear Orchard and Old Canton Rd. in southeast Ridgeland at approximately 11:17 a.m.  This path length was 17 miles.  The widest point is about 3/10 of one mile.  Based on damage in a neighborhood in Clinton, to the Southwest of Highway 80 and just South of Clinton Blvd, a low end EF-3 intensity has been assigned (as noted by black arrow on the above map).  Most of the remainder of the damage was EF-1 to EF-2 intensity.




First series of damage photos below are from the Clinton area:







A Clinton area resident captured this image of the tornado as it moved into town:


Someone else in the same parking lot (reportedly outside the Mazzio's Pizza) shot this video of the tornado.  Note the electric transformer flashes that begin at about 22 seconds into the video:



And here is another view from an unknown location in Clinton:



This next set of damage images comes from Northern portions of the City of Jackson:







Below is a video showing the tornado as it moved across Northern portions of the City of Jackson (I suggest turning the audio down - it adds nothing to what you are seeing):


Below are radar images from the Jackson, MS radar as the storm progressed through the area.  The left half of each image is the radar in reflectivity mode (i.e., rain, hail, etc.), while the right half of the image is the radar in velocity (wind motion) mode.  Times are noted below each image (click to enlarge):


15:39 GMT (10:39 AM CDT)

15:52 GMT (10:52 AM CDT)

15:57 GMT (10:57 AM CDT)

16:02 GMT (11:02 AM CDT)

16:06 GMT (11:06 AM CDT)

16:11 GMT (11:11 AM CDT)

16:15 GMT (11:15 AM CDT)

16:20 GMT (11:20 AM CDT)

16:25 GMT (11:25 AM CDT)

Remember, when examining the velocity data, greens show winds blowing toward the radar site, while reds show winds blowing away from the radar site.  The radar site is located toward the right hand side of the image, where the "KDGX" is shown in light blue.

3 comments:

Anonymous said...

Great blog...thanks. One thing though, the video from Reed Timmons (tornadovideos.net) is actually of Clinton, MS, which is west of Jackson. The start of the video is from behind the movie theater, located along I-20. The tornado then hits Pine Trails apartments, crosses Springridge and hits a doctors office, Springridge trailer park, Popeyes, Bank Plus and then blows across I-20, hitting Home Depot and continues on a path northeast towards Jackson, doing severe damage to neighborhoods along Highway 80. I live in the Easthaven area, which was hardest hit. It went between a daycare center and an elementary school with 400 children huddled together in the halls. It tore homes up across the street from the school but did minimal damage to the school before hitting the neighbors behind the school hard again. If anyone ever wondered if there was a God, there's your answer.

Rob White said...

Anonymous, thanks, glad to hear you enjoyed the post. I'm very glad to hear that it sounds as if you and your family came out of this okay, despite being a very close call!

Thanks for the information on the video location. When I can't make out any landmarks, street names, etc., I just have to roll with what is provided by the source of the video, which at the time was "West Jackson". I think many view Clinton as a "part" of Jackson anyway, and since it's on the West side of town, that probably also contributed to their use of that identifying location.

Unknown said...

I remember that day. I worked for Strayer University in Northern Jackson and we were all sent home before it hit. I lived in an apartment in Ridgeland and tracked the tornado as it headed my way. At one point I called my husband in Indiana from my position in the bathtub with my little Chihuahua Yoshi, with a twin mattress over us. I left him a message of just two words in a very scary tiny voice: it's here. What a scary time that was!

Tina