3 tornadoes touched down across the Coast on Wednesday. One of them damaged homes.
Three EF-2 tornadoes touched down in Harrison and Jackson counties Wednesday, causing damage to some homes, downing trees and power lines and spreading debris in its wake, the National Weather Service confirmed
“It started on Big John Road in Harrison County,” D’Iberville Police Chief Wayne Payne said Wednesday. “We’ve got a bunch of trees down and we’ve got fire trucks and the fire chief out here. I just saw a tree down in a driveway and I stopped to check on the residents.”
A tornado first touched down shortly before 1 p.m. around Big John Road in east Harrison County near the D’Iberville city limits.
“It came through with that wave of bad weather,” Payne said.
In Jackson County, two tornadoes swept through the area around 1:30 p.m. Wednesday, the NWS said.
One passed over Interstate 10 at mile marker 56 near the Gautier and Vancleave exits, according to Jackson County Emergency Services Director Earl Etheridge.
A second touched ground Lilly Orchard and Goff roads in the Helena and Hurley communities, Etheridge said.
In Gautier and Ocean Springs, Etheridge received reports of downed trees.
No injuries have been reported.
In Harrison County, Fire Chief Pat Sullivan said about six or seven homes sustained roof damage, some some with trees on top of them, and others with shingles missing.
In addition, sheds and other outdoor building sustained damages, Sullivan said.
“Once it came through, we started getting calls about trees and powers lines down and trees on fire,” he said, though no injuries were reported.
Several residents from Biloxi to Jackson County reported seeing the sky turn black, and lights starting to flicker inside before the twisters touched down.
EF-2 tornadoes pack winds between 115 and 157 mph.
Dorothy Wilson, publisher of Gulf Coast Women’s Magazine and co-founder of the Success Women’s Conference, said in a Facebook post that she and her staff sought shelter in a bathroom when the tornado passed through the area. Wilson and the group prayed for their safety.
After the bad weather passed over the area, Coast power company crews responded to start restoring to power to the affected homes and businesses.
In addition to D’Iberville police and firefighters, the Harrison County fire crews and Harrison County Sheriff’s Office responded to the reports of damages.
Jackson County authorities, including fire firefighters, responded to damage reports there.
This story was originally published June 24, 2020 at 3:04 PM.
